Reliance begins talks with banks for Jio IPO

**Reliance Begins Talks with Banks for Jio IPO**

*By Akash Pandey | Oct 03, 2025, 06:43 PM*

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) has initiated informal discussions with banks regarding a potential initial public offering (IPO) of its subsidiary, Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, according to Bloomberg. This move could set a new benchmark by becoming India’s largest-ever IPO.

A formal process for the IPO is expected to commence by the end of this month, with RIL likely to officially appoint investment bankers in November.

**Financial Prospects**

Reliance plans to sell only 5% of Jio during the IPO, which could raise more than $6 billion. This figure would significantly surpass the previous record of $3.3 billion raised by Hyundai Motor India Ltd.’s IPO in 2024.

Mukesh Ambani, billionaire chairman of RIL, had earlier indicated that the Jio listing might occur in the first half of 2026.

**About Jio**

Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited is India’s largest wireless carrier, boasting approximately 500 million subscribers. The ongoing discussions about the IPO are still in the early stages, and details such as the size and timing of the offering may change.

A spokesperson for Reliance has not yet commented on these developments.
https://www.newsbytesapp.com/news/business/reliance-initiates-informal-talks-for-jio-ipo/story

POWERGRID Convenes 36th Annual General Meeting

The 36th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (POWERGRID), a Maharatna CPSU under the Ministry of Power, Government of India, was held virtually on 26th August 2025.

The meeting was chaired by Ravindra Kumar Tyagi, Chairman and Managing Director, in the presence of key board members including Ravisankar Ganesan, Director (Finance) & CFO; Dr. Yatindra Dwivedi, Director (Personnel); Naveen Srivastava, Director (Operations); Vamsi Rama Mohan Burra, Director (Projects); Dr. Saibaba Darbamulla and Abhay Bakre, Government Nominee Directors; along with Independent Directors Shiv Tapasya Paswan, Rohit Vaswani, and Smt. Sajal Jha. Representatives of the Hon’ble President and shareholders also participated through virtual mode.

During the AGM, the company presented its key financial highlights, operational achievements, and future growth prospects. Technological innovations and ongoing initiatives were detailed, and the management addressed queries raised by the shareholders. The shareholders appreciated POWERGRID’s robust performance and extended their best wishes for sustained growth.

As of 31st July 2025, POWERGRID has commissioned and is operating 286 substations and more than 180,849 ckm of transmission lines, along with a transformation capacity of 574,331 MVA. Leveraging the latest technological tools and techniques, enhanced automation, and digital solutions, POWERGRID has successfully maintained an average transmission system availability exceeding 99.85%.

These milestones underscore POWERGRID’s commitment to strengthening India’s power transmission infrastructure while embracing innovation and operational excellence.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/corporate-gallery/powergrid-convenes-36th-annual-general-meeting

Little Pepe’s (LILPEPE) Path To $3 By 2026 Overshadows Ethereum (ETH) And Solana’s (SOL) Slow Bullish Outlook

Crypto often delivers surprises, and right now, Little Pepe (LILPEPE) is the project rewriting expectations. Its presale is moving quickly, with Stage 13 already 93% filled at $0.0022. Early buyers from Stage 1 are up 120%, and investors still have a chance for 36.36% gains before the launch price of $0.0030. This momentum has sparked speculation that LILPEPE could reach $3 by 2026.

### Ethereum (ETH) – The Slow Giant

As of September 24, 2025, Ethereum (ETH) is trading around $4,182, up a small 0.23% from yesterday. ETH is a crypto giant and has survived different waves of the cryptocurrency market. Still, this ETH’s token, LILPEPE, is displaying a path to $3 by 2026, which overshadows ETH and SOL’s slow bullish outlook, as top investors have been drifting to LILPEPE, seeing it as the next Ethereum.

### Solana (SOL) – The Network of Speed

Solana has established a reputation as one of the fastest chains in the industry, enabling NFTs and gaming platforms to operate with impressive throughput. At the time of writing, SOL is trading around $213.

SOL’s price has dropped by 6.47% over the past 7 days, indicating a somewhat bearish outlook. Predictions for the year suggest gradual gains, but much like Ethereum, the growth curve is not showing the kind of momentum that excites speculative investors.

