Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) rose 10% in morning trade after the firm announced on 21 October that it is broadening its strategic examination of the business and is open to a sale. WBD declared earlier this year that it will divide into two distinct companies: a worldwide networks business and a streaming and studios business. Additionally, the recently combined Paramount Skydance has expressed interest in taking it over.
However, WBD announced on 21 October that it has received “unsolicited interest” from a number of companies and will now consider all of its alternatives. In the interim, the firm stated that it is continuing working towards the separation that was previously announced.
According to a statement from CEO David Zaslav, stakeholders are making significant progress in positioning their company to thrive in the rapidly changing media landscape of today by expanding HBO Max internationally, regaining industry leadership for its studios, and advancing the brand’s strategic goals. The corporation firmly felt that this was the right course of action; therefore, it took the audacious move of getting ready to split into two separate, well-known media organisations, Warner Bros. and Discovery Global.
Netflix and Comcast Showing Interest in BuyingWBD
CNBC’s David Faber was informed by sources that Netflix and Comcast are among the interested parties. According to the report, WBD chose to publicly declare that it has received interest from a number of companies after turning down multiple bids from Paramount and an offer from a separate business that was greater than the Paramount price. The seriousness of any proposals from sources other than Paramount is unknown.
The media report further claimed that Netflix did not want WBD to go to another buyer at a low price, but it was also not interested in purchasing heritage media assets. According to those close to Comcast, the business will consider the option of pursuing WBD even though it does not feel the need to make a deal, CNBC’s Julia Boorstin was informed. Purchasing WBD’s studio and streaming assets after a split later this year is preferable for tax considerations if the buyer only wants them. WBD and Paramount representatives chose not to comment. Requests for comment were not immediately answered by Comcast or Netflix.
Zaslav added that it’s not surprising that other market participants are becoming more aware of the brand’s substantial portfolio value. Following interest from many parties, stakeholders have started a thorough analysis of strategic options to determine the best course of action for releasing the full potential of the brand’s assets.
Why WBD is on For a Sale?
Since WarnerMedia and Discovery Inc. merged in 2022, leaving WBD with over $40 billion in debt, the firm has been dealing with escalating financial difficulties. Since then, it has aggressively reduced costs, reorganised its production pipeline, and concentrated on lucrative brands like the spinoffs of “Harry Potter” and “Game of Thrones”. As consumers shift to streaming, the company’s cable network portfolio has contributed to investors’ scepticism, despite the company’s success in debt reduction.
Quick Shots
•Warner
Bros. Discovery (WBD) announced it is exploring a sale while continuing its
previously planned company split.
•WBD
shares rose 10% in morning trade following the announcement.
•WBD
plans to divide into two entities: a global networks business and a streaming
& studios business.
•Multiple companies have shown
interest, including Netflix and Comcast.
This article has been contributed by Mr Rohit Pateria, CEO & Co-founder Lark Finserv
India’s credit ecosystem is undergoing a seismic shift ,technology, data intelligence, and open banking are dismantling traditional barriers to financing. As digital lending matures from convenience to infrastructure, Lark Finserv stands at the forefront, enabling wealthtech platforms and financial institutions to offer Loan Against Securities (LAS) seamlessly through API-first solutions.
The New Era of Digital Lending
India’s digital lending landscape is evolving rapidly, driven by regulatory clarity, AI-led underwriting, and financial data portability. The Reserve Bank of India’s 2025 Digital Lending Directions introduced stronger guardrails around multi-lender participation, Default Loss Guarantee (DLG), and third-party integrations encouraging responsible innovation and consumer trust. This transformation ensures that digital lending systems are no longer just fast but secure and transparent.
AI and machine learning now underpin the majority of credit journeys from customer onboarding to risk scoring enabling smarter, faster, and fairer credit delivery. Add to that blockchain-built smart contracts, which promise tamper-proof, real-time verification of digital collateral, and the architecture for a secure credit economy starts taking shape.
Lending Against Securities: India’s Next Credit Frontier
The Loan Against Securities (LAS) market in India is gaining unprecedented traction. Investors, particularly high-net-worth individuals and business owners, are increasingly leveraging their financial assets—like mutual funds, shares, and bonds—for instant liquidity without liquidation. Fintech-led lenders, wealth managers, and NBFCs have recognized this as a powerful alternative to personal loans, enabling wealth creation continuity.
According to Financial Express (2025), digital players are facilitating LAS deals of up to INR 100 crore through advanced aggregator models and API-based partnerships. Borrowers prefer LAS for its low cost of capital, real-time processing, and asset-retention advantage ensuring investments continue compounding while unlocking working capital.
How Lark Finserv Reimagines LAS Infrastructure
LAS Platform Features
Lark Finserv has emerged as the credit infrastructure layer that powers LAS flows across India’s wealth management ecosystem. Using its API and SDK stack, Lark connects lenders, wealth platforms, and asset custodians through a unified digital workflow.
