Growing a forest to offset emissions

Hello,

Another space mission!

Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams is ready to fly into space for the third time as the pilot aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in its first crewed test flight. Boeing’s Starliner will blast off for the International Space Station from Cape Canaveral in Florida.

Back on Earth, Brainbees Solutions Ltd, the parent firm of online ecommerce platform FirstCry, has re-filed preliminary papers for an initial public offering (IPO).

Meanwhile, as much as half of the country's international air passenger traffic is expected to be catered by Indian airlines by the financial year 2027-28, credit rating agency CRISIL said.

ICYMI: Several founders have lost their startups after an accelerator filed for bankruptcy.

Lastly, a ban on apostrophes!

A local council in North Yorkshire, England has banned apostrophes on street signs because the special character “can affect geographical databases.”

Residents, however, aren’t pleased.

A postal worker told the BBC that signs missing an apostrophe–such as the St Mary’s Walk sign erected without the appropriate punctuation mark—infuriated her. “I walk past the sign every day and it riles my blood to see inappropriate grammar or punctuation,” she said.

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Growing a forest to offset emissions
• ICYMI: Gaps in MSME lending space

Here’s your trivia for today: Who is the voice of Woody in the movie series Toy Story?

100 Emerging Women Leaders

Growing a forest to offset emissions

Many years ago, Tanya Singhal learnt that solar energy could be priced lower than coal. Today, she has employed AI and IoT to make this dream a reality.

In January 2023, Singhal, along with James Abraham, a senior partner in BCG, joined hands to launch Mynzo Carbon. 

Renewable future:

• Mynzo aka MyNetZero Carbon, is an application that assists individuals and enterprises in automatically tracking their carbon emissions, adopting reduction measures, and offsetting their carbon footprint through investing in personal forest assets. 
• Mynzo’s assessment calculates the forest space required to recapture all individual and enterprise emissions. They can purchase forest spaces required to offset their carbon emissions and track the growth of vegetation.
• Singh had earlier founded SolarArise, a renewable energy platform, under which she raised over Rs 2,000 crore of capital to build seven large solar plants generating about half a gigawatt. 

Funding Alert

Startup: Superplum

Amount: $15M

Round: Growth

Startup: POSHN

Amount: $6M

Round: Pre-Series A

Startup: 50Fin

Amount: $500,000

Round: Growth

MSME

Gaps in the MSME lending space 

In 2023, lending in India's micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) became a focal point. The substantial increase in loan distribution led to discussions on the availability and allocation of credit to MSMEs.

Despite the growing need for credit and its corresponding supply, the enduring credit gap remains a critical worry for small businesses.

Money matters:

• As per a report by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), public-sector and private-sector banks saw credit demand in 2023. Credit demand at NBFCs grew 1.5X over the previous year, and they are rapidly emerging as competitive players in the commercial credit space.
• The delinquency rates—the percentage of loans that are past due—have also dropped across all three categories, with private banks clocking the lowest at 1.4%.
• Amit Kumar, Founder of MSMEx—an education and advisory platform for SMB owners—highlights three reasons for the staggering rise in MSME lending. The first reason is improved awareness, the second is specialised debt products, and the third is fintech innovations. 

News & updates

• Ghost flights: Qantas Airways has agreed to pay 120 million Australian dollars ($79 million) to settle a lawsuit over the sale of thousands of tickets on already cancelled flights, in an attempt to end a reputational crisis that has engulfed the airline.
• Health check: High-end fitness chain Equinox is launching one of the most expensive gym memberships in the world—a $40,000-per-year programme aimed at improving overall health and longevity.
• Truth Social: Trump Media hired a new auditor over the weekend after its previous public accounting firm BF Borgers CPA was accused Friday of perpetrating a massive fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

Who is the voice of Woody in the movie series Toy Story?

Answer: Tom Hanks

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