### Little Pepe (LILPEPE) – The Meme Revolution

Little Pepe is bringing a fresh story to the table. At the time of writing, LILPEPE is priced at $0.0022 in its presale and has already raised more than $26.2 million, with Stage 13 over 93% filled. This presale consists of 19 stages in total, and the price will continue to rise until launch, reaching $0.0030.

Early buyers from Stage 1 are already up 120%, and even now, investors entering Stage 13 still have a projected 36.36% gain once the token lists.

Unlike many meme coins that lean only on hype, Little Pepe has built a roadmap with strong fundamentals. Certik audits the project, which is already listed on CoinMarketCap, and it offers zero trading tax with sniper bot protection.

Its Ethereum-based Layer 2 solution will host a meme launchpad and staking features, providing the token with real-world use cases beyond speculation.

### Why Investors Are Paying Attention

The difference between Little Pepe and the slow bullish outlook of ETH and SOL is clear. While Ethereum and Solana provide stability, Little Pepe offers a higher risk but potentially much higher reward scenario.

With the presale stages filling up quickly, a $777K giveaway is live, and a Mega Giveaway offering more than 15 ETH in prizes to top buyers, the community element is strong and engaging.

### Conclusion

Ethereum and Solana remain safe bets, but their steady growth means the upside may be limited. Little Pepe, on the other hand, is writing a different narrative, combining meme culture with blockchain utility and offering real projected gains.

With early buyers already up 120% and Stage 13 investors still able to capture 36.36% gains before launch, the path to $3 by 2026 is within reach if momentum continues.

For more information about Little Pepe (LILPEPE) visit the links below:

– Website: [https://littlepepe.com](https://littlepepe.com)
– Whitepaper: [https://littlepepe.com/whitepaper.pdf](https://littlepepe.com/whitepaper.pdf)
– Telegram: [https://t.me/littlepepetoken](https://t.me/littlepepetoken)
– Twitter/X: [https://x.com/littlepepetoken](https://x.com/littlepepetoken)

*Disclaimer: This is a syndicated feed. The article is not edited by the FPJ editorial team.*
https://www.freepressjournal.in/latest-news/little-pepes-lilpepe-path-to-3-by-2026-overshadows-ethereum-eth-and-solanas-sol-slow-bullish-outlook

OpenAI Now Worth $500 Billion

OpenAI Could Now Be the World’s Most Valuable Startup, Surpassing SpaceX and ByteDance

OpenAI has potentially become the world’s most valuable startup, outpacing Elon Musk’s SpaceX and TikTok’s parent company ByteDance, following a secondary stock sale aimed at retaining employees at the ChatGPT maker.

Current and former OpenAI employees sold $6.6 billion in shares to a group of investors, pushing the privately held artificial intelligence company’s valuation to $500 billion, according to a source familiar with the deal who was not authorized to speak publicly.

### Investors and Valuation

The investors purchasing the shares included Thrive Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, T. Rowe Price, Japanese tech giant SoftBank, and the United Arab Emirates’ MGX, the source revealed on Thursday. This valuation reflects high expectations for the future of AI technology and continues OpenAI’s remarkable trajectory from its beginnings as a nonprofit research lab in 2015.

### Profitability and Market Concerns

However, with the San Francisco-based company not yet turning a profit, concerns about an AI bubble may intensify. Skeptics worry that if the generative AI products from OpenAI and its competitors fail to meet investor expectations, the billions poured into research and development could be at risk.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has recently sought to ease such concerns. During a tour last week of a massive data center complex being built in Abilene, Texas, to run the company’s AI systems, Altman said:

> “Between the ten years we’ve already been operating and the many decades ahead of us, there will be booms and busts. People will overinvest and lose money, and underinvest and lose a lot of revenue.”

He added, “We’ll make some dumb capital allocations and see short-term ups and downs, but over the arc that we have to plan over, we are confident that this technology will drive a new wave of unprecedented economic growth, along with scientific breakthroughs, improvements to quality of life, and new ways to express creativity.”

