In this week's wrapup, we talk about fractional shares, Kashmir willow, an Apple search engine and more.

No Markets edition this week. So hop on to see what we wrote over the week.

Is India introducing fractional shares?

If you were to buy just 1 share of MRF, it can cost you upwards of ₹1 lakh. That’s exactly why you don’t see a lot of people trading in the stock on a daily basis.

But just imagine what would happen if you could buy an MRF stock at just ₹1,000. Okay, we’re not talking about one whole share, but a piece of it. In other words, we mean fractional shares. Think of it as buying just a slice of a share instead of the whole thing. It would really attract more investors to the market and probably drive up trading volumes of stocks like MRF.

In fact, that’s one of the reasons why market regulator SEBI might be considering letting companies issue fractional shares. But there’s more to it and so we wrote a story explaining the concept. You can read it here.

A story about MS Swaminathan and India’s Green Revolution

A couple of days ago we lost a great visionary who revolutionised agriculture in independent India ― Dr. M S Swaminathan.

You see, back then India suffered from an acute food shortage partly due to the colonial hangover. We were dependent on foreign aid for imports of wheat. The ships would land on our shores with grains and they would directly go to feed the people. We didn’t have anything to store for a rainy day.

But things changed radically in the 1960s. Suddenly, India’s wheat production nearly doubled. Thanks to Dr. Swaminathan who helped achieve this massive feat. But how did he manage to do this? We answered that and more in Tuesday’s story about India’s green revolution here.

Can Kashmir end the English monopoly?

Professional cricket bats are typically made from the wood of a specific tree called Willow.

And there are a couple of reasons why Willow is the chosen one. For instance, researchers say that the wood is porous enough to keep bats light. Then there are crisscross fibres in the wood that make the bat mechanically stronger when swung. And the best part as one scientist puts it ― willow bats make “a satisfying sound when it strikes the leather ball.” Yup! No other kind of wood can create that sweet thump.

Interesting right? We thought so too. And with the Cricket World Cup in full swing, we wanted to write about an underrated and almost forgotten industry in India ― the Kashmir Willow. You can read it here.

An Apple Search Engine?

Ever thought why you always “Google” something online but not “Yahoo!” or “Bing” it? Google is obviously the more popular search engine and that has made it synonymous with an internet search. It’s hard to break that monopoly too.

But recently Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman said that Apple might have all it takes to launch a rival search engine. So, what’s going on? Find out in our Thursday’s newsletter here.

The tussle between bankrupt airlines and lessors is over. Almost.

A couple of days ago the government tweaked the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) to better suit the aviation industry. If you remember, we wrote about the IBC a couple of days ago. But for the uninitiated, it is a law designed to help debtors (parties who owe money) and creditors (those awaiting payment) resolve matters when debtors declare bankruptcy.

And there seems to be a clause in it that troubles creditors especially if they are associated with airline companies. If a company faces insolvency, it can’t dispose of or sell its assets until the insolvency proceedings conclude. And that means that the folks leasing assets to airlines, like planes or engines, can’t retrieve or lease them to others during this time.  Now, this waiting time, known as a moratorium, can last 6 months, 9 months, or sometimes even longer. It’s a business dampener for lessors.

So, the government came to their rescue, albeit temporarily and changed this problematic bit in the IBC for the aviation industry. But why just for them? If that makes you curious, head over here to read our story about it.

We hope you enjoyed our weekly wrapup. Have a great weekend!

Until then…

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