Here’s how Lark enables embedded credit innovation:
Digital Collateral APIs: Real-time valuation, pledge management, and margin monitoring for mutual funds, equities, ETFs, and bonds.
Multi-Lender Marketplace Integration: Enables wealthtech platforms to match borrowers to multiple lenders dynamically, with transparent rate discovery.
Consent-Driven Data Flows: Built on Account Aggregator and open banking protocols, ensuring user-controlled data sharing and RBI-compliant traceability.
Plug-and-Play SDKs: Wealth management platforms can embed LAS offerings natively on web or mobile apps without infrastructure buildup or manual underwriting.
Through these technologies, Lark transforms LAS into a no-code credit layer, empowering wealthtech apps, brokers, and digital distributors to extend instant loans to their users while maintaining full compliance.
Regulatory Alignment and Trust Architecture
The RBI’s 2025 Directions reflect India’s maturity in balancing innovation with governance. Lark Finserv’s architecture aligns with these principles ,maintaining direct lender-client relationships, transparent DLG structures, and independent audit trails on every transaction.
Lark’s engine ensures:
Zero compromise on risk attribution clarity.
Full control for lenders over underwriting parameters.
Automated compliance-ready reporting for all counterparties.
This infrastructure-first approach allows financial institutions to scale LAS onboarding within a weeks-long integration cycle while maintaining regulatory parity.
Why LAS Matters for India’s Next Credit Leap
The LAS economy is not just about secured credit; it’s about capital efficiency. As equity and mutual fund participation deepen among retail and HNI investors especially after record SIP inflows India’s LAS market is poised to grow multi-fold. Unlocking liquidity without breaking investment momentum is at the heart of empowered wealth creation.
With Lark Finserv, every wealth platform can become a credit facilitator — embedding liquidity access in the same ecosystem where wealth is created and managed. It’s the embodiment of India’s embedded finance vision, turning portfolios into living, breathing financial engines.
From Fintech Growth to Credit Infrastructure
As the Indian fintech sector transitions “from growth to resilience” , digital lending is evolving beyond app-based convenience to infrastructure capability. Platforms like Lark Finserv are catalyzing this shift — building the pipes, protocols, and trust frameworks that define the future of responsible credit.
The future of digital lending in India will not just be about who lends faster, but about who builds safer, smarter, and more connected ecosystems. Lark Finserv is doing exactly that turning lending against securities into the backbone of India’s next trillion-dollar credit opportunity.
For shopping lovers, the day after Thanksgiving is known to be bliss. It is the day of Black Friday.
Black Friday is known as the Friday after Thanksgiving. The term was coined by the police services to describe the chaos surrounding the pedestrians and auto traffic in the downtown shopping area. Black Friday is known to be a busy shopping day.
Another reason why the day is known as Black Friday is that it is known as the unofficial start of the shopping season for the holidays. The stores and apps of all brands come with blockbuster sales with early bird specials to attract customers to shop.
Black Friday 2024 broke records for online shopping. U.S. shoppers spent about $10.8 billion online, up 10.2% from the year before. Mobile phones played a big role in this growth. During the whole holiday season, people spent $241.1 billion, which was 8.6% more than in 2023. The most popular items were jewelry, electronics, and clothes.
If you want to grab the best Black Friday deals in India, here are several tips to help you.
It is the time to scroll through the brand’s pages as well as the ads. The brands not only showcase the sale going on Black Friday but also distribute coupons and offers at the same time.
To get the best Black Friday India deals, turn on the notifications and the alerts of the apps and brand’s pages. Also, check out the newspapers, magazines, and apps to check out the stores where you can walk in and get the best deals.
To get more Black Friday sale deals in the budget that you have decided for the day, compare the prices of the products on different websites. To make the procedure easier, compare the products on Internet-based shopping sites.
3. Take Advantage of Loyalty Programs
Join store loyalty programs for early access to discounts and promotions, plus earn rewards on purchases. Sign up for Black Friday alerts to know if your desired products are in stock or available for online purchase and in-store pickup, saving you shipping costs.
4. Look Out for the Best Black Friday Deals Online
Now, the people who are exceptions to shopping offline on Black Friday should decide where to shop based on their biggest sales and compare prices to find out where to shop. It is good to prioritize and check the web pages of the brands.
5. Don’t Forget to Take Your Coupons While Shopping
Take the coupon cards and ad pamphlets for the purpose of getting that extra discount or that offer, which is printed on that ad, to make sure that you are able to take benefit of the offers.
Be a careful shopper and shop according to the budget you have planned. Be a smart shopper to take full advantage of Black Friday.
When purchasing a high-value item, feel free to negotiate with the retailer. Exploring multiple options could lead to a more favorable deal if you’re open to shopping around.