### New Business Ventures

Just this week, OpenAI launched two new business ventures: a partnership with Etsy and Shopify to enable online shopping through ChatGPT and a social media app called Sora for generating and sharing AI videos.

### Competition and Compensation Challenges

The stock sale marks a first for OpenAI, which has struggled to offer investors and staff the same perks and compensation as other companies. In particular, Facebook parent Meta Platforms has been aggressively hiring top AI engineers and, in June, made a $14.3 billion investment in AI company Scale, which recruited its CEO Alexandr Wang.

### Corporate Structure and Regulatory Scrutiny

OpenAI’s for-profit subsidiary, currently valued at $500 billion, is technically controlled by the board of OpenAI’s nonprofit, with both entities still bound to pursue the nonprofit’s charitable purpose.

The company’s partnerships with major corporations and plans to alter its corporate structure have attracted scrutiny from regulators, including the attorneys general of California and Delaware, who oversee charities operating or incorporated in their states.

### Recent Partnerships and Strategic Moves

In recent weeks, OpenAI has made significant deals with Oracle and SoftBank for a data center venture called Stargate, as well as with chipmaker Nvidia, which supplies the specialized AI chips necessary for these data centers.

At the same time, OpenAI has reduced its reliance on longtime backer Microsoft. In September, the company announced it had reached a tentative agreement with Microsoft regarding the future stake of its nonprofit in its for-profit corporation, though few details were shared.

### Grants to Support AI Understanding and Economic Opportunity

OpenAI also opened applications for nonprofits to apply for $50 million in funding, an initiative launched following recommendations from an advisory board. The grants aim to support projects that increase public understanding of AI, promote the design of AI based on community needs, and boost economic opportunity.

The deadline to apply for these grants closes on October 8.

OpenAI’s rapid growth and ambitious plans highlight the company’s potential to reshape the AI industry and broader economy, even as questions about profitability and market sustainability remain.
https://www.deccanchronicle.com/technology/openai-now-worth-500-billion-possibly-making-it-the-worlds-most-valuable-startup-1907655

Stablecoins to hit $1.9T as trust surpasses fees in exchanges

A Citi (NASDAQ: C) report has predicted that the stablecoin market will achieve a $1.9 trillion valuation by the end of the decade in its base case scenario, while leaving room for an additional growth spurt. Citi analysts described stablecoins as the “ChatGPT moment” for the institutional adoption of blockchain technology.

Akin to the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots, the report anticipates stablecoins will experience significant growth in valuation over the coming years. While Citi forecasts a $1.9 trillion base case valuation for the asset class, the report also suggests stablecoins could climb to $4 trillion by the end of 2030 in its bull case scenario.

Currently, the global stablecoin market capitalization sits at $307 billion, up from $200 billion at the start of 2025. Citi bases its prediction on the 58% growth stablecoins achieved in 2025 alone, with analysts forecasting that this upward trend will continue through the decade.

### Growing Momentum in Stablecoin Projects

Aside from the strong performance in 2025, Citi analysts have highlighted an influx of stablecoin project announcements within the ecosystem. Early in the year, Trump-backed World Liberty Financial (WLF) entered the stablecoin race with the launch of USD1. Additionally, a number of U.S.-based financial institutions are planning their own stablecoin rollouts.

Citi attributes this surge in stablecoin initiatives to fresh regulatory support in the U.S., notably marked by the signing of the GENIUS Act by U.S. President Donald Trump.

### Use Cases and Industry Impact

While use cases for stablecoins have expanded to include domestic and cross-border payments, Citi notes that the stablecoin boom will not completely overhaul the existing financial system. Instead, analysts view this innovation as continued progress toward smarter, more efficient finance.

“We don’t believe crypto will burn down the existing system,” the Citi report reads. “Rather, it is helping us reimagine it.”

The report points out that domestic payments systems are already capable of processing payments in real-time and at low costs, providing stiff competition for stablecoins. However, cross-border payments remain the primary use case for stablecoins, with fintech firms and traditional financial institutions making significant progress to reduce settlement times and fees.

### Challenges Facing Stablecoins

Despite the positive outlook, Citi’s forecast also acknowledges several challenges within the stablecoin sector.

