One quick thing: SoftBank is planning to sell most of its remaining stake in its crown jewel Alibaba Group, as per the Financial Times. SoftBank’s stake will reportedly reduce to 3.8% from nearly 15% due to these sales.

• Prosus, the largest shareholder in Tencent, might also step up selling shares of the Chinese tech giant

In today’s newsletter:

• Infosys Q4 disappoints
• Zepto takes a swipe at BigBasket 
• 12,000 govt websites under threat

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If there was one word to describe Infosys' Q4 and FY23 results, it would be... disappointing.

How so?

• The revenue growth for the year came in at 15.4%,  in constant currency, below its own guidance of 16-16.5%. Revenue down from last quarter too
   
• EBIT margin for the year came in at 21%, at the lower end of its guidance of 21-22%. Margins also contracted sequentially
  
  
• Large deal TCV for the quarter was at $2.1 billion, down from $3.3 billion last quarter

What about the guidance?

The company has guided for revenue growth in constant currency (CC) terms of 4-7% for the next year, and margins at 20-22%. 

• The last time Infosys’ CC revenue growth was in this bracket was in FY18

The company said that it has seen some “unplanned project ramp downs in some clients, as well as delays in decision making which resulted in lower volumes.”

• Clients slowing down or stopping projects was not something they had seen at the end of the previous quarter

While there is a large deal pipeline, there is slowing down in the cycle of closing deals, CEO Salil Parekh said.

Infosys ended the quarter with 3,611 fewer employees than in Q3, the first time it has seen a sequential decline in headcount since the Covid-hit quarter of Q1FY21. At the same time, the company's attrition rate has dropped to 20.9%.

• It hired slightly more than 29,000 people on a net basis this year, down from 54k the previous year

• It hired ~51,000 freshers in FY23, but refused to give numbers on its plans for FY24

Another battle is brewing between two companies in a competitive segment for market share. While one has been there and done that, the other has recently entered the market with a passion for revolution. Who are they?

• BigBasket's BBNow and Zepto in the hot quick commerce space

Zepto’s co-founder Aadit Palicha, during a panel discussion in Mumbai, said legacy e-commerce companies that have not generated significant profits yet, do not hold the authority to make remarks on quick commerce’s sustainability.

• Palicha said this in response to comments made by BigBasket CEO Hari Menon about the sustainability of the quick commerce segment

Menon delivered his verdict on quick commerce during another session, stating that the unit economics of 10 to 15-minute delivery "just doesn't work!"

He added that BBNow, BigBasket's quick commerce service, does not face the issue as both verticals share costs.

“Separate business only for quick commerce becomes harder,” he said.

Palicha defended Zepto by pointing out that the company has sustainable economics which is equivalent or better than its offline competitors, at a time when BigBasket is aggressively focusing on expanding its physical footprint.  

“Most of the offline retailers also have not done as well. We have the lowest hyperlocal last mile delivery cost in the world, less than 50 cents,” said Palicha.

Go deeper

The Indian government recently issued fresh guidelines on how to secure its numerous government websites. Those guidelines, which recommended several cybersecurity best practices, came at an opportune time, as up to 12,000 government websites may be vulnerable to hacking.

The Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a cybersecurity alert warning officials that an Indonesian hacktivist group was targeting 12,000 government websites. 

• The alert warned that the hacktivist group may target certain websites using distributed denial of service attacks

Hacktivist groups carry out cyber attack campaigns for political or social reasons.

• Last year, a Malaysian hacktivist group targeted several Indian websites after political turmoil erupted over comments made about Prophet Muhammad

Experts advise officials to be cautious when clicking on unknown links or opening email attachments. They should also ensure that all their software is regularly updated to enhance their protection against potential threats.

Have you ever had a ride cancelled by a cab driver despite them confirming that they were on their way? Unfortunately, this has become a common occurrence. But with e-cabs gaining popularity, commuters may have a more reliable option.

A growing number of new players in the electric cab segment appear to have gotten a few things right and could soon position themselves as an alternative to the Ola-Uber duopoly.

Factors driving this:

• Drivers get a steady income
• Customers looking for an alternative to existing players
• Commuters looking to reduce their carbon footprint

Find out why this is a win-win situation for both drivers and customers.

On April 13, 2000, heavy metal band Metallica filed a lawsuit against Napster, accusing the file-sharing service of copyright infringement and racketeering. The lawsuit followed a similar case brought by the Recording Industry Association of America in 1999. 

The legal battles eventually led to the shutdown and bankruptcy of the original Napster service in June 2002. 

• Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX's attorney said that the company has recovered over $7.3 billion in cash and liquid crypto assets, marking an $800 million increase since January.
  
  
• Binance has announced that users who staked ether through the exchange will be able to redeem coins with their BETH holdings on a 1:1 basis starting from April 19.

Have you ever wanted to control different aspects of someone else's life? Well, now you can with an app that allows you to pay someone to do just that. Despite its resemblance to a Black Mirror plot, investors such as Andreessen Horowitz and Founders Fund are enthusiastic about its prospects.

NewNew is a social media app created by Courtne Smith, which has been described as a 'human stock market'. The app allows followers to have a say in the decisions made by their favourite creators.

• Users are charged a fee to cast their vote, which goes to the creator minus NewNew's commission

Check it out

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