Brands
EuroKids Asia’s most trusted brand
MUMBAI: EuroKids, the preschool chain, has been awarded as the Most Trusted Pre-School in Asia by IBC Infomedia, a global brand consultancy. This honour was bestowed on EuroKids as part of Asia’s Most Trusted Brand Awards at a ceremony held in Bangkok, Thailand.
These awards are driven by market research and consumer insights; and are given to brands with global recall, international reach and proud legacies.
EuroKids International CEO Prajodh Rajan said, “It is a testament to our efforts of nurturing young children in not just a pre-school, but in a second home-like environment. All our initiatives are directed keeping in mind our ‘Child First’ ideology which is at the core of our pedagogy, ensuring that a child’s development, safety and engagement needs are well fulfilled as they play, learn, grow and imbibe essential life skills.” He added, “We are being appreciated for our sustained efforts in offering an enriching, innovative and interactive learning process.”
EuroKids has won over 17 awards, which reflect the unique training methodology coupled with NextGen advantages and 360 degree support in building the franchise business.
Additionally, EuroKids is the only preschool in India that has received an International certification on safety standards at its preschools from global Testing, Inspection and Certification (TIC) firm Bureau Veritas.
With a legacy of over 15 years, EuroKids has built a network of 900+ preschools across three countries and 350+ towns and cities and has nurtured over 300,000 children. Moreover, EuroKids has enabled more than 600 entrepreneurs to build a long term successful business, 80 per cent of whom are women.
Brands
Reserve Bank of India cancels Paytm Payments Bank licence
Central bank cites compliance failures; curbs tighten as wind-up looms
MUMBAI: India’s banking watchdog delivered its sharpest blow yet to Paytm Payments Bank, cancelling its licence and effectively ending its ability to operate as a bank under the law.
The Reserve Bank of India said the entity can no longer conduct banking business under the Banking Regulation Act, citing concerns that its affairs were not being run in the interest of depositors or the public and that it had failed to meet licence conditions.
The move escalates a crackdown that has been building for months. The bank had already been barred from onboarding new customers since March 11, 2022, and later faced restrictions on deposits, credit and wallet top-ups. In January 2024, the central bank ordered it to stop accepting fresh deposits, pointing to persistent non-compliance, including lapses in customer due diligence, use of funds and technology systems.
Operationally, the bank is now on a tight leash. It may process withdrawals of existing deposits and facilitate loan referrals through banking correspondents, but it cannot take fresh deposits.
The central bank said it would apply to the high court to wind up the bank.
Paytm sought to ringfence the fallout. In a regulatory filing, it said the licence cancellation applies to Paytm Payments Bank Limited, a separate entity, and should not be attributed to One 97 Communications. It added that there is no exposure or material business arrangement with the bank and that it operates independently, without Paytm’s board or management involvement.
“As informed earlier, Paytm (One 97 Communications Limited) and its services, which have been operating without interruption, will continue to operate uninterrupted. These include the Paytm app, Paytm UPI, Paytm Gold and all other services offered by its subsidiaries and associated companies,” the company said.
The distinction may reassure users of the app ecosystem, but the regulator’s verdict is unequivocal. After years of warnings, caps and curbs, the payments bank experiment at Paytm is being shut down—decisively, and with little room left to manoeuvre.