7. Create a Black Friday Shopping List
Make a list and check it twice. To get the best deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it is important to make a list and check it so that you don’t forget anything.
Keep the plan, shop, and budget for everyone on the list. Add and organize gifts, ideas, and external product links for each person who is on the list. This makes the whole shopping purpose easy.
Check out the prices of the products that are on the list, as the brands and websites revealed the discounts beforehand only. These sales are “leaked” as early as mid-November, and there can be a surprise price on Cyber Monday.
Set up the price alerts so that when there is a price drop or some great black Friday offers, you can get notifications.
8. Sign Up for Newsletters
Sign up for the newsletter of the brands you want to shop for or visit the store. As the newsletter contains all the new information about the products and sales, it gets more efficient before Cyber Monday, as it provides all the details and information about the offers and sales that the brand is offering during the Cyber Monday shopping spree. The newsletter can also provide extra coupons and offers, which can be used to get some extra discounts.
9. Follow Brands for Upcoming Black Friday Sales on Social Media
Another way to get the best deals on the day of Black Friday is to follow all the brands and store’s social media pages and accounts, as the pages and accounts provide all the important details about the sales, offers, giveaways, etc., that the brand is providing during the shopping spree.
If you want easier mobile access to bargains, download the retailer’s app as websites may crash due to heavy traffic.
10. Apps and Extensions, Your Black Friday Deal Guides
Get the best Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals hassle-free with apps and browser extensions. They do the work for you, tracking limited-time offers, notifying you of price drops, and even keeping an eye on specific products on sites like Amazon. Stay in the loop with simple alerts on your smartphone and laptop so you don’t miss the top discounts during the shopping spree.
11. Decide on One Reliable Payment Option
To shop more and more without worrying about the checkouts and payments, it is better to figure out the payment options beforehand. The last one wants is not to be able to check out due to the checkout problem, credit-debit card, or any other form of payment issues.
12. Use Cashback and Reward Programs
Check out cashback websites or credit cards with rewards when shopping during the Black Friday Sale. Some cards offer special cashback rates or extra rewards during the season. Just be sure to use credit responsibly to avoid extra charges.
13. Make Sure to Check the Return Policies
There can be size or color issues or any other aspects of the product after receiving the package. So, make sure you are aware of the return policies of the app or brand so that you can return the items easily and it won’t hamper the pleasure of Black Friday or Cyber Monday.
14. Watch Out for Scams
Stay safe this Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Shop smart by choosing reputable stores, and be cautious with email and social media links. Avoid scams and enjoy worry-free holiday shopping.
15. Create a Wishlist
Before Black Friday starts, make a wishlist of the items you want to buy. Rank your list by what’s most important and how much you can spend. This will help you stay focused and prevent impulse buying.
16. Check for Coupon Codes
Before you check out, search for special promo codes from the retailer or trusted deal sites, you might score extra discounts on your Black Friday purchase! Many stores release limited-time coupons during the sale, so don’t miss out. Combining these codes with existing offers can help you save even more on your favorite products.
Conclusion
These are the best shopping days for holidays. Both the retailers and the customers gear up for these two days so that they can shop their hearts out for the holidays.
We hope you have a good shopping experience this season.
FAQs
Does the Black Friday sale happen in India?
Yes, although Black Friday is usually celebrated in the USA, many sites offer huge discounts.
Is the Black Friday sale offline or online?
Black Friday sales are both offline and online.
What is Black Friday sale India date?
The Black Friday sale in India is on 28th November 2025.
Why is it called Black Friday?
In the 1960s, some police officers in Philadelphia started using the phrase “Black Friday” to describe the chaos of holiday shopping.
What are the best Black Friday deals in India?
Here are some of the best Black Friday deals in India:
Smartphones: Discounts of up to 50% on smartphones from brands like Samsung, Apple, and Xiaomi.
Refrigerators: Discounts of up to 20% on refrigerators from brands like Godrej, Haier, and Whirlpool.
Clothing: Discounts of up to 70% on clothing from brands like Myntra, Jabong, and Amazon.
Beauty products: Discounts of up to 40% on beauty products from brands like Lakme, Maybelline, and L’Oréal.
Toys: Discounts of up to 50% on toys from brands like Hamleys, Funskool, and Fisher-Price.
The proposed purchase of a portion of JB Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals by Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd. was approved by fair trade regulator CCI on 21 October, contingent on voluntary changes made by the parties. The move followed Torrent Pharmaceuticals’ announcement in June of this year that it would pay INR 19,500 crore to acquire the bulk of JB Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals.
In a statement, the regulator stated that the proposed combination is related to the acquisition of shares in JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd (target) by Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd (acquirer) and the subsequent merger of the target and the acquirer. Torrent Pharmaceuticals would be the second-most valuable pharmaceutical business in India if the deal is finalised.
