News Broadcasting
Zee Business, Reliance Money to hunt India’s smart investors
MUMBAI: Zee Business, in partnership with Reliance Money, has announced ‘Hunt for India’s Smart Investor’.
The initiative is an attempt to identify India’s smartest investor and in the process feature the ideal investment plans of typical Indian families chosen from across various Indian towns and cities, with wide-ranging family backgrounds.
‘Hunt for India’s Smart Investor’ will feature a series of ground events across 21 carefully selected towns and cities representing the entire length and breadth of the country.
Sharing his views, Zee News Limited CEO Barun Das said: “With multiple investment options available today, it becomes difficult to choose the perfect investment plan. Hunt for Smart Investor is an attempt by Zee Business to empower its viewers in their investment related decision making. It will endeavour to give a new direction to the way transacts in financial markets.”
The hunt will identify the three best smart investors in every city on the basis their investment acumen. One family out of the three nominations will represent the city in the zonal short listing. After the rigorous competition, the search will culminate in Mumbai where the final winner will be felicitated and crowned as ‘Smart Investor.’
Reliance Money CEO and director Sudip Bandyopadhyay said, “As a company, we aim to change the way people select and use financial services. We are working on expanding the financial products and services market by taking our offerings to the masses of the country in a cost effective, convenient and secure way. Educating investors and providing them with the right information forms an integral part of this venture and we are confident that the Smart Investor show will achieve this objective”.
The ‘Zee Business Hunt for India’s Smart Investor’ will start with the Gwalior round on 8 August. The grand culmination is scheduled for December 2008.
‘Our objective is to empower viewers on smart decision-making related to investments, savings and spending. The Smart Investor Show is an effort in this direction. It will not only promote the need for investment planning but will also provide expert advice to plan investments systematically. We are happy to have Reliance Money partnering with us on this initiative.” said Zee Business business head Raktim Das.
Talking on the occasion, Zee Business editor Samir Ahluwalia said “Our endeavour is to meet the highest standards of editorial excellence and make our content always relevant to the work and lives of our viewers. We are positive that our viewers will not only find the concept interesting, but helpful as well. We will continue to entertain our viewers with informative and educative initiatives.”
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
