Digital Business in India: A Q&A Guide

With the financial year ending in March 2023, there was a flurry of activity by financial services regulators. In particular, the Government of India has expressed its interest in the crypto ecosystem by expanding the Prevention of Money Laundering A...

The continuous advancements in the fintech sector in the recent past has led to some key developments in this space, which has influenced the landscape of financial services in India. In this issue of the fintech newsletter, INDUSLAW's Avimukt Dar Su...

The fintech industry continues to evolve at an unprecedented pace, driven by advances in technology, changing consumer preferences, and regulatory developments. We at INDUSLAW have been closely monitoring these developments, and in this newsletter, I...

The final quarter of the year 2022 witnessed several regulatory movements which have the potential of bringing about a sea of change in the fintech sector and provides an optimistic outlook to what lies ahead in 2023. INDUSLAW’s Avimukt Dar, Suneet...

We are pleased to share our Newsletter covering key legal, regulatory and policy updates from India for the quarter of October 2022 to December 2022.

The manifold expansion of the digital space in terms of presence and activities of users, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic has resulted in paradigm shifts in the existing regulatory regime in India which was prompted by the Reserve Bank of Indi...

With the final quarter of the financial year 2021-2022 coming to a close, we note that the Indian fintech sector has witnessed strong growth amounting to a market size of United States Dollars 31 billion. The Reserve Bank of India is cognizant of thi...

The Indian fintech sector provides an optimistic outlook for the upcoming year of 2022. INDUSLAW’s Avimukt Dar, Suneeth Katarki, Namita Viswanath, Shreya Suri, Raghav Muthanna, Aditya Girish Chandra, and Abhijit Chakrabarti, discuss the key develop...

The Indian fintech sector has continued to grow and attract investments. In line with the policy objective of consumer protection and to make digital payment systems more secure and convenient for consumers, the RBI has introduced some important chan...

The Indian fintech space remains one of the fastest growing sectors, with companies evolving new business models to digitise more aspects of banking and financial services and expand their offerings into overseas markets. INDUSLAW discusses key devel...

The Fintech sector in India has continued to grow despite the Covid-19 pandemic and is now one of the largest fintech markets worldwide. INDUSLAW discusses key developments in the Indian fintech space from January 01, 2021, to March 31, 2021.

SPACs have been the buzzword in financial markets in the US and India. With more investors training their binoculars towards the subcontinent, INDUSLAW's Suneeth Katarki, Rashi Saraf, and Stuti Agarwal examine SPACs as an acquisition route from an In...

In response to the mass dissemination of fake news and offensive/ unregulated content online, the Indian Government has issued a Digital Media Ethics Code for intermediaries, social media companies and OTT Platforms. INDUSLAW’s Avimukt Dar, Suneeth...

The Indian fintech market has continued to grow and evolve, with the Covid-19 pandemic accelerating digitization amongst consumers, micro, small and medium enterprises (“MSMEs”), banks, and other financial institutions, including in rural and rem...

Despite the recent economic slowdown in India with the extended lock-down, the fintech industry has continued to attract investments, with Covid-19 having fast-tracked adoption of digital solutions by consumers, banks, and insurance companies. The In...

The economic disruptions owing to the current pandemic, have impacted funding globally, with venture-backed investments in India falling drastically between March and June 2020, as compared to the same period last year.Although, given the increased...

Despite the economic slowdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Indian fin-tech sector has done exceedingly well this past quarter, with uninterrupted innovation and investments in the space. Fin-tech enterprises bundling their services with banks sh...

With the growing uncertainty around the COVID-19 situation, parties have begun to evaluate what customarily gets built into transaction documents as a clause relating to material adverse effect or material adverse change ('MAE/MAC'). INDUSLAW's Sunee...

The fin-tech sector in India has been witnessing increased attention and growth on account of digital inclusion, technological innovations, and interest from second-time entrepreneurs like Kunal Shah (FreeCharge and Cred) and Ashish Kashyap (GoIbibo ...

INDUSLAW is a multi-speciality Indian law firm with 42 partners and over 150 lawyers across four offices in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. We advise foreign and domestic clients on matters of Indian law in relation ...

INDUSLAW is a multi-speciality Indian law firm with 42 partners and over 150 lawyers across four offices in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. We advise foreign and domestic clients on matters of Indian law in relation to their transactions, dis...

The Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 (the '2019 Bill') was introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 11, 2019 by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The 2019 Bill has been formulated largely in line with the provisions of the Dra...

The fin-tech sector has rapidly expanded out of the back-end technology used by large financial institutions, to cover all emerging technological innovations having a bearing on financial services. The fin-tech industry has been witnessing a contin...

