One Indian vessel crosses Hormuz, four others turn back as IRGC opens fire

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 18, 2026 | Business

Ships and tankers in the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Musandam, Oman, April 18, 2026.
| Photo Credit:
STRINGER

One Indian-flagged oil tanker crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, while at least four others trying to transit the choke point turned back after Iran signalled the strategic waterway was closed again.

Oil tanker Desh Garima appeared to have successfully crossed the Strait on Saturday, ship tracking data showed. The Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) tanker is the 10th India-flagged vessel to have crossed the Strait since early March.

As of Saturday evening, it was sailing in the Gulf of Oman, according to ship tracking data from maritime data and intelligence platform MarineTraffic.

MarineTraffic data showed oil tankers Sanmar Herald, Desh Vaibhav and Desh Vibhor, along with bulk carrier Jag Arnav, reversing course near the chokepoint, taking the number of India-flagged ships in the Persian Gulf to 14.

State-run SCI owns Desh Vaibhav and Desh Vibhor, while Sanmar Herald is operated by Sanmar Shipping and Jag Arnav by Great Eastern Shipping Company.

According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a tanker reported being approached by two Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps gunboats and fired upon about 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman.

This may have prompted the Indian vessels to turn back.

In New Delhi, the Ministry of External Affairs summoned the Iranian envoy to lodge a protest over the reported targeting of Indian vessels.

According to shipping monitor TankerTrackers.com, two India-flagged ships, including a supertanker carrying Iraqi crude, were forced to turn back after coming under fire.

The disruptions come as scores of commercial vessels and thousands of seafarers remain stranded in the Persian Gulf since the outbreak of the West Asia war on February 28, which has sharply curtailed movement through the Strait of Hormuz.

The Strait of Hormuz handles about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows, making it one of the world’s most critical energy arteries. Iran’s ability to disrupt traffic through the narrow passage has emerged as a key lever in the conflict.

The halt in transit has driven up energy prices, triggered supply shortages in parts of the world and forced some countries to ration fuel, underscoring the global impact of the standoff.

Published on April 18, 2026

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HDFC Bank Q4 profit rises 9% to ₹19,221 crore; asset quality improves

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 18, 2026 | Business

The HDFFC Bank also announced a final dividend of ₹13 per share. Management highlighted stable deposit flows and ongoing governance developments.
| Photo Credit:
Dado Ruvic

HDFC Bank reported a 9 per cent year-on-year (yoy) increase in standalone net profit at ₹19,221 crore in the fourth quarter (Q4FY26) against ₹17,616 crore in the year-ago period on the back of a decent growth in other income and a decline in loan loss provisions amid improvement in asset quality.

For the full year, net profit of India’s largest private sector bank rose 10.9 per cent yoy to ₹74,670 crore in FY26 against ₹67,347 crore in FY25. The profitability in the current quarter is within the 6-11 per cent growth range estimated by broking firms.

The Bank’s Board of Directors recommended a final dividend of ₹13 per equity share of ₹1. With this, the total dividend for the year ended March 31, 2026, would be ₹15.50.

Management addresses recent developments

Making a rare appearance (in the backdrop of the abrupt resignation of Part Time Chairman Atanu Chakraborty last month) in a media call to announce the Bank’s financial results, Sashidhar Jagdishan, MD & CEO, said: “In fact, all of you know that we witnessed a very unprecedented event in March. But its (the Bank’s) strength and resilience were seen with stable and strong deposit flows.”

He emphasised that the unequivocal statements issued by the Government of India, the Reserve Bank of India, and SEBI also helped the Bank.

Referring to the appointment of external law firms (two domestic — Trilegal and Wadia Ghandy & Co, and one international), to conduct a review regarding Chakraborty’s resignation letter, Sashidhar said the legal review is in progress and as and when a report is brought out, the Bank will come into the open, providing a summary of the same.

Leadership and governance updates

On the appointment of a new Part-Time Chairman, Jagdishan emphasised that both he and Kaizad Bharucha, Deputy Managing Director, are rooting for Keki Mistry, currently interim Chairman of HDFC Bank. But obviously, the nomination and remuneration committee (NRC) and the Board will take a collective decision. So, it could be Mistry or anyone else.

On the re-appointment of Sashidhar, whose term as MD & CEO ends on October 26, 2026, for a third term, Bharucha said the NRC and the Board are completely seized of the matter, and this will be taken up in due course.

Regulatory and legal matters

Referring to the alleged mis-selling of AT-I bonds to NRIs in Dubai and a complaint lodged with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), Sashidhar noted that, as per the Commission’s observation, India is not the jurisdiction for the complaint, and it has to move to the overseas jurisdiction where the event happened.

