ET NEWS

Mumbai: Borrowed equity bets are at an all-time high with sharp market swings not deterring investors from taking on risky wagers.Funds lent through brokers' Margin Trading Funding (MTF) facility - a system allowing investors to borrow to buy shares they cannot afford - crossed ₹1 lakh crore for the first time earlier this week.Jio Financial Services has been the most traded stock with borrowed funds from margin trading, with a combined amount financed of about ₹1416.6 crore. Tata Consultancy Services and Tata Motors also have funded bets worth ₹1,365.8 crore and ₹1,388.4 crore, respectively.Hindustan Aeronautics and Reliance Industries have outstanding MTF positions of over ₹1,200 crore each."The surge (in the MTF) can be attributed to discount brokers offering this product which made it discoverable to investors," said Ashish Nanda, president & digital business head, Kotak Securities. The total MTF book across NSE and BSE stood at ₹1,04,308 late in September after being above ₹96,000 crore in early August. In September 2024 - when the bull run was at its peak - the MTF book was at around ₹85,400 crore.In margin funding, investors can purchase stocks by paying only a fraction of the total value, with brokers financing the balance at an interest rate. Brokers usually provide a leverage of 3-4 times the margin amount. Most brokers levy interest in the range of 9-15% annually for such funding. Investors also pledge shares from their demat accounts as collateral to avail margin funding.For instance, if an investor buys a stock worth ₹100 under the MTF facility, she would need to contribute just 20% (₹20), while the broker covers the remaining 80% (₹80).Just like margin trading amplifies gains, it could lead to bigger losses too if bets go awry."The increasing risk appetite and participation is also a function of higher comfort with leverage due to stringent regulation," said Suresh Shukla, chief business officer (CBO) at SBI Securities.Regulatory actions in the past year discouraging retail investors from trading in futures and options may have boosted the demand for the margin funding facility."If investors are buying using leverage in sectors and stocks where valuations are fair then there is no concern, but they are using these funds for opportunities where valuations run high then it can be a cause of worry," said Shukla.124280497Early days for MTFThere is further scope for growth in the MTF facility in the country, said brokers. The MTF facility is still in its early days in India as MTF book is currently 0.1% of the total market cap, said Nanda.The MTF book in the US is about 1.6% of their market cap while China's is around 2.7% according to data from Kotak Securities. Sebi allows MTF in around 1,200 stocks out of the 6,500 stocks available in the marketEarlier this year, the MTF book dipped to almost ₹71,000 crore during the market correction.Shukla said caution is always advised while using leveraged products like MTF as short-term moves in the market can be irrational leading to loss.

MUMBAI: Franchise films and sequels, once billed as sure-shot insurance against fickle audiences and shrinking theatre turnouts, are increasingly backfiring in India, with many high-budget releases struggling to generate buzz and failing to recover their massive investments.In the first nine months of 2025, at least 10 big-ticket franchise films and sequels hit theatres, but most stumbled at the box office.Among the biggest disappointments were Jolly LLB 3, Baaghi 4, War 2, Dhadak 2, Son of Sardar 2 and Housefull 5. War 2-part of Yash Raj Films' ambitious Spy Universe-managed collections of just ?236.55 crore in India against a production budget estimated between ?300-400 crore, according to box office tracker Sacnilk.Industry experts say the problem is that Bollywood builds its franchises as forced extensions rather than carefully thought-out universes."Hindi franchise films are not planned organically like Cinematic Universe films in the West. These films are made as an 'afterthought'," said scriptwriter Sudeep Nigam, known for the mini-series The Indrani Mukerjea Story: Buried Truth. Nigam gave an example of the recent horror films. "I don't understand the connection between Shaitaan (2024) and Maa (2025). Shaitaan is a film about black magic. And Maa is a demon in a forest. Can these films belong to a universe because they share a theme?" he explained.In the West, franchise films are planned well in advance and connected through consistent characters and narratives.For instance, Marvel Studios planned for two years before it released its first Marvel Cinematic Universe film Iron Man in 2008. To date, the studio has released 33 films with careful planning in terms of budgets ($130-300 million range) and timeline (in six phases).Lack of connection in stories between the original and the sequel has also added to the failure, especially of recent sequels and franchise extensions."Sequels must have plots which take stories of original films ahead. But this is not observed in recent sequels. These films are made just to cash in on the brand value built by original films. It is just weak writing," said Girish Johar, producer and film business expert.In this context, scriptwriter Nigam cited an example of the Jolly LLB film series."The first two Jolly LLB films worked. Then, the idea of bringing together both heroes in a film sounded viable to its makers. But did the makers have a proper plot to justify their presence and create a proper franchise film?" Nigam explained.After the pandemic, the box office outcome of films across geographies has become more unpredictable than in the pre-pandemic period, as films are either accepted wholeheartedly or shunned completely.The days are gone when a film would do average business and break even. In this context, large production houses have been focusing on franchise films or sequels as they have an established audience base."As regards franchise films, there is too much reliance on the 'stardom' of stars rather than creating 'characters' which utilise their stardom, talent and add emotional depth to these films. Today, the story is a film's star, which makers are not fully recognising yet," said Varun Kapoor, producer and founder of Brooken Reels Production, a film production company.Trade analysts pointed out the poor performance of War 2 to its makers' excessive focus on the stardom of the film's stars. They noted that in the past six months at least fifty new franchise films and sequels have been announced in the industry. A few of these are Border 2, No Entry 2 and Awarapan 2.