INDUSLAW brings you key regulatory and legal developments in various sectors in India on a quarterly basis.INDUSLAW is a multi-speciality Indian law firm with 36 partners and over 100 lawyers across four offices in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mum...

In March 2019, the Draft National e-Commerce Policy was introduced, which delved into e-commerce issues relating to encompassing data, infrastructure development, e-commerce marketplaces, regulatory issues, stimulating the domestic digital economy, a...

Proposed amendments to the rules governing online intermediaries were published at the end of 2018, intending to curb the posting of illegal online content and increase accountability. INDUSLAW shared its views with the Ministry of Electronics and In...

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India recently released a consultation paper on the regulatory framework for over-the-top communication services, inviting comments from interested stakeholders. INDUSLAW shared its views on a number of important i...

Even though loyalty and reward programs offered by marketplaces are currently operating in an unregulated environment, there is a fine line of differentiation in the way semi-closed system pre-paid instruments and loyalty or reward programs offered a...

The media and entertainment industry has consistently grown and continues to grow at a global level, particularly with the advent of new mediums for distribution, supported by dynamic technological advancements. The Indian market has not only followe...

The recent judgement of the Supreme Court of India, upholding the validity of Aadhaar while striking out parts of the Aadhaar Act which permitted body corporates to use the Aadhaar number of an individual for establishing the identity of an individua...

The Q&A gives a high level overview of matters relating to regulations and regulatory bodies for doing business online, setting up an online business, electronic contracts and signatures, data retention requirements, security of online transactions a...

What makes something new or original? Have you ever thought about the originality of your sandals that you wear on your feet and the design rights that relate to it? When you glide your ball-point pen across paper, signing your name on a birthday car...

INDUSLAW brings you key regulatory and legal developments across various sectors in India on a monthly basis.

The long-awaited Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018 (the 'Bill') was released on July 27, 2018, along with the report by the Committee of Experts under the chairmanship of Justice B. N. Srikrishna (the 'Report').

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) released a whitepaper on the proposed "a data protection regulatory framework for India" in November 2017. INDUSLAW along with several other stakeholders provided its views on various asp...

INDUSLAW is a multi-speciality Indian law firm with 24 partners and over 100 lawyers across four offices in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. We advise foreign and domestic clients on matters of Indian law in relation to their transactions, dis...

INDUSLAW is a multi-speciality Indian law firm with 24 partners and over 100 lawyers across four offices in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. We advise foreign and domestic clients on matters of Indian law in relation to their transactions, ...

This Newsletter brings to you significant IP updates from the first quarter of this year. The past few months have seen a couple of very important judgments that emphasized the importance of novelty and the impact of prior publications of registered ...

INDUSLAW is a multi-speciality Indian law firm with 24 partners and over 100 lawyers across four offices in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. We advise foreign and domestic clients with respect to transactions, dispute resolution, business s...

INDUSLAW is a multi-speciality Indian law firm with 24 partners and over 100 lawyers across four offices in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. We advise foreign and domestic clients with respect to transactions, dispute resolution, business s...

The Reserve Bank of India (the 'RBI') has published responses to frequently asked questions ('FAQs') regarding the Master Directions ' Non-Banking Financial Company ' Peer to Peer Lending Platform (Reserve Bank) Directions, 2017, issued by the RBI on...

In the matter of Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha vs M/S Prius Auto Industries Limited, the Supreme Court of India (the 'Supreme Court') reaffirmed the principle that the well-known status or international reputation of a brand is required to be estab...

For over a decade now, Indian banks and non-bank entities have been issuing prepaid payment instruments ('PPIs') after obtaining necessary approvals from the Reserve Bank of India (the 'RBI') under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (the 'P...

The Reserve Bank of India (the 'RBI') by way of a notification dated August 24, 2017, notified that a non-banking institution that carries on 'the business of a peer to peer lending platform' shall be a non-banking financial company (the 'Notificatio...

The Q&A guide gives a high level overview of matters relating to regulations and regulatory bodies for doing business online, setting up an online business, electronic contracts and signatures, data retention requirements, security of online tran...

The Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (the 'CG Office') recently notified and issued guidelines for setting out a procedure for determination of well-known trademarks in India (the 'New Guidelines'). The New Guidelin...

The INDUSLAW brings you the key regulatory and legal developments in various sectors in India.

The INDUSLAW brings you the key regulatory and legal developments in various sectors in India.

In its recent judgment in the matter of MySpace Inc. v. Super Cassettes Industries Ltd., a division bench of the Delhi High Court (the 'Court') comprising of S. Ravindra Bhat and Deepa Sharma, JJ., overturned a single judge's order in the m...