– **Regulatory Uncertainty:** Outside the U.S., regulatory frameworks remain unclear, hindering global adoption.
– **Reserve Transparency:** Questions about the reserves backing stablecoins continue to be a concern for issuers.
– **Market Manipulation Allegations:** Some stablecoins have faced accusations related to market manipulation.
– **High-Profile Collapses:** Failures such as TerraUSD (UST) have raised fears over collateral transparency, prompting tighter regulatory measures.

### Digital Asset Exchange Users Prioritize Trust Over Low Fees: Kraken Survey

Mark Greenberg, global head of consumer at Kraken, revealed that U.S. digital asset users are not blindly chasing low fees but instead are weighing several factors when choosing an exchange.

The survey found:

– Only 16% of respondents cited fees as the primary consideration when selecting an exchange.
– 26% identified trustworthiness as the most important factor.
– 14% prioritized security features.

“As the market matures, investors value long-term confidence over short-term savings,” said Greenberg. “People want to know their assets are safe, that the platform is reliable, and that they can access the tools they need without unnecessary complexity.”

Interestingly, regulatory compliance was not a major concern for many users; only 6% said it influenced their exchange choice. Customer support was a significant factor for just 7% of respondents.

Given the variety of considerations, 44% of survey participants maintain accounts with at least two digital exchanges, while nearly 26% use over three platforms. This diversification allows users to manage platform risk and access a broader range of listings.

Kraken’s report also noted that trading volumes on decentralized exchanges have surged by 259% since 2024, driven by the increasing popularity of platforms like Hyperliquid and Astar.

### Stiff Competition Among U.S. Exchanges

While Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) holds the largest market share among digital asset exchanges, several competitors are eager to expand their presence.

Kraken is considering going public, with plans to raise funds ahead of a tentative IPO in 2025, following the footsteps of Gemini and Coinbase.

However, amid this flurry of IPO activity, a race for regulatory compliance is intensifying among U.S.-based exchanges. This competitive atmosphere is compounded by recent security concerns, including customer data leaks at Coinbase and critical bugs at Kraken. These issues have led users to approach exchange selection with increased caution.

### Watch | MiCA and the Future of Stablecoins: What Comes Next for Tether?

[Embedded YouTube video player]

The stablecoin market stands at a pivotal point, poised for significant growth amid supportive regulation, rising adoption, and evolving use cases. However, challenges related to regulatory clarity and security remain critical areas to watch as the industry matures.
https://bitcoinethereumnews.com/tech/stablecoins-to-hit-1-9t-as-trust-surpasses-fees-in-exchanges/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=stablecoins-to-hit-1-9t-as-trust-surpasses-fees-in-exchanges

Travel experts predict holidays will soon become ‘cheaper and easier to book’

On Monday, the artificial intelligence giant OpenAI introduced a feature that allows users to make purchases through ChatGPT, in partnership with Etsy and Shopify. This development is set to pave the way for a significant transformation in the travel industry, with experts predicting a “massively disruptive” tech update on how we book holidays.

OpenAI announced, “Users can now buy directly from US Etsy sellers right in chat, with over a million Shopify merchants, like Glossier, SKIMS, Spanx, and Vuori, coming soon. Today, Instant Checkout supports single-item purchases. Next, we’ll add multi-item carts and expand merchants and regions.”

This move is poised to disrupt the online commerce world, as ChatGPT’s 700 million weekly users will soon be able to shop directly through the AI interface without visiting other websites. This integration will give OpenAI considerable influence in e-commerce and generate significant revenue through fees from sellers.

Following the announcement, experts in the future of travel predicted a world where ChatGPT, or another similar large-language model, could achieve market dominance and evolve into a “super-app” — serving as a portal to every part of the internet.

Travel enthusiasts already use AI to plan holidays in great detail. However, the key difference in the future will be the ability to book an entire holiday with just a few clicks, without ever leaving the AI interface, experts say.

At the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) summit in Rome on Tuesday, Bloomberg anchor Guy Johnson remarked, “That is a huge shift. That is a new model. That is massively disruptive.”