Second Largest Deal in India’s Pharma Sector
Following Sun Pharmaceutical Industries’ 2015 acquisition of Ranbaxy Laboratories, this will be the second-biggest deal in the pharmaceutical industry history. JB Pharma will combine with Torrent following the acquisition of shares. For roughly INR 11,917 crore, Torrent announced in June that it would buy a 46.39% interest from promoters Tau Investment Holdings Pte Ltd, a division of the international investment group KKR.
Additionally, it would pay about INR 719 crore to purchase an additional 2.80% from specific JB Chemicals employees. Following this, it would make an open offer to purchase a 26% interest for INR 6,842.8 crore in accordance with Sebi’s listing requirements. The primary business of the Torrent group, Torrent Pharmaceuticals, manufactures and markets pharmaceutical formulations (FDFs) for a variety of therapeutic areas. In addition to producing and selling a wide variety of FDFs and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), JB Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals also offers contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) services.
In a post on X, the competition watchdog stated that the commission has approved Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd.’s acquisition of JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd. with voluntary changes. The Commission approved the proposed merger, the regulator added, provided that the parties (Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd. and JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd.) complied with the voluntary changes they presented.
Financial Dynamics of Torrent Pharma & JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals
KKR acquired a 65% share in JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals in 2020. Through open market transactions, KKR sold a 5.8% share in JB Pharma in March of this year for INR 1,460 crore. The cornerstone business of the Torrent Group, which generates INR 45,000 crore in total revenue annually, is Torrent Pharma, which generates around INR 11,500 crore. In an all-stock deal valued at USD 4 billion, including USD 800 million in debt, Sun Pharma announced in April 2014 that it will buy ailing rival Ranbaxy.
A year later, in March 2015, the merger was “consummated” once the necessary permissions were obtained. The acquisition of Bharat Serums and Vaccines by Mankind Pharma last year for INR 13,768 crore was another significant deal. In a different announcement, CCI authorised Setu AIF Trust, Konark Trust, and MMPL Trust to purchase a portion of Edelweiss Asset Management Ltd and Edelweiss Trusteeship Company Ltd.
According to the watchdog, Setu AIF Trust, Konark Trust, and MMPL Trust will acquire up to 15% of the shares in Edelweiss Asset Management Ltd (EAML) and Edelweiss Trusteeship Company Ltd (ETCL) as a result of the proposed combination’s interrelated processes. Setu AIF Trust is an alternative investment fund (AIF) that is registered with SEBI. Through MMPL, its investment manager, it takes action. ETCL serves as the trustee for Edelweiss Mutual Fund (EMF), while EAML manages the fund’s assets.
Quick Shots
•CCI
approves Torrent Pharmaceuticals’ acquisition of a stake in JB Chemicals
& Pharmaceuticals on 21 October 2025.
•Total
deal expected to cost INR 19,500 crore, making it the second-largest pharma
deal in India after Sun Pharma-Ranbaxy.
•After
acquisition, Torrent Pharma becomes the second-most valuable pharmaceutical
company in India.
According to documents published on the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi) website, Flipkart-backed logistics company Shadowfax Technologies has been given the go-ahead to move on with its IPO. In the week ending October 10, Sebi released its comments regarding the company’s pre-filed draft.
In July, Shadowfax filed its draft red herring prospectus under Sebi’s pre-filing procedure, which allowed the company to test investor interest and fine-tune offering details without revealing critical company information to the public. According to sources, Shadowfax is anticipated to submit an amended draft prospectus in the days ahead now that regulatory clearance has been obtained.
How Shadowfax Plans to Execute its IPO Listing
By combining a new issuance with an offer for sale by current shareholders, the offering is anticipated to raise between INR 2,000 crore and INR 2,500 crore. The IPO might value the company at over INR 8,500 crore, according to reports. This price is a substantial premium over its February 2025 financing round valuation of almost INR 6,000 crore, indicating investor confidence in the future potential of the logistics industry.
The company raised primary and secondary capital at an approximate valuation of INR 6,000 crore in February 2025, which was the last time it raised funds. According to insiders, the company intends to use the money raised from the new issuance to expand its network operations, boost growth, and increase capacity.
How Shadowfax Plans to Use Proceeds?
According to insiders, the company intends to use the money raised from the new issuance to expand its network operations, boost growth, and increase capacity. About 75% of the company’s revenue comes from the e-commerce division, which puts Shadowfax in a strong position to profit from India’s expanding online retail market.
The rest is derived from hyperlocal delivery and rapid commerce. Prominent investors like Flipkart, TPG, Eight Roads Ventures, and Mirae Asset Ventures support Shadowfax. Several Indian logistics and delivery firms, such as Delhivery, XpressBees, Ecom Express, Blue Dart, and Shiprocket, compete with it. In fiscal 2024, the company’s revenue increased by 33.2% to INR 1,885 crore, but its losses decreased significantly to INR 11.8 crore, which was roughly 92% less than the year before.
