In this week’s wrapup, we discuss the Jio Platforms IPO, why wealth taxes keep failing, why dating apps struggle to find a match with investors, and an explainer on the eMudhra fiasco.

A few more things about the Jio Platforms IPO

The Jio Platforms IPO opened for subscription this week and closed yesterday. We did an explainer on it in an earlier story here. But since there was plenty of buzz around it, we also wanted to look at a few more things beyond the hype.

So, in Monday’s newsletter, we explored a few things worth paying attention to. To begin with, Jio’s dependence on Reliance Retail to distribute its prepaid plans. Next, its cash generation, which looks impressive but hasn’t translated into profit growth at the same pace. And finally, we looked at the big question of valuation.

So, is Jio’s IPO a bargain, or are investors paying for a future that hasn’t arrived yet? Find out in our full story here.

Why do wealth taxes keep failing?

Imagine taxing the world’s richest person just 0.1% of their wealth. 

Currently, that is Elon Musk, with a net worth of about $936 billion. So, his tax bill would be about $936 million, enough to cover the US’ entire budget for global health security in 2025.

So why don’t governments simply do it? After all, it's for a good cause, right?

Well, it's not as simple as it sounds. For starters, a billionaire’s fortune sits mostly in shares, businesses, and real estate, whose values keep fluctuating, making it tricky for tax authorities to value them. 

In fact, the OECD counted 12 countries with a recurring net wealth tax in 1990, but that number dropped to just 4 by 2017. But why?

Is it simply becuase of valuation or is there something else?

Find out more in Tuesday's story.

Why dating apps struggle to find a match with investors

Bumble went public in 2021 at a valuation of nearly $8 billion, briefly touching around $14 billion at its peak. Yet last week, the company announced it was to be acquired by Ithaca Holdings for just $1.3 billion.

Now, that’s puzzling, because Bumble still has millions of users, recurring subscription revenue, and a steady stream of people looking for love. But it’s not alone. Match Group, which owns Tinder and Hinge, also lost more than half its value since going public.

Part of the explanation lies in how these apps make money. They depend on converting free users into paying subscribers and keeping them long enough to recover the cost of acquiring them. In theory, that should work. But in practice, many users burn out before they find what they came for, so Bumble’s paying user base fell over 16% so far this year.

So can Bumble’s new owners build a business around helping people actually find a match, or will dating apps keep profiting from keeping people swiping?

Read our full story to find out.

An explainer on the eMudhra fiasco

When you visit a website, you normally look for the padlock or HTTPS in your browser’s address bar to check whether everything is safe. But what if the company responsible for helping your browser trust websites had a serious security flaw of its own?

That’s what happened with eMudhra, an Indian company that helps secure digital identities and online connections. A few days ago, eight of its website security certificates were found to have alarmingly weak private keys. This raised concerns about fake certificates and online trust. And naturally, its stock crashed after the incident came to light, with the government ordering a security probe.

But how badly could an incident like this hurt a company whose business goes far beyond website security? Find out in yesterday’s Markets edition here.

Finshots Weekly Quiz v2.0 🧠

Hey folks! As you probably already know, the Finshots Weekly Quiz has a new avatar. If you missed out on it in the last couple of months, don’t worry. Click here to check out the rules and set a reminder to participate consistently starting next month!

But for now, it’s time to announce the top scorers of our previous weekly quiz. There were a whole bunch of you who participated, and many of you ended up with the same scores. So we’re calling you Bulls, Bears, Unicorns, Blue Chips, and Rising Stars. Here’s how the leaderboard looks right now:

If your name has been featured on the leaderboard, then congratulations! If not, don’t lose hope. If you attempted last week’s quiz, keep at it and answer all the weekly quizzes this month. You never know when the turntables! Click on this link to take this week’s quiz, which is open till 12 noon, Friday, 30th of October, 2026. The more answers you get right, the better your chances of appearing on the Finshots Weekly Quiz leaderboard. We’ll publish it every Saturday in the Weekly Wrapup. And the winner will be announced in the first week of November.

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