About External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs): 

• ECBs refer to the borrowing of funds by Indian companies from foreign sources in the form of loans, bonds, or other financial instruments.
• Purpose: It can be used to finance a variety of purposes, including the expansion of business, the acquisition of assets, and the repayment of existing debt.
• Source of ECBs: ECBs can be obtained from a variety of sources, including foreign banks, international financial institutions, and foreign subsidiaries of Indian companies.
• ECB can be in the form of rupee-denominated loans, which are repaid in Indian rupees, or foreign currency-denominated loans, which are repaid in a foreign currency.
• Regulation: ECB is subject to regulatory oversight by the RBI, which sets limits on the amount of ECB that Indian companies can obtain and the purposes for which it can be used.
  • The ECBs fall under the umbrella of RBI regulations as postulated under the Master Direction - External Commercial Borrowings, Trade Credits, and Structured Obligations (Master Direction), and the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA).
• ECBsshould adhere to criteria like minimum maturity period,maximum all-in-cost ceiling, permitted and non-permitted end-uses, etc. 
• As of today, there are two paths to raise funds by employing ECBs: the approval route and the automatic route.
  • There are a variety of eligibility regulations created by the government for availing of finance under the automatic route.
  • These regulations are in relation to amounts, industry, the end-use of the funds, etc. Companies that desire to raise finance via ECB must necessarily meet these eligibility criteria; thereafter, funds can be raised without the need for approval.
  • The approval route, on the other hand, mandates that companies which fall under certain pre-specified sectors must obtain the RBI's or the government's explicit permission, prior to raising funds through ECB. 
• As per RBI guidelines, all entities except a Limited Liability Partnership are allowed to raise ECBs.
• Benefits:
  • ECBs provide an opportunity to borrow large volumes of funds.
  • The funds are available for a relatively long term.
  • Interest rates are also lower compared to domestic funds.
  • ECBs are in the form of foreign currencies. Hence, they enable the corporate to have foreign currency to meet the import of machineries etc.
• Risks:
  • Exchange rate risk: Fluctuations in the value of the Indian rupee against foreign currencies can affect the cost of repaying the loan.
  • Sovereign risk: The ability of a foreign government to repay its debt can affect the creditworthiness of foreign lenders.
  • Credit risk: Foreign lenders may not have the same level of protection as domestic lenders in the event of default.
  • Regulatory risk: Changes to government regulations or policies related to the ECB can affect the availability and cost of borrowing.

Q1: What is a bond?

A bond is a fixed-income instrument and investment product where individuals lend money to a government or company at a certain interest rate for an amount of time. The entity repays individuals with interest in addition to the original face value of the bond.

Source: Indian firms' external commercial borrowing registration up 84% in FY24

About SRO-FT Framework:

• The framework defines fintech as entities providing technological solutions for delivery of financial products and services to businesses and consumers or encompassing regulatory and supervisory compliance in partnership with traditional financial institutions or otherwise.
• The SRO-FT would be industry-led and will be responsible for establishing and enforcing regulatory standards, promoting ethical conduct, ensuring market integrity, resolving disputes, and fostering transparency and accountability among its members.
• The applicant hould be set up as a not-for-profit company, and its shareholding should be sufficiently diversified, with no entity holding 10% or more of its paid-up share capital, either singly or acting in concert. 
• Applicants will need to have a minimum net worth of ₹2 crore within one year after recognition as an SRO-FT or before commencement of operations, whichever is earlier.
• At least one-third of members on the board, including the chairperson, should be independent and without any active association with a fintech entity.
• Further, the majority of non-independent directors are to be representatives of FinTechs that are currently not directly regulated.
• Applicants should demonstrate the capability of establishing the necessary infrastructure to act as an SRO-FT effectively and consistently.
• It will also need to put in place systems for managing ‘user harm’ instances, which may include fraud, mis-selling, unfair practices, unauthorised transactions, or any other form of misconduct.
• While the SRO can’t open branches or offices outside India, FinTechs domiciled outside India can become members of an SRO. 
• The number of SRO-FTs to be recognised would depend on the number and nature of the applicants received, and the RBI reserves the right not to grant recognition to any such application.
• If deemed necessary, RBI can nominate or depute observers on the SRO-FT's board.
• Responsibilities:
  • An SRO-FT should operate objectively under the oversight of RBI, and strive towards healthy and sustainable development of the sector.
  • A fintech SRO should frame a code of conduct for members, set industry benchmarks and baseline technology standards for transparency, disclosure, and data privacy, set standardised documents for specific requirements, set up a mechanism for accreditation in the fintech ecosystem, and a code of conduct forresponsible advertisements and market standards.
  • The SRO-FT should have adequate powers to investigate and take disciplinary action against its members for non-adherence to codes / standards / rules.
  • Responsibilities towards RBI would include relaying sector-specific insights, addressing regulatory concerns, collaborate on development of the sector, foster co-operation, provide policy commensurate to the dynamic nature of the sector, act as the collective voice of its members, provide regular updates on sector developments, and collect and share relevant data.

