DIPP Ceases Funding of Start-Up India’s Funding Scheme
Government of India’s Fund-of-Funds for Start-ups (“FFS”), an initiative which is a part of the Start-up India scheme, has not seen much movement with respect to disbursal of funds by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (“SIDBI”), which manages the FFS program.
In the FSS scheme, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (“DIPP”) disburses the funds to SIDBI which in turn gives them to venture capital funds (also known as Alternate Investment Funds) who create a corpus fund which has participation from other investors and the money raised is then used to invest in start-ups.
Currently, the DIPP is not impressed by the low disbursement of funds and has undertaken before a Parliamentary panel that it will not make any releases to SIDBI during F 2018-19.
SC on Virtual Currencies
Ever since the Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) released its April 06, 2018 circular on “Prohibition on Dealing with Virtual Currencies”, cryptocurrency firms, enthusiasts, and organizations such as the Internet and Mobile Association of India have moved various courts across India against the RBI. The Supreme Court, upon hearing a related case, has directed the clubbing of all petitions pending across various courts in this regard.
However, the Supreme Court has refused to put any stay on the RBI circular, till the matter is under judicial consideration. A three-judge bench headed by the Chief Justice of India ordered that no High Court will entertain any petition relating to the abovementioned circular till the Supreme Court arrives at a substantive decision on the veracity of the circular and the RBI’s stance against virtual currencies.