Quick Shots
•Flipkart-backed
Shadowfax Technologies secures SEBI clearance to move ahead with its India
IPO.
•SEBI
issued its observations in the week ending October 10, 2025, as per filings
on its website.
•Shadowfax
had filed its draft red herring prospectus in July under SEBI’s pre-filing
route.
•The
logistics startup is expected to raise INR 2,000–INR 2,500 crore through a
fresh issue and offer for sale.
•The
IPO may value Shadowfax at over INR 8,500 crore, up from INR 6,000 crore in
its February 2025 funding round.
•Proceeds
from the IPO will be used to expand network operations, boost growth, and
increase capacity.
Despite internal strife among the organisation’s divisions, Venu Srinivasan was overwhelmingly reappointed as a trustee for life by Tata Trusts, the philanthropic arm of the Tata Group, according to a report by news agency PTI on October 21, 2025. At a time when Tata Trusts’ workforce is vertically divided, Venu Srinivasan’s reappointment occurs just before his term ends on October 23, 2025.
Two factions support Mehli Mistry, who has connections to the Shapoorji Pallonji family, and Noel Tata, who assumed leadership upon Ratan Tata’s death. The agency was informed by those with knowledge of the development that there was unanimous support for Srinivasan’s reappointment. Tata Trust, however, declined to answer the news agency’s questions.
Reappointment of Mehli Mistry Might be on the Cards
Now that Venu Srinivasan has been reappointed, attention is turning to Mehli Mistry, whose tenure as a trustee ends on October 28, 2025, being reappointed. The report states that the unanimous consent of the trustees for the lifetime tenure appointment will be necessary for Mistry to be reappointed and continue serving as a trustee.
According to a news agency report, in accordance with previous practice, a unanimous vote is needed for both renewal and a new appointment. Unanimous consent is needed for renewal, after which it will be permanent. Additionally, they stated that all trustees are automatically reappointed.
Operations of Tata Trust
The Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust are two of the charitable trusts that are under the management of Tata Trusts. Additionally, the organisation owns a 66% share in Tata Sons, the primary holding company that owns stock in every Tata Group company.
The report states that the original meeting, which took place on October 17, 2024, decided that a trustee’s term should be extended by the trust in question, with no time limit on this appointment.
A trustee would violate the commitment and be unfit to serve at “Tata Trusts by such conduct,” according to the report, if they decide to vote against this resolution. Over 18% of Tata Sons, the holding company for all Tata Group firms, is owned by the Shapoorji Pallonji family.
Quick Shots
•Venu
Srinivasan reappointed as lifetime trustee of Tata Trusts on October 21,
2025.
•The
decision comes amid internal divisions within the organisation.
•Two
factions reportedly exist — one aligned with Mehli Mistry (linked to
Shapoorji Pallonji family) and the other with Noel Tata.
•Srinivasan’s
term was set to end on October 23, 2025, but trustees gave unanimous support
for lifetime reappointment.
•Tata Trusts declined to comment on
the internal developments.
Reliance Industries Ltd, one of the world’s largest oil refineries and the biggest buyer of oil from Russia, is now moving away. Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd. is finding new sources of crude oil that are away from Russia. Why is the company doing it now? Is it due to pressure from the U.S. and EU? Where exactly is the oil sourcing now? How will this impact Reliance Industries Ltd? What’s India’s role in it? For all that, learn more.
Why Reliance Industries Ltd. Is Finding New Ways Now?
The company is under considerable pressure from Western countries, mainly the U.S. and the European Union (EU).
U.S. Pressure
The U.S. has long been asking India to reduce its purchases of Russian oil because of the war in Ukraine. However, India’s cordial relationship with Russia didn’t budge. In recent times, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that India has agreed to stop importing from Russia. But India didn’t confirm any of that. It also clarified that India might reduce but not completely stop buying from Russia.
EU Ban Coming
The EU announced that it will ban fuel made from Russian crude oil altogether starting on January 21, 2025. Here’s the catch: Reliance exports a lot of refined fuel (like petrol and diesel) to Europe. If the company didn’t change its ways, it would hurt its exports.
Reliance values the European market highly and doesn’t want to disappoint the EU, so the company is shifting to non-Russian oil sources.
What Reliance Is Doing?
Reliance is buying oil from the Middle East. Recently, the company has bought at least 2.5 million barrels of oil. It’s apparently working with:
Iraq’s Basrah Medium
Al-Shaheen (from Qatar)
Qatar Land (also from Qatar)
Several traders say this is a massive shift for Reliance as the company is now actively buying the region.