The Bank’s chief pointed out that, as per a couple of points mentioned in the NCDRC order, the complainants were not retail or uninformed investors. They had a clear intent to pursue high-yield, high-risk investment products, he added.

Operational performance in Q4

In the reporting quarter, the Bank reported a 3 per cent yoy increase in net interest income at ₹33,082 crore (₹R32,066 crore in Q4FY25).

Other income rose about 10 per cent yoy to ₹13,199 crore (₹12,028 crore). Loan loss provisions were down 21 per cent yoy at ₹2,610 crore (₹3,193 crore).

Asset quality improved, with the gross non-performing assets (GNPAs) ratio improving to 1.15 per cent of gross advances as at March-end 2026, from 1.33 per cent as at March-end 2025. Net NPA position too improved to 0.38 per cent of net advances from 0.43 per cent.

Published on April 18, 2026

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Kiwi cofounder Mohit Bedi steps back from executive role, shifts focus to advisory and investing

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 18, 2026 | Business

Founded in 2022, Kiwi last raised $24 million in a funding round led by Vertex Ventures in August last year
| Photo Credit:
NanoStockk

Mohit Bedi, Cofounder of fintech start-up Kiwi, has stepped away from an active executive role after four years of helping build the company, as he looks to prioritise personal commitments.

In a LinkedIn post on Saturday, Bedi said he will now focus on “personal and family” priorities, while continuing to remain associated with the company as an advisor and long-term shareholder.

“Kiwi is in great shape, strong momentum, strong team, strong vision,” he wrote, adding that day-to-day operations will now be led by Cofounders Anup Agrawal and Siddharth Mehta.

Bedi said he will increasingly spend time on advisory roles, funding and angel investing, and has already backed a few early-stage startups.

Prior to cofounding Kiwi, Bedi spent over seven years at Axis Bank, where he rose to senior vice president and business head roles across consumer card products and merchant acquiring, managing both credit and debit portfolios.

He later joined PayU as senior vice president in 2022, working on strategic initiatives and the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) operations in India.

Founded in 2022, Kiwi last raised $24 million in a funding round led by Vertex Ventures in August last year. Existing investors Nexus Venture Partners, Omidyar Network and Stellaris Venture Partners also participated.

Kiwi issues RuPay credit cards in partnership with Yes Bank and AU Small Finance Bank, enabling payments via UPI.

It also offers UPI-based credit lines, allowing users to access pre-approved credit through linked bank accounts. Since launching in 2023, Kiwi has issued over 200,000 RuPay credit cards and processes more than 5 million merchant transactions each month across 600 cities.

Published on April 18, 2026

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Coastal Karnataka’s tech boom: Silicon Beach Program launches ‘BaseCamp’ to boost ecosystem

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 18, 2026 | Business

(From L to R) Bharath Shetty, MLA, Mangaluru north; Rohith Bhat, SBP Convener and Founder of wrkwrk, 99Games and Robosoft; Nagaraj Acharya, Director of Engineering of Vinyl Equity; and Vishal Kanchan, Head Of People Operations, India, Entrupy, at the launch of ‘BaseCamp’ initiative of Silicon Beach Program in Mangaluru on Saturday, April 18, 2026.
| Photo Credit:
H S Manjunath

The Silicon Beach Program (SBP) – an initiative by like-minded leaders from diverse fields, working together to promote the economic growth of Coastal Karnataka using the technology industry as a catalyst – has launched ‘BaseCamp’, a strategic initiative designed to enable companies, founders and professionals to establish nano-GCCs, satellite offices in Coastal Karnataka.

Speaking at the launch of ‘BaseCamp’ in Mangaluru on Saturday, Rohith Bhat, SBP Convener and Founder of wrkwrk, 99Games and Robosoft, said ‘BaseCamp’ initiative makes it easier for companies to start and scale from Coastal Karnataka.

“From first conversation to first hire, we support every step of setting up nano-GCCs and satellite offices, handling compliance, hiring and on-ground logistics so teams can hit the ground running from day one,” he said.

Launched as part of SBP’s broader vision to accelerate the growth of the region, ‘BaseCamp’ initiative enables global companies to seamlessly establish and scale nano-GCC or satellite office in Coastal Karnataka, from entity setup to talent and infrastructure.