Gaurav Bhatnagar, co-founder of TBO.com, predicted that these changes would be positive from a customer perspective. “The quality of service will improve. You will need fewer people (as a travel company). From a customer’s perspective, it will be cheaper, easier to book, and the experience will be better,” he explained.

For travel companies, however, the impact will be even more profound. Bhatnagar suggested that when ChatGPT takes a customer to the booking stage, it might send the holiday plan to its clients and ask who wants to bid for the booking. “My guess is that ChatGPT wants to replace Amazon, Booking.com, to become the super app,” he added.

Paolo Benanti, president of the AI Commission for Information and a member of the UN Advisory Board on AI, shared a similarly optimistic view: “You would expect that an AI agent could arrange [travel] more accurately than a human can.”

The prospect of an AI revolution in travel has been developing for several years. At last year’s WTTC summit, similar predictions were made about how large language models could create personalized travel itineraries for holidaymakers.

Despite the potential, the travel and tourism industry faces challenges in adopting AI. These include a shortage of AI-skilled workers, limited AI infrastructure, and the absence of formal AI strategies in many business plans.

The WTTC has urged travel and tourism businesses to embrace AI as a strategic priority, urging heavy investment in talent to foster collaboration between humans and AI.

With these advancements, the way we plan and book holidays could soon be forever changed — making travel simpler, more efficient, and personalized through the power of artificial intelligence.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/travel/news/travel-experts-predict-holidays-soon-35990157

Elon Musk halfway to becoming world’s first trillionaire – report

WASHINGTON, United States — Billionaire Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, is nearly halfway to becoming the planet’s first trillionaire, Forbes magazine reported Wednesday.

The Tesla and SpaceX CEO became the first person to achieve a net worth of $500 billion, albeit briefly, as the shares in his electric vehicle company rebounded following a clumsy stint.

https://business.inquirer.net/550439/elon-musk-halfway-to-becoming-worlds-first-trillionaire-report

Philippines in talks to host first WTA 125 tennis event

The Philippines is aiming to host its first-ever Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 125 tournament, with plans currently underway to hold the event early next year.

This initiative was discussed during a meeting on September 29 between Navotas Mayor and Philippine Tennis Association secretary-general John Rey Tiangco, and Philippine Sports Commission chairman Patrick Gregorio.

The potential hosting of the WTA 125 tournament marks a significant step in promoting tennis in the country and providing local players with greater exposure to international competition. Further details about the event are expected to be announced as preparations progress.
https://sports.inquirer.net/642662/philippines-in-talks-to-host-first-wta-125-tennis-event

Malaysia’s data centre pioneer, Basis Bay takes it to the next level with its “eco-premium” Tier-4 DC

**Basis Bay’s Green Commitment Predates Today’s Mega Trend of Sustainability**

Engineered to Tier-4 standards, the new Cyberjaya centre ensures no single point of failure.

Basis Bay is putting the finishing touches on a new eco-premium, Tier-4 infrastructure, world-class data centre in Cyberjaya, slated to go live in October. Speaking at the MDX Summit 2025 fireside on 17 September, Dinesh Manoharan, Data Centre Project Lead at Basis Bay, outlined three core value propositions: fault-tolerant resilience, designed-in sustainability, and the critical guarantee of data sovereignty in a single Malaysian-owned facility.

### Where Uptime is the Baseline, Not a KPI

Every minute of downtime hurts, but for financial services, insurers, and government workloads—sectors where Basis Bay has nearly two decades of experience—it can be existential. This is why the new Cyberjaya data centre is engineered with no single point of failure, mirroring Tier-4 design principles where each critical system has a full redundant pair.

“It may be Tier-4, yet our data centres are built above and beyond the industry standards,” said Dinesh, adding, “Maximum uptime isn’t a target; it’s table stakes.”

He was quick to share a remarkable record: since 1996, Basis Bay has not lost a single client due to a service-level agreement (SLA) breach—a bar it intends to carry into its new generation of facilities.

