

Daybreak
The Ken
Business news is complex and overwhelming. It doesn’t have to be. Every day of the week, from Monday to Friday, Daybreak tells one business story that’s significant, simple and powerful.
Hosted from The Ken’s newsroom by Snigdha Sharma and Rachel Varghese, Daybreak relies on years of original reporting and analysis by some of India’s most experienced and talented business journalists.
Hosted from The Ken’s newsroom by Snigdha Sharma and Rachel Varghese, Daybreak relies on years of original reporting and analysis by some of India’s most experienced and talented business journalists.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 23, 2023 • 13min
Where are Indian patients getting their cancer drugs from?
Despite winning the 'pharmacy of the world,' two out of five cancer patients in India have to borrow money and sell their assets to get treatment. The price of many innovative patented oncology drugs in India are as high as in developed countries making them inaccessible for a large section of patients.Where are Indian cancer patients turning to for cheaper cancer medicines?Tune in to find out.

Jan 20, 2023 • 14min
Why investors find it almost impossible to get money back from the IEPF
Unclaimed funds at the government-run Investor Education and Protection Fund (IEPF) are likely to have risen to Rs 50,000 crore ($6 billion) by now. But for an average investor, the settlement process is almost designed to discourage investors from claiming what's theirs.Now, after the Supreme Court took notice post the filing of a petition, the IEPF Authority has asked all stakeholders for suggestions to make the entire process more efficient.Tune in to find out why an average Indian investor finds it so difficult to recover their money from the IEPF.

Jan 18, 2023 • 12min
How Mahindra Finance dealt with the RBI curb on recovering loans via third party agents
For Mahindra Finance, the RBI directive against it couldn't have come at a worse time. The rural financier had barely recovered from the effects of the lockdown since it had higher bad loans than its rivals. Add to that the dent on its reputation.How did the NBFC deal with the RBI's restriction on using third party agents for repossession? Tune in to find out.

Jan 16, 2023 • 12min
How some edtechs are forcing tutors to drive sales
With the funding crunch and slow growth, edtechs like Unacademy and Vedantu are giving teachers monthly targets to sell online courses to students.Not meeting sales targets is reason enough for edtechs to fire teachers as part of cost-cutting exercises. Tune in to find out how teachers are being forced to become the new sales force in some edtech companies.

Jan 13, 2023 • 12min
How fried chicken helped McDonald’s become an investor’s favourite
In May 2020, McDonald's decided to launch the McSpicy Fried Chicken in the southern states of India where majority of the population consumes meat.Two year later, the shares of McDonald’s India franchisee, Westlife Foodworld, shot up by 40%.Tune in to find out how fried chicken was one of the key drivers behind the fast-food chain becoming a the top-choice among public-market investors.

Jan 11, 2023 • 11min
The antitrust case that forced Google to approach India’s top court
Last year, the CCI found Google guilty in two of the four antitrust cases against the tech giant. In one of the cases that involves Google's dominance in the Android OS market, the CCI has asked it to pay a fine of $161 million dollars.Google approached the NCLAT contesting CCI's order, asking the tribunal to squash it but NCLAT declined. Now, Google has moved the country's top court.What is the Android OS case all about?Tune in to find out.

Jan 10, 2023 • 10min
Why occupancy at the country’s largest multiplex chain is declining
PVR, the country’s largest multiplex chain, made up for the pandemic-induced revenue loss by raising the prices of tickets and food and beverages.But it saw its occupancy fall to the lowest levels in a decade even after movie theatres reopened at full capacity.What is keeping India's theatres empty?Tune in to find out.

Jan 6, 2023 • 12min
How ZestMoney can help PhonePe meet its goals
ZestMoney, the BNPL platform, is in the final stages of being acquired by online-payments giant PhonePe. But ZestMoney has been unable to get enough scale online. Even after going offline, it failed to manage risks. It saw its losses shoot up by 3X in the last financial year.PhonePe, meanwhile, has ambitions to expand by venturing into lending.Can ZestMoney's loss be PhonePe's gain?Tune in to find out.

Jan 4, 2023 • 12min
How cooking-oil companies have been misleading consumers in India
The packaged-food market is rapidly growing in India and along with it so is the edible oil market. It was estimated to be worth nearly Rs 2 lakh crores by the the end of March 2021. Meanwhile, oil companies have been using the media and sneaky branding techniques for decades to tell consumers that their products are healthy.But are they?Tune in to find out.

Jan 3, 2023 • 13min
What Sula's IPO means for its public-market investors
After 23 years of business in India, Sula has grown to become the giant that dominates the Indian wine market.Last month, the wine-maker decided to go public through an IPO. The money, however, went straight to some of the investors who cashed out.And on Dec 22, when it listed on the stock exchanges, Sula’s stock opened flat and fell into discount. What does the IPO mean for Sula's public-market shareholders then?Tune in to find outWith inputs from Aayush Agarwal