The Government of India has notified the Trade Marks Rules, 2017 (the 'New Rules') under the Trade Marks Act, 1999 (the 'Trade Marks Act') on 6th March 2017. The New Rules have replaced the Trade Marks Rules, 2002, which were earlier in force.

The INDUSLAW brings you the key regulatory and legal developments in various sectors in India.

A Division Bench of the High Court of Delhi (the "Court"), in its recent judgment in the matter of P.K. Sen vs. Exxon Mobile Corporation and Anr.[1], reversed the decision of a single judge of the Court and held that a foreign registered proprietor[2...

The INDUSLAW brings you the key regulatory and legal developments in various sectors in India.

As we take you through the advancements in the field of IP in the last quarter of 2016, we take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy and prosperous 2017 ahead!

The Reserve Bank of India has amended theForeign Exchange Management (Transfer or Issue of Security by a Person Resident outside India) Regulations, 2000 (the "TISPRO Regulations"), on January 10, 2017 (the "TISPRO Amendment"), to provide for the iss...

The Reserve Bank of India (the “RBI”) has issued a circular to address the special circumstances that have emerged after the demonetization drive (the “Circular”).

The INDUSLAW brings you the key regulatory and legal developments in various sectors in India.

The INDUSLAW brings you the key regulatory and legal developments in various sectors in India.

The third quarter of the year has seen remarkable developments in the field of copyright law. In addition to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, India, bringing online broadcasting of copyrighted content under the ambit of the Copyrigh...

In its recent judgment, the Delhi High Court has held that the compilation of photocopies of various copyrighted material used “in the course of instruction” by teachers and educational institutions, does not amount to an infringement of ...

Generally, logos and designs that are used as brand identities for representing businesses are protected as trademarks. As they are original artistic works that have an element of creativity, they are also protected as copyrights. Trademarks and copy...

The Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (the "DIPP") had, in supersession of the erstwhile policy on foreign investments in India (the "Erstwhile FDI Policy") released the consolidated policy on foreign investments in India (the "FDI Poli...

The second quarter of this year has seen significant developments in the field of Intellectual Property Rights in India. While the National IPR Policy was approved by the Government of India to strengthen the future of IPR in India, the Patent (Amend...

The National IPR Policy, approved by the Union Cabinet on 13th May 2016, is a visionary document, aiming to create awareness of intellectual property rights in general and promote the creation, commercialization, protection and enforcement of IPR in ...

In any corporate transaction involving acquiring a business or a stake therein, the acquirer conducts due diligence of the targets’ assets and liabilities, in order to derive comfort that the business is as has been presented to the acquirer a...

Companies and organizations include "restrictive covenants" in employment agreements, to protect their trade secrets, confidential information and human resources. The restrictive covenants essentially place restrictions and limitations on an employe...

The Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks released Guidelines for Examination of Computer Related Inventions in the beginning of this year. A set of guidelines was first issued in 2015, but was severely criticized. The s...

'Cloud Computing' refers to internet based computing that allows access to a pool or network of computing resources that are owned and maintained by a third party via the internet. There is an emerging trend of smartphone companies in India operating...

In the wake of Prime Minister Mr. Modi’s ‘Make in India’ and ‘Digital India’ initiatives, drafts and inputs were provided to the Indian government in the year 2015 for finalizing India’s Intellectual Property P...

The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Government of India vide press note 9 dated September 16, 2015 ("Press Note") amended the definition of 'capital' and also added paragraph 3.3.3 in the Consolidated Foreign Direct Investment Policy C...

There is no uniform or consistent definition of an 'insider' among the securities regulatory authorities of the world's major financial economies. An insider (in context of insider trading in securities) is anyone who has privileged access to materia...

India is no longer identified by its elephants and snake charmers. This is not because of the dwindling number of elephants or the almost extinct species of snake charmers, in India but because the reason India shines is no longer found in the jungle...

The Companies Act, 2013, ('New Act') attempts to consolidate all the methods available to a company to raise capital. Chapter III and Chapter IV of the New Act sets out all the methods by which any company, whether private or public, could raise capi...

In order to understand character merchandising, it is first important to note what is merchandising. Merchandising in its broadest sense, is any practice or plan that contributes to the sale of a product or service to a retail consumer. It encompasse...

With the passing of the Companies Act, 2013 (New Act) replacing the Companies Act, 1956 (Old Act), investors have to deal with several new concepts and principles now governing their investments into Indian companies. The government is implementing t...

Foreign direct investments drive the growth of financial markets of a country. While interest rate regulations and other financial indicators are essential ingredients for increasing the volume of foreign direct investment in a country, the legal reg...

"A good company delivers great products and services but a great company does that and makes the world a better place". This statement by William Ford Junior, Chairman of the Ford Motor Company seems very apt to introduce the topic of corporate socia...