Jane Street Banned; NSE IPO Bares Options Carnage

India’s securities regulator SEBI has banned US quant firm Jane Street, accusing it of a “sinister scheme” that manipulated the Bank Nifty index and left retail investors with misleading prices. The move underscores rising scrutiny of algo‑driven trading in India and could curb global quant firms’ access to the market.

India trades more than 80% of the world’s equity options, yet nine in ten retail traders lose money. NSE, earning 60% of its revenue from these contracts, is launching a 6% share IPO even after a $147 million settlement cut profit.

SEBI has turned down Reliance Infrastructure and Anil Ambani’s plea to settle a ₹6,526 crore exposure to contractor CLE. The regulator said parallel probes by other agencies prevent a settlement, meaning the case will move through the full enforcement process and the firm must restore the funds with interest. The decision keeps the dispute alive and could pressure the group’s shares.

Navin Agarwal, Vedanta's exec vice‑chair, is investing ₹1,250 cr in NAN MagneTech to launch a 1,200‑tonne‑per‑year NdFeB magnet plant in Andhra Pradesh. The venture will chase the government's ₹7,280 cr PLI scheme, aiming to curb India's reliance on Chinese rare‑earth magnets for EVs, defense and wind turbines.

Green SM, Vingroup’s ride‑hailing service, is becoming Vinfast’s biggest customer, buying 1,000 EVs now and targeting 10,000 by year‑end, delivering about $870 million to the Vietnamese maker in 2025. The deal gives Vinfast a foothold in India and offsets its weak retail sales, while Green SM fills the void left by Blusmart.

Info Edge’s education portal Shiksha posted a 13% YoY drop in Q4 FY26 billings to Rs 45.1 cr, blaming the “Google Zero” effect, AI‑driven search overviews that stop sending traffic. To counter the loss, Shiksha is expanding AI voice‑bot counselling services and diversifying its market focus.

Nasscom reports India's tech services sector is already pulling $10‑12 billion from AI services, with 25% of firms moving pilots into production and 85% running agentic AI platforms. The push will open $300‑$400 billion of new spend by 2030 as enterprises demand AI governance, data readiness, and secure orchestration. Indian firms are positioned to capture that upside.

India is courting billions in AI data‑centre investment, but hyperscale sites need millions of litres of water daily. With reservoirs in Maharashtra down to 10% capacity, water stress threatens to choke the sector’s expansion, forcing developers and policymakers to rethink cooling strategies or risk stalled growth.

India’s Department of Atomic Energy inaugurated the world’s first hydrogen plant that uses nuclear heat via the Copper‑Chlorine thermochemical cycle. The demonstrator at IGCAR shows a carbon‑free route to large‑scale hydrogen, linking the country’s fast‑reactor program to future clean‑energy and decarbonisation goals.

The government, HPCL, ARAI and Tata Motors are testing a 2% isobutanol‑diesel blend in commercial vehicles. If successful, the mix could sidestep earlier ethanol‑diesel failures and open a large‑scale diesel biofuel market, but scaling will need costly retrofits to existing ethanol plants.

India’s central‑sector infrastructure projects (each over Rs 150 crore) now run Rs 5.4 lakh crore over budget, pushing total revised cost to Rs 42.5 lakh crore from Rs 37.09 lakh crore. The MoSPI report shows 1,987 projects in play, with half the spending already incurred and many nearing completion, underscoring a widening gap between estimates and reality.

Zerodha Fund House has introduced two Life Cycle funds, 2036 and 2041, that automatically shift from equities to bonds as the target year nears, giving Indian investors a set‑and‑forget path to goals like retirement or education. With ₹100 minimum and no lock‑in, the launch opens goal‑based investing to a broader market.

The United States granted a 60‑day sanctions waiver on Iran after the first peace‑deal talks, prompting NIOC and Singapore‑based traders to pitch Indian refiners crude that’s $3‑4 a barrel cheaper. Yet India’s refineries can’t absorb much now, bound by contracts through August and hampered by unclear payment channels.