Mumbai: The government will plug a gap exploited by dubious companies to illegally move large sums of foreign exchange overseas.Scammers have been tampering with certificates issued by chartered accountants using simple tools like PDF editors to dupe banks handling cross-border transfers.Bankers who fall for it are either careless or complicit. Tax authorities are now preparing to close the loophole, sources told ET.A CBDT spokesperson confirmed that changes are being introduced to prevent such misuse. Once implemented, neither can a company forge a CA's certificate nor can banks plead ignorance.The gap, long feared to have been abused by grifters and fly-by-night entities, resurfaced in a recent case where companies linked to a single mastermind used a large private sector bank to remit ₹700 crore to firms in Singapore and Hong Kong. 124277752THE PROCESS, THE GAPSThe key remittance document is Form 15CB, on which the CA enters details, applies a digital signature, and generates a unique document identification number (UDIN) - an 18-digit alphanumeric code issued by an ICAI system.Once the CA files Form 15CB online with the Income-Tax department, an acknowledgement number is generated. The CA then shares the PDF with the client, who logs into the tax portal to file Form 15CA by quoting the acknowledgement. This form is largely auto-filled, drawing data from 15CB. Finally, the PDFs are submitted to the bank to process the remittance.The loophole lies in crude forgery: falsifying the Form 15CB PDF with editing software, generating multiple certificates with the same or fake UDINs, and submitting them to banks. The fraud would be exposed immediately if a banker verified the UDIN and matched details on the ICAI portal. But if they don't - wilfully or negligently - hundreds of millions can slip out under the guise of import payments.FIXING THE FLAWThis is set to change. "A proposal is under consideration to transmit Form 15CA directly and electronically to authorised dealer banks. This will cut reliance on manual submission and strengthen compliance. Integrity measures are also being reinforced for Form 15CB. Online validation of UDIN is proposed so that authenticity can be verified instantly. Details of the authorised dealer will also be captured in the form. This will reduce mismatches and create a stronger audit trail," a CBDT spokesperson said.Banks will soon be required to mandatorily verify UDIN validity and match the amount and other details on ICAI's portal with the PDFs submitted by clients. The IBA had asked banks to do this back in 2019, but some ignored the advice."Such remittance fraud is not just a financial crime - it's a failure of verification and accountability. When forged 15CBs and fabricated UDINs can bypass controls, it shows cracks in compliance. Banks and regulators must shift from box-ticking to active verification. Real-time UDIN checks and source validation must be non-negotiable. In the digital age, documents must be verified, not assumed," said Ashish Karundia, founder of CA firm Ashish Karundia & Co.CAs, he added, must issue Form 15CB only after thorough due diligence - checking the Tax Residency Certificate, Form 10F and supporting papers. "Banks must not process remittances purely on a certificate. They must authenticate the UDIN, confirm the CA's identity, and verify documentation. Lapses can trigger PMLA scrutiny. Once funds flow out, reversal is rare," Karundia said.Indeed, the Enforcement Directorate invoked the Prevention of Money Laundering Act in one such case.According to Nemin Shah, founder and director of EQX Business Consultancy Pvt Ltd, "Over time, Form 15CB has gone from hard copy to digital to prevent misuse. Every form can now be verified on ICAI's portal via UDIN. If a banker checks a Form 15CB, the CA gets an email. This has reduced misuse, but the risk remains if bankers are complicit."

Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky has agreed to sell his 20% stake in Thyssenkrupp's steel unit and scrap plans for a joint venture for the business, both parties said in a joint statement, paving the way for a possible deal with Jindal Steel. The sale ends protracted talks over what could have become a German-Czech steel and energy giant, discussions that have not made any measurable progress since Kretinsky bought a fifth of Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe (TKSE) last year. Kretinsky has already given up his seat on TKSE's supervisory board, along with another senior executive of his EP Group, a company spokesperson said. Shares in Thyssenkrupp rose as much as 3% to hit their highest level in nearly six years before trading 0.7% lower at 1208 GMT. CLEAR PATH FOR TALKS WITH JINDAL STEEL It now creates momentum for Thyssenkrupp to intensify talks with India's Jindal Steel International, which last month submitted an indicative bid for all of TKSE, a volatile business its parent has sought to divest. The statement said that Kretinsky's EP Group "respects Thyssenkrupp AG's preference to concentrate on discussions with Jindal Steel International" and that it would be reimbursed for the purchase price it paid to Thyssenkrupp for the TKSE stake. While both parties have never disclosed the purchase price, people familiar with the matter have put it at around 140 million euros ($164 million). The news comes amid growing uncertainty over the future of steelmaking in Europe, as the sector contends with cheap Chinese imports, high energy costs and delays to hydrogen-based decarbonisation in one of the most polluting industries. Kretinsky's EP Group and Thyssenkrupp had the aim of eventually forming a 50/50 joint venture for TKSE, but talks have been fraught with difficulties as powerful unions have accused the Czech businessman of refusing to engage. "The management board can and must concentrate fully on the talks with Jindal," said Juergen Kerner, Thyssenkrupp's deputy supervisory board chairman and a senior member at IG Metall, Germany's biggest trade union. "In particular, details on financing must now be clarified quickly, but above all thoroughly. The employee side expects to be involved at an early stage."