The company is also looking for more oil types that are similar to Russian crude oil quality so that it can eventually replace Russian supplies.
Note: Reliance didn’t confirm or comment on anything due to the holiday season
India’s Role
India is one of the largest buyers of Russian oil. Ever since the war began, Russia has been giving India oil at a discounted price. Reliance, on the other hand, is the single largest buyer of Russian oil. After being closely scrutinised by the U.S. and EU, the company had to change its ways to adjust and fit into the market. The company is more on its own, and India has very little to do with this shift.
Paramount Skydance was a newly formed company after Skydance Media merged with Paramount Global. The deal was about $8.4 billion in August 2025. After such huge spending, the company is planning a massive layoff of around 2,000 employees in the U.S. According to a report by Variety, these job cuts will start on October 27, 2025. So, will there be more cuts in other countries, too? Does this have anything to do with what’s happening in the entertainment industry? For all that, learn more.
What’s Happening at Paramount Skydance?
Paramount Skydance is laying off 2,000 employees in the U.S. to cut costs and restructure after a major merger.
The big merger (Skydance Media merged with Paramount Global) resulted in roles overlapping, like two marketing or HR teams doing the same job. The company is looking to remove roles that duplicate the positions to save money.
The first round of layoffs will start in the U.S., and the other countries will come later, after its Q2 earnings in November 2025.
How Big Is Paramount’s Workforce Now?
Before the merger happened, Paramount had a workforce of:
18,600 full-time and part-time employees.
3,500 project-based staff (temporary or contract workers).
So, now the company is laying off 2,000 people, which is about 10% of its total staff.
What’s Happening in the Rest of the Industry?
Paramount Skydance isn’t alone. Almost every big media company is laying off its employees in the name of restructuring, cost cuts, and slower ad revenue in the entertainment industry.
Here are a few big examples
Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group – In July 2025, the company announced that it would lay off about 10% of its staff before splitting into two units.
Universal International Studios – The company laid off its employees in early 2025 in offices across London, Australia, and Los Angeles.
NBC News – In October 2025, the company laid off about 150 employees (roughly 7%).
The Washington Post – The company had to lay off about 4% of its staff (which is fewer than 100 people) due to financial loss in January 2025.
Walt Disney – The company plans to lay off hundreds of employees in its marketing, publicity, casting, and development departments. This will include film, TV, and finance divisions.
When Selena Gomez launched a makeup brand named Rare Beauty back in 2019, some expected it to become one of the most talked-about beauty brands in the world. However, in just a few years, Rare Beauty has grown into a company worth around $2 billion. The specialty of this makeup brand was that instead of chasing flawless perfection, Rare Beauty celebrates the quirks and individuality that make people unique.
Its tone is calm, real, and inclusive, mirroring Selena herself. From a wide shade range to social media posts that feel personal rather than polished, Rare Beauty feels like a safe space in a world obsessed with filters and likes.
This article explains how Selena Gomez transformed her personal experiences and values into a global movement, and how Rare Beauty has become the rarest thing of all in the beauty world, a brand that genuinely makes people feel good about being themselves.
How Rare Beauty Became the Brand Gen Z Can’t Stop Talking About?
Rare Beauty
Rare Beauty has built around self-acceptance, inclusivity, and mental health; the brand speaks directly to a generation that values authenticity over perfection. But creating meaningful connections requires more than just quality products. Rare Beauty’s marketing strategy focuses on building real relationships, celebrating individuality, and meeting customers where they are, especially on the platforms they love.
TikTok Engagement
TikTok Engagement – Rare Beauty
TikTok plays a crucial role in catching the attention of potential customers for Rare Beauty. It’s where the brand laughs, listens, and connects directly with Gen Z in their own language.
Embracing Real Moments
Rare Beauty skips the glossy, overproduced ads that most beauty brands rely on. Instead, its videos feel spontaneous and honest, quick tutorials, fun reactions, or casual behind-the-scenes clips that make followers feel like part of the team.
The brand’s TikTok content revolves around four key ideas:
Tutorials & How-Tos: Simple makeup tips that anyone can follow.
Behind the Scenes: A peek into the making of products and campaigns.
User Stories: Real people sharing real experiences.
Product Highlights: Subtle, story-driven launches and demos.
It’s not just about views, it’s about building trust. By letting authenticity take the spotlight, Rare Beauty has created an online space that feels inclusive, kind, and genuinely fun.
Influencers Who Feel Like Friends
On TikTok, influencers aren’t just promoters; they’re community members. Rare Beauty collaborates with a mix of creators across skin tones, genders, and backgrounds. These partnerships amplify the brand’s reach while keeping its message of self-expression intact.
Each creator adds their own personality to the products, showing that beauty doesn’t have one look; it has many. That’s exactly the kind of message Gen Z wants to see.
