Good morning, friends. We close the week with a bumper crop of IPO updates, including what could be India's biggest IPO as Reliance plans to list its telecom and tech arm in 2026. Also on the tech front: OpenAI is in advanced talks to unlock strategic partnerships with Tata Consultancy Services.

MEANWHILE- The INR has slipped to an all-time low, but the government says it is “not losing sleep” over it. We bring you another serving this morning of macroeconomic soup as data tumbles in with the end of 2Q.

ALSO THIS MORNING- Sebi has rolled out a new single-window entry route to ease access for foreign investors, while Corona Remedies has opened orders for its INR 6.55 bn IPO.

AND- IndiGo faces its third straight day of disruption — and the Modi government has scrapped its Sanchar Saathi app mandate, allowing execs at Apple and other smartphone makers to breathe a sigh of relief.

^^ We have all of that and more, below.

HAPPENING TODAY-

#1- Putin is in town: India and Russia are set to sign 10 government-to-government agreements and 15 commercial pacts in New Delhi as Russian President Vladimir Putin meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the annual Indo-Russian summit, Economic Times reports. The agreements cover trade, financial cooperation, civil nuclear energy, space, defense, and logistics.

Nuclear sub: The deals could include India leasing a nuclear-powered attack submarine from Russia for USD 2 bn, with delivery expected in two years following a decade-long negotiation, according to Bloomberg.

Putin arrived in New Delhi yesterday evening on his first visit to India since the start of the war in Ukraine. The visit comes as New Delhi is grappling with Donald Trump’s bruising tariffs, forcing Indian refiners to cut Russian crude purchases.

#2- The Reserve Bank of India wraps its three-day monetary policy meeting today. While most pundits have pencilled in a 25 bps rate cut, the decision may not be easy: the geopolitical background remains messy and the INR has crossed the 90 mark against the greenback — but India’s economy is roaring and inflation is inching down.

HAPPENING IN MENA-

A tale of two economies: Private-sector growth in Saudi Arabia cooled slightly in November — though remained robust with a PMI of 58.5 — as the Kingdom shifts its fiscal focus from speed to efficiency. At the 2026 Budget Forum, the finance minister signaled a willingness to recalibrate Vision 2030 project timelines to prioritize “quality growth.” Egypt back in the black: Non-oil private sector activity surged into growth territory for the first time in nine months, hitting a five-year high of 51.1 as demand picked up and the EGP remained largely stable against the greenback.

Energy and big ticket acquisitions are driving the news cycle. Aramco has officially brought the first phase of its Jafurah gas plant online; the field is the Kingdom’s largest unconventional gas play and a cornerstone of its transition strategy. In dealmaking, the Public Investment Fund is reportedly poised to take a 93.4% stake in gaming giant Electronic Arts as part of a consortium buyout.

In the UAE, capital markets are getting creative. The ADX has launched a high-dividend index to attract yield-hungry investors to its top cash-generating firms, while our friends at Mashreq Capital are rolling out a multi-asset retail fund blending BTC, gold, and equities to capture digital asset upside with managed risk.

Cross-border flows into Egypt remain strong heading into the end of the year: Kuwait has renewed a USD 2 bn deposit with the Central Bank of Egypt, providing Cairo with continued liquidity support as it stabilizes its macro outlook. Simultaneously, Infinity Power (the Masdar-Infinity JV) has broken ground on a 200 MW wind farm in Egypt’s Ras Ghareb, cementing the UAE’s role in Egypt’s renewable transition.

WATCH THIS SPACE-

#1- ‘Not losing sleep’ over depreciation: V. Anantha Nageswaran, chief economic adviser to the Modi government, on Wednesday said he is “not losing sleep” over the country’s currency depreciation, noting that the near 5% fall so far this year hasn’t yet hit inflation or exports, Indian Express reports.

The INR fell on Thursday to an all time low of 90.42 to the USD mark, but later rallied to 89.88, Reuters reports. The currency has come under pressure from continued foreign portfolio investor outflows, a widening trade deficit, and restrained intervention by the Reserve Bank of India, Hindu Businessline notes.

Market view: The central bank had “held the line at 88.80” for weeks, but the defense “quietly faded” on 21 November, signalling a shift toward controlled, gradual depreciation, with intervention limited to prevent sharp swings, Amit Pabari, managing director of CR Forex Advisor, told Hindu Businessline. Abhishek Goenka, founder and CEO of IFA Global, told the daily a delay of a India-US trade agreement would pile pressure on the INR.

