Semiconductors could be the new oil – here’s why
A lot of people these days say that “Data is the new oil”. Whilst the sentiment they are trying to convey – that information rather than physical commodities now underpin growth & prosperity on our planet – is correct, the analogy is imperfect. If data & information are now the underpinnings of a modern economy […]
Bajaj Finance: The Enigma Is Set For Another Transformation
Over the past decade (FY11-21) Bajaj Finance (BAF) has grown its loan book at a CAGR of 35% and PAT at a CAGR of 33% with an average RoE of 20%. During this period credit growth in the Indian banking sector has been only 10% p.a. BAF has transformed itself from being largely a captive […]
Is gaming good for kids?
With the schools on full term break and the monsoons in full swing here in Mumbai forcing the kids to stay indoors mostly, many of us parents worry about how much time they end up spending on video games. Whilst anything in excess is not good, this article shows it isn’t a sound idea to […]
The medieval nuns’ guide to virtual travel
With travel still restricted across the world, we are all longing to resume exploring the various wonderful places on the planet. Virtual tours of distant places on various platforms such as Amazon explore or the National Geographic are some solace but most will agree it is not even close to the real thing. What could […]
ESG outperformance looks set to end, study suggests
Here’s another piece on ESG investing. Increasing awareness about socially responsible investing has resulted in investors piling into funds investing in companies which score high on environment, social and governance (ESG) aspects and the fund management industry has equally responded with a slew of fund launches based on ESG. Whilst some investors genuinely want to […]
Illusions of empire: Amartya Sen on what British rule really did for India
As William Darlymple noted recently, unlike the Germans who acknowledge the dark chapters in their history, the British need to do a lot more to acknowledge the dark side of Colonialism. Indeed, some quarters even believe that the British rule should be credited for the multi-party democracy and free media that India enjoys today among […]
16 Unbelievable Facts About the Markets
Ever since he published the bestseller, ‘A Wealth of Commonsense” five years ago, Ben Carlson has been astounding us with his ability to take long term data pertaining to the US financial system and re-present the numbers in a completely novel way. In this piece he makes you rethink almost every preconceived notion you might […]
A Major New Index Fund Should Unnerve Climate-Skeptical CEOs
Thanks to the publicity created by Gamestop, the widespread perception is that the new generation of investors are small time amateur day traders who will lose their shirts when the Fed turns off the liquidity tap. Whilst that may or may not happen, the reality is that some of the new gen investors are neither […]
The Three Ps of a Global Little Champ
Little Champs portfolio companies’ dominant position in their niche markets forms the key basis for their superior pricing power, profitability, RoCE and free cashflow generation vs. peers. However, a key pitfall of ‘niche focus’ is a high probability of hitting a growth ceiling after reaching a dominant position in a niche industry – a concern […]
Explained: How ZyCov-D vaccine works, how it is different
As Marc Andreessen highlights in his essay, vaccine technology – the unprecedented pace at which it was developed and made available widely has to go down as the biggest testimony for humanity’s technological prowess in recent times. Especially, the mRNA technology which holds so much promise beyond just the Covid vaccine in terms of solving […]
Technology saves the world
Almost a decade ago, Marc Andreessen, the creator of the internet browser Netscape and more famously the founder of the iconic venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (A16Z), wrote the now legendary essay titled “Why Software is Eating the World”. The past decade has seen that essay play out perhaps more than even he could imagine. […]
Analysis: When do electric vehicles become cleaner than gasoline cars?
The rapid evolution of battery technology has made affordable electric vehicles (EV) a reality, providing a breakthrough of sorts in humanity’s efforts to fight climate change. However, it turns out it is not as straight forward as that as the extraction and processing of minerals in EV batteries makes manufacturing EVs far more carbon heavy […]
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