At the center of it all is Selena Gomez, not as a distant celebrity, but as the brand’s emotional anchor. She doesn’t just front Rare Beauty; she lives it. Her openness about mental health and personal challenges adds depth and humanity to everything the brand stands for.
Here’s what Rare Beauty teaches us about connection:
Be genuine: Selena built the brand around her real beliefs, self-acceptance, kindness, and mental well-being. When customers see that authenticity, they connect emotionally.
Be transparent: Selena has spoken openly about her mental health journey, which adds depth to the brand’s message. Sharing your challenges, not just your successes, makes your brand feel human and relatable.
Influence Beyond Fame: You don’t need 400 million Instagram followers to build influence. Selena’s approach shows that connection matters more than scale. Sharing your story, your struggles, and your wins builds trust and relatability. Every entrepreneur has a story worth telling, and transparency can turn customers into loyal advocates.
Rare Beauty doesn’t flood the market with endless releases. Instead, it’s thoughtful. Each new product gets its own spotlight, allowing customers to get excited, engage, and share feedback.
When the brand dropped its powder blush and followed it with an exfoliating body wash in May, each launch felt fresh and focused. This steady rhythm keeps Rare Beauty in the conversation year-round. And in 2025, they are back with their NEW limited-edition, full-size Glass Effect Lip Liner & Gloss Duo.
Listening plays a big role, too. The team constantly refines formulas based on real customer reviews, showing that feedback truly shapes the brand.
Turning Browsers Into Buyers
Rare Beauty’s Website
Rare Beauty’s online experience is more than a digital storefront; it’s a personalized journey designed to make customers feel understood.
Geo-Targeted Popups: Shoppers see local promotions and delivery options tailored to their country or region.
Best Sellers Up Front: Popular products are easy to spot, helping indecisive shoppers decide faster.
User-Generated Content: Real photos and honest reviews build credibility and community.
Smart Tools: Shade finders and product pairings make shopping simple and interactive.
Every element nudges visitors closer to a confident purchase, without ever feeling pushy.
Purpose-Driven Marketing With Real Impact
Purpose-Driven Marketing With Real Impact
Rare Beauty’s success goes beyond great products; it’s built on purpose. Selena launched the Rare Impact Fund to support mental health resources worldwide, pledging a percentage of every sale to the cause. By 2023, the fund had raised over $7 million.
This isn’t a side campaign; it’s part of the brand’s DNA. For Gen Z, that commitment matters. They want brands that stand for something real.
Turning Purpose Into Loyalty
When a brand genuinely advocates for causes that matter, it builds emotional equity. Rare Beauty’s efforts around inclusivity, self-love, and mental health have turned customers into a global community.
And here’s the best part: any brand can do this. Aligning with a social cause that reflects your values doesn’t just make good PR; it builds lasting loyalty.
Payday Sales Campaign
Social media has been at the heart of Rare Beauty’s success. With over 4 million Instagram followers, the brand excels at creating authentic, suspenseful, and emotionally resonant content. Its campaigns go beyond promoting products; they connect with customers on a personal level.
#WeAreRare Forever Campaign
This campaign invited users to share stories of self-acceptance and empowerment, turning customer voices into a powerful movement. By celebrating individuality and rejecting unrealistic beauty standards, Rare Beauty reinforced its message of inclusivity and self-love.
Conclusion
Rare Beauty’s rise isn’t luck; it’s the product of authentic storytelling, mindful marketing, and genuine impact. From TikTok authenticity to purpose-driven campaigns, Selena Gomez has built a brand that feels deeply human in a digital world.
For entrepreneurs and creators, the message is clear: you don’t need perfection to win people’s hearts, you need honesty. Whether through small, consistent launches, transparent communication, or standing for a cause you believe in, authenticity will always be the most beautiful thing your brand can wear.
What makes Rare Beauty different from other makeup brands?
Rare Beauty, founded by Selena Gomez, focuses on individuality and self-acceptance rather than flawless perfection. The brand celebrates quirks, inclusivity, and mental health, offering a wide shade range and authentic content that resonates with Gen Z.
Who is the founder of Rare Beauty?
Rare Beauty was launched by Selena Gomez in 2019. She is not just the face of the brand but also its emotional anchor, reflecting her values of authenticity, kindness, and mental well-being.
What are some popular Rare Beauty products?
Rare Beauty’s notable products include powder blush, exfoliating body wash, and limited-edition items like the Glass Effect Lip Liner & Gloss Duo.
This article has been contributed by Mr. Kaushik Chatterjee, Founder & CEO of lendingplate
India’s financial ecosystem is defined by sharp contrasts. On one hand, we have Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions, one of the world’s most progressive financial ecosystems crossing 20 million per month and digital wallets spreading across urban India. On the other hand, millions of small businesses, rural entrepreneurs and gig workers still lack access to formal credit. This divide highlights the key role of Non
Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) in traversing the financial inclusion gap.
