Presenting Mint’s best works from last week

Dear reader,

I'm writing this week's Best of the Week to you from Mint's Mumbai bureau. It's a lively place, and I've already learnt much more about the markets and other financial instruments than I had earlier. Someone or the other is always talking about some conglomerate, fund house, or the state of the Indian cricket team. A healthy newsroom is always filled with discussions and arguments — even if it's about Ashwin's selection in the ODI squad.

Seeing our newsroom in action was fascinating. It's rare you get to see someone break key stories about future IPOs and the Candian diplomatic mess while asking if anyone wants chai (the answer, as I learnt, is always yes).

Without further ado, let's get to Mint's best works from the week gone by:

Tata Sons-owned financial services company Tata Capital is planning an IPO for 2025. Tata Capital is currently restructuring its business and expanding its board as part of the efforts, report Anirudh Laskar, Ranjani Raghavan, and Sneha Shah.

Government officials met with alternative investment funds, startup founders and fund managers last week to understand why foreign investments had fallen ahead of the election cycle. Sneha Shah and Ravi Dutta Mishra report.

Insurance provider Star Health isn't just the largest standalone health insurer in the retail segment — it also has the lowest claims settlement ratio. Facing a deluge of complaints for rejecting claims, the company is now under fire, writes Aprajita Sharma.

Aprajita also wrote about retirement planning. While there are many options for investors with a risk appetite, conservative investors should look towards voluntary provident fund (VPF) and National Pension Scheme (NPS) who want pension security.

Ever wondered why investing apps don't charge any commission? Direct mutual fund apps require users to open a demat account, leading to concerns of cross-selling other financial products to generate revenue — that's how they earn money, writes Sashind Ningthoukhongjam.

If you've tried to book flight tickets for the upcoming Navratri or Diwali season, the prices must have been eye-popping. Flyers are booking well in advance, but still facing surges of 30% to 100% on some routes, writes Anu Sharma.

Remember moonlighting? It was a trend that took over last year, especially in the IT services industry. Well, it's died down. As more employees are brought back to the office, moonlighting itself has dropped. The lack of tech jobs is responsible for this trend as well, writes Devina Sengupta. 

Have trouble sleeping? You're not alone. Lack of quality sleep has created a market for sleep products like supplements, tracking devices, and mattresses. In metro cities, sleep clinics are on the rise as well, writes Sayantan Bera:

Till date, Innova reigns supreme over the MPV category, even as the Indian automobile landscape has changed completely. The 7-seater can withstand challenging conditions with minimal maintenance, a boon for the Indian driver, writes Sumant Banerji.

That's all for this week. I hope you all have a pleasant weekend!

If you have any thoughts, ideas, or feedback on our journalism (or subscription), please feel free to write to me (shashwat.mohanty@htdigital.in). We're a perpetually evolving news product, so any and every input is appreciated!

Best,

Shashwat Mohanty

Assistant Editor

Subscriber Experience Team