Startup news and updates: daily roundup (Dec 5, 2021)

Lot of unhealthy speculation on crypto taking place, says FM

Asserting that a lot of speculation is taking place on cryptocurrencies, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said these speculations are not "healthy at all". Her comments come against the backdrop of the government preparing to come out with legislation to regulate cryptocurrencies.

Speaking at the HT Leadership Summit, the Finance Minister said there is certainly a well-consulted bill that is coming in Parliament after the Cabinet nod. "There is a lot of speculation...that's not healthy at all," she said in a reply to a question if she thinks that a lot of unregulated speculation is taking place on crypto.

Focus on expanding into new categories, international markets: Unacademy

Online learning platform Unacademy is focused on aggressively building out its presence across new categories and exploring international expansion in the next few years, Co-founder Roman Saini said. He said the company has over 40 exam categories on its platform and is expanding rapidly in the K-12 segment with the recent acquisition of Swiflearn.

India developing indigenous anti-drone technology: Amit Shah

India is developing indigenous anti-drone technology to thwart the growing threat from these devices on the country's borders and it will soon be made available to the security forces, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Sunday. Speaking on the occasion of the 57th Raising Day of the Border Security Force (BSF) here, Shah said for the Modi government, border security is national security and it was committed to providing the best border guarding technologies in the world to the force.

Automotive R&D body working on developing fast chargers for EVs: Union minister

Automotive research and development body Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) is working on developing fast chargers for e-vehicles, Heavy Industries Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey said on Saturday. The Pune-based autonomous institution has already developed a prototype of the product, he told PTI on the sidelines of the 'Round Table To Promote Electric Mobility' event organised by the Ministry of Heavy Industries here.