Traditionally, in India, access to credit was subject to formal documentation and collateral. Traditional financial institutions, frequently restricted by cautious policies and legacy systems often turned a blind eye towards borrowers without official credit histories. The consequence? Marginalization of daily wage earners, micro entrepreneurs, women-led enterprises and small traders.
NBFCs have taken on the role of filling this gap. They first did this via on-ground networks and then through digital platforms. The time is evolving. It took weeks of verification and physical paperwork to get one thing done but now the same is possible on a smartphone in minutes. This change has redefined the profile of borrowers, helping people from various backgrounds to access financial services that were once out of their reach.
Speed, Simplicity, and Scale
The crux of digital lending stands on simplicity, scale and speed. NBFCs make lending decisions in real-time with the help of automated credit assessment tools, powered by machine learning and AI. Processes that once took days and sometimes weeks are now completed within seconds. Loans are now disbursed smoothly, thanks to the seamless integrations into PAN, GST, Aadhaar and bank APIs. Electronic signatures, digital disbursal mechanisms and paperless Know Your Customer (KYC) processes have made it much easier for first-time borrowers.
In today’s time, customers can complete the loan journey right from application to repayment without physically going to a branch. Additionally, NBFCs grow beyond metropolitan areas reaching Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets with the help of cloud-native infrastructure. Primarily, NBFCs have become the first formal financial institutions to give credit to these areas, bridging key gaps in financial inclusion. These capabilities are supported by a strong landscape of fintech collaborations, new regulatory rules and data analytics, all working in tandem to make credit more intelligent and inclusive.
Data as the New Collateral
Traditional credit scoring systems are mostly dependent on previous borrowing history. But many potential borrowers don’t have such histories. NBFCs are resolving this bottleneck by using alternative data sources including GST filings, transaction patterns and utility payments to evaluate creditworthiness. Machine learning models evaluate these data points to make more detailed profiles of borrowers, helping NBFCs to give credit to people who were once considered uncreditworthy.
This method has been mainly groundbreaking for thin-file customers who may not have traditional documentation but have robust digital footprints. At its core, data has become the new technology, the new collateral and the new trust engine.
Building Trust in the Digital Age
Bridging the Trust Divide in Learning
The fundamentals of lending lie in trust. Yes, digital interfaces have indeed made credit more accessible. However, there is a flip side to it too. They risk isolating borrowers who are not familiar with online systems. NBFCs are bridging this trust divide via digital empathy, combining human touchpoints with technology.
Borrowers now feel supported, thanks to key features like vernacular communication, chat-based customer support and video KYC assistance. Various NBFCs are investing in campaigns around financial literacy to aid first-time borrowers in understanding EMI structures, credit discipline and repaying responsibly as the goal is to build lasting financial confidence.
Regulatory Evolution and Responsible Growth
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has played a vital role in carving a responsible digital lending ecosystem. Establishing rules for grievance redressal, data privacy and transparency has ensured that innovation remains neutral with consumer protection.
For NBFCs, compliance isn’t a hurdle; it’s an enabler. The developing regulatory framework provides stability and credibility, promoting collaborations with larger financial institutions and fintech players. Responsible lending practices, robust credit evaluation, and fair collection mechanisms are now integral to the NBFC ethos. In addition to growth, the focus is also on sustainable growth, one that empowers both borrower and lender.
Digital lending faces challenges right from customer awareness gaps to cybersecurity risks. Urban India has made digital money a part of its mundane life but many borrowers in rural areas still struggle with digital literacy, making them vulnerable to fraud or misinformation.
Furthermore, with tight-knit competition, NBFCs need to protect against overusing and ensure safe credit evaluation even at scale. To maintain stability and trust in the long run, investing in digital literacy and building data security infrastructure is essential.
Building a Future of Empowerment
The next chapter of India’s financial inclusion story will be written at the intersection of innovation, intelligence, and intent. With the convergence of fintechs, NBFCs and regulatory frameworks, we are moving toward a credit ecosystem that is digital as well as deeply personal where every borrower’s situation, requirement and potential can be understood vis empathy and data.
Account Aggregators, India Stack 2.0 and Open Credit Enablement Networks (OCEN) will further speed up this change helping NBFCs to give context-driven, affordable and timely credit. Finally, when the gig worker buys his first vehicle, the small business owner expands her shop, the farmer invests in better tools, and when we move beyond financial inclusion toward true financial freedom. And this is possible when the capital starts flowing smoothly to where it’s required the most.
Essentially, lending is more than just disbursing loans; it’s about making dreams come true. As NBFCs, our mission is to ensure that every person regardless of gender, background or geography has the chance to participate in India’s growth trajectory. That’s the real dividend of digital lending and a promise of a more secure future.