MEANWHILE- The RBI will tolerate a weaker INR as external pressure mounts, including a wider trade gap and a stalling of USD inflows, Reuters reports. The RBI will now intervene mainly to curb sharp volatility rather than defend a specific level, the newswire wrote. The INR will remain volatile until a US-India trade agreement is signed — and may slip as low as 92 to the greenback if the agreement is delayed, Arup Rakshit, head of Treasury at HDFC Bank, told Reuters.

#2- Bengaluru-based, Qatar-backed food-delivery and quick commerce platform Swiggy is preparing to raise up to USD 1.1 bn (INR 100 bn) from a range of institutions in a transaction that could go to the market as early as next week, Bloomberg reports.

Deal structure: The size and pricing of the offering will be finalized based on market conditions. The company hasn’t disclosed a valuation target. Swiggy is backed by investors including the Qatar Investment Authority, Prosus and SoftBank.

The planned fundraise comes amid intensifying competition in India’s quick-commerce and food delivery sector. Swiggy competes with rivals such as Zepto and Blinkit, both of which are vying to expand their footprint while investor appetite for consumer-tech capital remains strong, Reuters reports.

ADVISORS- Swiggy has shortlisted Citigroup India, JPMorgan Chase, and Kotak Mahindra Capital as lead bankers for the share sale.

REGULATION WATCH-

#3- India has revoked a directive requiring smartphone makers to pre-install the state-run Sanchar Saathi cyber-safety app on all new devices, the government said in a statement. Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia had told parliament that the government was willing to withdraw the mandate based on public feedback. The minister also stressed that no spying was possible through the app.

Throwback: Scindia’s ministry had asked global smartphone manufacturers, including Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi, to preload the app within 90 days, ensure it could not be disabled, and roll it out to existing devices via software updates, the report said. Apple opposed the requirement, saying that forced pre-installation is incompatible with its privacy and security policy.

TRAVEL WATCH-

Indian airline IndiGo faced a third straight day of heavy disruption yesterday with at least 175 flights cancelled across major airports including New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune, Reuters reports. India’s aviation regulator has launched a probe, Fortune India reports.

Background: The disruptions began after IndiGo rushed to apply a mandatory software patch to c. 200 Airbus A320 aircraft. IndiGo, which operates over 2k flights daily and controls about 60% of India’s domestic market, saw on-time performance plunge to 35% on Tuesday, down from 60%.

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DATA POINTS-

#1-Retail investors pulled nearly INR 234 bn (USD 2.8 bn) from Indian equities in October and November, even as benchmark indices rallied, Business Standard reports, citing exchange data.

#2- PwC India expects state coffers will face an INR 1.1 tn (USD 12.33 bn) shortfall as net tax collections for FY 2026 fall short of the mark — but says stronger non-tax revenues will keep the fiscal deficit within the 4.2-4.4% target, assuming a nominal GDP growth of at least 9% in the second half, Business Standard reports.

#3- India’s investment and wealth management market is projected to double in size to USD 27-31 bn by FY 2031, from roughly USD 14 bn in FY 2025, Fortune India reports, citing an Equirus Wealth report. The sector is expected to grow at a 15-17% CAGR as more investors enter the market.

THE BIG STORY ABROAD-

A handful of big tech and M&A-related news has captured the attention of the global business press this morning.

#1- Meta is set to make meaningful spending cuts to its Metaverse division, with plans for a budget cut of up to 30% and layoffs likely as early as January. The move to trim its virtual reality group comes as investors scrutinize spending on the segment and the lack of significant competition in the industry as CEO Mark Zuckerberg piles bns of USD into Meta’s AI unit. (Financial Times | Bloomberg | Reuters | Wall Street Journal)

#2- Netflix has apparently made the highest bid for Warner Bros with an offer that includes 85% cash, a source told Reuters. The company was still reportedly seeking another round of bids as of yesterday after suitors including Netflix, Paramount, and Comcast sweetened their offers earlier this week. Paramount accused Warner of running an unfair bidding process that favors Netflix. Paramount — whose initial USD 60 bn offer was rejected before WB launched a formal sales process — courted Gulf sovereign wealth funds from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar for backing on the transaction.

#3- Apple just lost two more top executives — general counsel Kate Adms and VP for environment, policy, and social initiatives Lisa Jackson. They’re the latest in a string of high-profile exits from Apple’s management team after the devicemaker lost its head software design to Meta. Apple earlier this week pushed out its struggling AI chief and its longtime chief operating officer recently retired as planned. (CNBC | Reuters)