### Green by Design, Not by Afterthought

Basis Bay’s green commitment predates today’s mega trend of sustainability. Proof lies in the fact that in 2009, it built Asia’s first purpose-built green data centre in Cyberjaya. That site, and the experience of running it for almost two decades for demanding world-class clients, led to what Dinesh calls an eco-premium approach—merging environmental considerations into form, fabric, and operations from day one.

The new Cyberjaya DC2 extends Basis Bay’s green DNA under an eco-premium banner. Clarifying what this means, Dinesh explains:

“When we say eco-premium, it is the amount of effort and thought process that is put in before even building. That shows up in EIA-led site planning, transplanting trees, sourcing local, lower-impact materials, and hydrology features.”

Dinesh is specific about cooling logic: “We have a bathtub rooftop design that drops shadow on the roof, which enhances cooling. Every degree Celsius of cooling power that you save translates into energy saved, and energy saved is income saved.”

Not surprisingly, the design input for the new facility involved the best consultants—local and global—with 17 consultants engaged.

### Key Highlights Include:
– A unique bathtub rooftop that channels rainwater to improve cooling efficiency.
– A BioSwell pond to support local ecosystems.
– Relocating trees and flora during construction to preserve local biodiversity.
– Sourcing eco-friendly building materials from local suppliers.

“It’s about designing with the environment in mind, not just the data,” he explained. “In today’s world, both matter equally.”

### Selling White Space is Not Basis Bay’s Game

Plenty of data centre providers sell white space. That is not Basis Bay’s approach. Instead, the company focuses on pushing its service layer as the differentiator.

A 24/7 ‘Smart Hands’ team acts as an on-site extension of client operations, handling installs, swaps, and triage without waiting for off-site engineers. This is reinforced by preventive lifecycle management, which aims to keep assets running past vendor end-of-life labels through checks and maintenance cycles.

### Sovereignty by Design

With global hyperscalers expanding across ASEAN, control over where data lives has re-entered board agendas. Dinesh stresses that Basis Bay’s facilities are Malaysian-owned and operated, offering enterprises and public sector clients a sovereign alternative with a single point of accountability across design, build, operations, and management.

“Everything is done by us in-house,” he emphasized.

Its value proposition is clear: “We are offering world-class compliance certainty, reduced supply-chain ambiguity, and data residency on home soil.”

In other words, one accountable Malaysian owner-operator for design, build, operations, and facilities management.
https://www.digitalnewsasia.com/digital-economy/malaysias-data-centre-pioneer-basis-bay-takes-it-next-level-its-eco-premium-tier-4

Evening Reading – October 1, 2025

Good evening, Shacknews readers! It’s nighttime, which means it’s time for Evening Reading. Let’s officially close out our day of posting with the latest news, updates, and interesting tidbits from around the web.

**In Case You Missed It at Shacknews:**

– *Fallout 76: Burning Springs* expands to post-nuclear Ohio and adds bounties.
– *Digimon Story Time Stranger* review: Grinding across time and space.
– Frictional Games teases its next project.
– Facebook and Instagram to get ads based on users’ AI chats.
– Xbox Game Pass Ultimate gets a $10 price increase.
– BioWare employees express concerns about closure following EA’s sale.
– KPop Demon Hunters come to Fortnite this week.

**Other Stuff From The Internet!!!**

– **Rest in Peace Jane Goodall**
One of the all-time great human beings and a true champion of our world and the creatures who inhabit it. Her memory and impact will live on.

– **Merriam-Webster’s New Large Language Model**
Now this is how you market!

– **Sliced Ghost of Yotei Posters in the U.K.**
Awesome stuff. Can’t wait to jump in tomorrow!

– **Happy October!**
The best time of the year is officially upon us. Time to get spooky!

– **Quentin Johnston’s Catch, But Art**
This guy doesn’t miss.

– **So Many People Tried to Cancel Their Game Pass Subs That It Broke the Website**
Whoops!

– **Cronos: The New Dawn Gets Native Steam Deck Build**
Hoping to see more of this!

There you have it, Shacknews — your Evening Reading for tonight.

Please consider subscribing to Shacknews Mercury to support our site for as little as $1/month.

Thanks for reading, and have a great night!
https://www.shacknews.com/article/146182/evening-reading-october-1-2025