From AI job losses to EMI stress, emergency buffers matter more than ever

A friend who recently joined the founding team of a digital-first non-banking financial company (NBFC) told me how his hiring strategy changed once he began using AI proactively. He is now building a one-person management information system (MIS) function and a much leaner underwriting team, as AI has effectively eliminated the need for a full-fledged setup. He isn’t alone in this realization.

After a recent AI workshop in my company, I went down the rabbit hole myself. From building calculators for our columns to automating routine tasks, AI has suddenly made everything possible. Given the nature of journalism, I find AI to be an important value-add and not necessarily a replacement, but for many, AI and automation could create redundancies.

Even companies that once bulked up on hiring are now on an AI-powered treadmill. The data is already reflecting this shift. Nearly 97 technology companies have eliminated over 81,000 roles globally in the first quarter of 2026 alone. But the more worrying trend back home is that only a small percentage of households have any form of emergency buffer to protect their households against setbacks like job loss.

So when you see a video circulating of a techie who took up driving for a ride-hailing platform to pay his home EMIs after losing his job, you realize this may be a story unfolding in many households. This is a stark reminder that financial trajectories don’t always move in one direction. And current geopolitical uncertainties are only adding to the pressure.

This is why it needs to be said clearly: the first step of any prudent financial plan is frontline protection, comprising an emergency fund of at least six months' worth of expenses (ideally more in the current environment), along with adequate insurance. Ananya Grover spoke to people who lost their jobs to understand how they managed household expenses and to financial advisors on building an emergency fund.

Next up is a story on home loans. The techie struggling to service his EMI is not alone. Nearly 80% of homebuyers rely on loans to finance what is often the most expensive asset they will ever own, but the journey is rarely smooth. More than half face documentation hurdles and approval delays.

Lenders often request additional documents during underwriting, creating avoidable friction. Consider this: one homebuyer was asked to submit proof of the seller's income, causing friction because the seller saw it as a loss of bargaining power, revealing his income. And the paperwork doesn’t end there. Even loan closures can come with their own set of procedural hurdles. In this story, Ananya Grover speaks to home loan borrowers, highlighting these challenges and making a case for a system that is more transparent, predictable and borrower-friendly.

Shipra Singh, this week, examined how India’s central bank digital currency (CBDC) or the e-rupee is beginning to take shape as an alternative. The backdrop is the rise in fraud in UPI transactions, the country’s most widely used digital payments system. According to government data shared in Parliament, 1.064 million UPI fraud cases involving ₹805 crore were reported in 2025-26 up to November alone.

Against this backdrop and amid concerns about other digital payment modes, the e-rupee could offer some insulation against online fraud, as it does not directly expose your bank account. Instead, it enables transactions through value stored as tokens in a digital wallet. So instead of paying ₹500 from your physical wallet, you pay ₹500 from a wallet in your phone, without a bank in the middle. The experience, though, may feel similar to UPI.

But does it offer complete protection? Not quite. There is no safeguard against user behaviour, gullibility, weak passwords or phone theft. Given this, the Reserve Bank of India is focusing on strengthening the existing UPI framework through proposals such as a one-hour cooling-off period for high-value UPI transactions above ₹10,000. Read the story for more.

In the investment space, Jash Kriplani breaks down balanced advantage funds (BAFs)—hybrid mutual funds that dynamically shift between equity and debt based on market conditions. While the core idea of asset rebalancing is straightforward, buy equities when valuations are low and move to debt when markets look stretched, short-term performance can vary widely.

That’s because funds differ in how quickly they adjust allocations, the range within which they operate and the conviction behind their moves. Between January 2024 and March 2026, the Nifty 50 went through a full cycle of rally and correction. In the same window, Kriplani analysed the five largest BAFs by assets under management—HDFC Balanced Advantage Fund, ICICI Prudential BAF, SBI BAF, Edelweiss BAF and Kotak BAF.

While all adjusted equity exposure, they did so in different ways. Their approaches ranged from valuation-driven models to momentum-based strategies. The takeaway is simple: BAFs vary significantly in how aggressively and consistently they shift equity exposure, making it crucial for investors to evaluate how a fund has navigated market cycles through the years, and not just recent returns.

And finally, Ann highlights the growing trend of micro-vacations: short, budget-friendly weekend treks and hikes. These are gaining traction due to minimal planning, affordability and easy access, offering busy schedules a quick reset without the need for extended leave. Trekking, in particular, is on the rise, with even the government pushing to build a stronger trekking culture.

However, such trips demand a reasonable level of physical fitness and financial preparedness, especially for longer or more difficult routes. Expenses such as proper gear and contingency funds need to be planned for in advance. Read the story to understand the costs involved and what sort of preparation you need to be mindful of.

In this week’s Money Guru, Jash Kriplani spoke to Trideep Bhattacharya, president and chief investment officer-equities, Edelweiss Mutual Fund, who maintains cautious optimism even as he has turned bullish on mid- and small-cap segments, given the recent correction. According to Bhattacharya, investors should approach mid- and small-cap volatility through staggered investing and a long-term lens after fixing their asset allocation and risk appetite levels.

That’s all for this week, until next time.