Building on ‘HomeComing’

‘BaseCamp’ initiative builds on the momentum created by SBP’s earlier platform, ‘HomeComing’, which focused on talent repatriation. While ‘HomeComing’ addressed the talent supply side, ‘BaseCamp’ complements it by enabling the demand and infrastructure side, helping organisations set up, operate, and grow within the region.

Bhat said Coastal Karnataka has seen steady momentum in recent years, with a growing number of companies setting up operations and leveraging the region’s strong educational base, skilled workforce and improving infrastructure. ‘BaseCamp’ is expected to further accelerate this trend by offering a guided and ecosystem-driven approach to expansion.

Companies such as Vinyl Equity and Entrupy have set up their units in Mangaluru with support from SBP initiatives. Bhat said some more companies are in likely to set up their units in coastal Karnataka region under the ‘BaseCamp’ initiative.

Nagaraj Acharya, Director of Engineering of Vinyl Equity, and Vishal Kanchan, Head Of People Operations, India, Entrupy, shared their experiences in establishing the units in Mangaluru.

SBP’s new initiative, which enables companies and individuals to set up offices in the region, builds on momentum of more than 40 companies and over 8,000 jobs in IT sector created in Coastal Karnataka in the last two years.

Launching the ‘BaseCamp’ initiative, Bharath Shetty, MLA, Mangaluru north, underscored strong public leadership support for the region’s growing technology and business ecosystem.

SBP aims to develop the Karnataka coast, starting from Mangaluru and extending across a 300-km coastal belt, into the ‘Silicon Beach of India’. It aims to build the future while preserving the region’s culture and protecting nature.

Published on April 18, 2026

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Indian ships reverse course in Hormuz strait, vessel tracker says

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 18, 2026 | Business

Two Indian vessels have had to reverse course in the Strait of Hormuz following reports of gunfire from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, a vessel-tracker said.

TankerTrackers.com said the vessels include an Indian-flagged super tanker, carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi oil.

Earlier, the British military said two gunboats from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard opened fire on a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz after Iran said it had reimposed restrictions on the vital waterway.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said the tanker and crew were reported safe, without identifying the vessel or its destination.

Iran said earlier it was reimposing restrictions on the strait in response to a US blockade on Iranian shipping and ports. Iran has prevented vessels from crossing throughout the seven-week-long war, except for ones it authorises.

Published on April 18, 2026

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SIP stoppage ratio crosses 100% as market volatility hits investors

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 18, 2026 | Business

India’s SIP stoppage ratio crossed 100% for the first time in 11 months, as market volatility and negative short-term returns led investors to pause or exit investments.

The Systematic Investment Plan stoppage ratio last month crossed 100 per cent for the first time in the last 11 months, as volatile markets made investors jittery, with one- and two-year SIP returns turning negative in the last few months.

The number of SIP accounts stopped or matured increased to 53.38 lakh, against 52.82 lakh new SIP accounts opened last month, according to Association of Mutual Funds of India data.

Interestingly, the SIP stoppage ratio in February was 76 per cent, with 49.70 lakh accounts stopped, while 65.72 lakh new accounts opened.

Market fall triggers investor panic

Jeevan Kumar KC, Head – Investment Advisory Services, Geojit Financial Services, said markets over the last two months have dipped 16 per cent, leading to widespread SIP stoppages as investors panicked amid returns from popular SIP categories such as small, mid and flexi caps dwindling over a one- to two-year time frame.

Investors should stay calm and aim to accumulate more units during bad times to reap the real benefit of compounding in inevitable bear markets, he added.

Annual trends and regulatory impact

In the financial year ending March, the stoppage ratio has hit a new high of 95 per cent, as the industry closed 162.32 lakh accounts last April, as per SEBI’s direction to shut down accounts that had remained paused for three consecutive months.

In FY25, the stoppage ratio in the industry was 76 per cent, with 514.17 lakh accounts closed and 679.85 lakh accounts opened.

Despite the stoppage, SIP inflows increased 21 per cent last fiscal to ₹3.50 lakh crore, up from ₹2.89 lakh crore in FY’25.

Outlook remains positive despite volatility

However, markets have shown positive signs since the start of this month, with early signs of peace returning in West Asia.

Aditya Agrawal, Chief Investment Officer at Avisa Wealth Creators, said the rise in the SIP stoppage ratio reflects short-term volatility and some investors pausing contributions amid recent market corrections, rather than a structural slowdown in systematic investing.

The recent market rebound may be followed by intermittent volatility, but India’s structural growth story and earnings trajectory remain supportive. For long-term investors, staying invested through SIPs during corrections often improves average purchase cost and future return potential, he added.

Published on April 18, 2026

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