Q1: What is Financial Technology (Fintech)?

Fintech is used to describe new technology that seeks to improve and automate the delivery and use of financial services. At its core, fintech is utilized to help companies, business owners, and consumers better manage their financial operations, processes, and lives. It is composed of specialized software and algorithms that are used on computers and smartphones. Fintech, the word, is a shortened combination of “financial technology.”

Source: RBI specifies framework for SRO for FinTech firms

About Cryonics:

• Cryonics, the practice of freezing an individual who has died, with the object of reviving the individual sometime in the future.
• The word cryonics is derived from the Greek krýos, meaning “icy cold.”
• It is an effort to save lives by using temperatures so cold that a person beyond help by today’s medicine can be preserved for decades or centuries until a future medical technology can restore that person to full health.
• A person that is held in such a state is called a “cryopreserved patient”, because Cryonicists (the advocates of cryonics) do not regard the cryopreserved person as really dead.
• Cryonic preservation can be performed only after an individual has been declared legally dead.
• The process is initiated shortly after death, with the body being packed in ice and shipped to a cryonics facility.
• There, the blood is drained from the body and replaced with antifreeze and organ-preserving compounds known as cryoprotective agents.
• In this vitrified state, the body is placed in a chamber filled with liquid nitrogen, where it will theoretically stay preserved at -196 °C until scientists are able to find a way to resuscitate the body in the future.
• Currently, there are a few hundred bodies that have been frozen through cryonics. 

Q1: What is Liquid Nitrogen?

Liquid Nitrogen is an inert, colorless, odorless, noncorrosive, nonflammable, and extremely cold element. It is a cryogenic liquid (Cryogenic liquids are liquefied gases that have a normal boiling point below –130°F (–90°C). Liquid nitrogen has a boiling point of –320°F (–196°C).

Source: Australian Cryonics Firm Freezes First Client In Hopes Of Bringing Him Back To Life In Future

About Recombinant Proteins:

• These are proteins encoded by recombinant DNA that has been cloned in an expression vector that supports expression of the gene and translation of messenger RNA.
• Modification of the gene by recombinant DNA technology can lead to expression of a mutant protein.
• It is a manipulated form of native protein, which is generated in various ways in order to increase production of proteins, modify gene sequences, and manufacture useful commercial products.
• It is created by fusing sequences that may not be normally present in an organism.
• Recombinant proteins, such as vaccine antigens, insulin and monoclonal antibodies, are mass-produced by growing modified bacterial, viral or mammalian cells in large bioreactors. The most widely used organism is the yeast Pichia pastoris (now called Komagataella phaffii).
• Application of Recombinant Proteins
  • It is used in biomedical research to understand health and disease.
  • It is used in biotherapeutics.
  • It is used to produce protein-based polymers for drug delivery, antibodies and enzymes for disease treatment, protein scaffolds for tissue engineering etc.

What is protein?

• It is the workhorse in biological systems facilitating most of biological processes in a cell, including gene expression, cell growth, proliferation, nutrient uptake, intercellular communication and apoptosis.
• The blueprint for protein synthesis is stored in DNA, which serves as a template for highly regulated transcriptional processes to produce messenger RNA (mRNA). 

Q1: What is genetic disorder?

A genetic disorder is a medical condition caused by abnormalities or mutations in an individual's DNA or genes. These mutations can be inherited from one's parents or can occur spontaneously during a person's lifetime.

Source: IISc researchers develop novel method for mass production of recombinant proteins

About Diadromous fish: 

• These are those fish species which migrate between saltwater and freshwater environments.
• Some of the examples for diadromous fish: the allis shad (Alosa alosa), twait shad (Alosa fal- lax), Mediterranean twaite shad (Alosa agone) and the European eel (Anguilla anguilla) etc.
• In order to better understand these movements, scientists have classified these migrations into several categories.
  • Anadromous fish: These are born in freshwater, then migrate to the ocean as juveniles where they grow into adults before migrating back into freshwater to spawn.
  • Catadromous fish: These are born in saltwater, then migrate into freshwater as juveniles where they grow into adults before migrating back into the ocean to spawn.
  • Amphidromous fish: These are born in freshwater/estuaries, then drift into the ocean as larvae before migrating back into freshwater to grow into adults and spawn.
  • Potamodromous fish: These are born in upstream freshwater habitats, then migrate downstream (still in freshwater) as juveniles to grow into adults before migrating back upstream to spawn.

Threats: Diadromous fish are sensitive to anthropogenic pressures. They are subjected to terrestrial, freshwater, and marine pressures such as agricultural and pollutant runoffs, habitat destruction, barriers to migration, fishing, bycatch, and climate change.

Q1: What are Invertebrates?

Invertebrates are characterized by their lack of a backbone or vertebral column. Instead, they have other structural features that support and protect their bodies. Invertebrates comprise a vast array of animal groups, including insects, spiders, crustaceans, mollusks etc

Source: Fish moving between marine & freshwater ecosystems have designated protected areas, but no protection in them: Study