Business

ETMarkets Smart Talk | Bharat investors to drive next growth wave in wealth management: Nilesh Naik

Published

3 weeks ago

28 March 2026

ETMarkets Smart Talk | Bharat investors to drive next growth wave in wealth management: Nilesh Naik

As India’s investing landscape undergoes a structural shift, the next phase of growth is increasingly being driven by investors from beyond the top cities.

In an interaction with Kshitij Anand of ETMarkets Smart Talk, Nilesh D. Naik, Head of Investment Products at Share.Market, highlighted how the rise of ‘Bharat’—spanning tier II, tier III, and smaller towns—is reshaping the wealth management ecosystem.

With deeper digital penetration and growing participation from B30 cities, he believes this segment will be instrumental in expanding India’s investor base from around 60 million to nearly 200 million over the next decade, while also redefining how platforms approach product design, education, and investor behaviour. Edited Excerpts –

Kshitij Anand: Now that the access problem has been solved by digital apps, what specific psychological barriers are preventing retail investors from making those intelligent decisions?

Nilesh D. Naik: You are right— from an access perspective, the problem has largely been solved over the last five to six years. But one of the key challenges today is the complexity involved in starting the investing journey. And I think that is where platforms need to spend a lot of time.
For example, for people who have been investing in mutual funds, it may not be that difficult— mutual funds may come across as a very simple product.

But for a first-time investor, with thousands of products available, how do you zero down on the right one? That remains a big challenge. Going forward, you will see a lot of platforms focusing on this area in a big way.

Kshitij Anand: And how can a retail investor distinguish between a fund that is genuinely consistent and one that is simply riding a temporary market tailwind?

Nilesh D. Naik: Yes, this is an interesting question and one of the key issues that has been widely discussed in the industry. The general tendency of customers is to go by performance— they look at three-year or one-year performance and invest accordingly.
At least at PhonePe, we have tried to address this issue by not focusing too much on performance, but by highlighting the consistency of the product. When I say consistency, there are complex concepts like rolling returns and so on.

We try to simplify these, do the heavy lifting at our end, and present a simple metric that helps customers see whether the product has been consistent over the long term in relative terms, compared to other schemes in the category.

I think it is very important to shift the focus away from point-to-point returns, which are highly cyclical— not just at the market level, but even at the relative performance level. So yes, this is a key area to focus on.

Kshitij Anand: And at PhonePe, you very much believe in the Bharat story. So, how is that evolving at PhonePe and in the wealth management space?

Nilesh D. Naik: Yes, the strength of PhonePe is our distribution reach, and we have a very strong presence in tier II, tier III cities and beyond. Just to share some numbers with you—if you look at the mutual fund customers that we have, more than two-thirds of them are from B30 cities, beyond the top 30, as per the AMFI definition.

And not just from a customer perspective, but even from an AUM perspective, this is very different from the industry numbers, where it is actually the other way around, at least in terms of assets. So, the participation that we have seen is very encouraging, and it motivates us to build more for that cohort.

That is going to be the growth engine for the industry as well, in terms of moving from a 60 million customer base to, let us say, 200 million over the next decade or so.

Kshitij Anand: And let me also get your perspective on this—in a market that is prone to sudden volatility, how can platforms move beyond just providing data and actually help engineer better investor behaviour?

Nilesh D. Naik: Yes, it does not start with volatility. What you need to do is ensure that when the customer or investor is investing, at that stage itself, you offer the right kind of product mix. That will take away half the problem because when you invest in the wrong product, the volatility tends to be much higher.

A classic example today is investors who have invested in small caps. For a first-time investor, the kind of volatility experienced there is very different from someone who started with a large-cap, index, or hybrid product.

So, retaining a customer who has invested in core products is relatively easier compared to someone investing in small-cap or thematic products.

However, when such situations arise, there cannot be a single solution that addresses the entire problem. Continuous education is very important. Having the right contextual education within the app is critical. The nudges you give to customers—guiding them on how certain actions may work against them—are also very important. And of course, customers learn through experience.

No matter how much we educate them, experience cannot be replaced. The good thing is that many of these customers are in their 20s, which means over the next three to four years, if they continue investing, they will develop their own learning—and that is the best teacher.

Kshitij Anand: Staying with the Bharat story, as investors spread into tier II and tier III cities, how do we ensure that intelligence is simplified enough to be accessible to first-time investors?

Nilesh D. Naik: There are different ways to do this, but I can share what we have done at PhonePe Wealth to help customers. When it comes to shortlisting or identifying funds, there are three core parameters that we focus on.

The first is the consistency of the fund’s performance. The second is risk. And the third is whether there is a method behind that performance. By method, I mean the style of the fund manager and how the product is managed.

We have launched an interesting tool called CRISP, which stands for Consistency, Risk, and Investment Style of Portfolio. We understand that these are relatively complex concepts, so we simplify them by categorising factors such as consistency into high, medium, or low; and risk into acceptable or high levels, so that investors can make informed decisions.

Lastly, we also explain how the product is managed—whether it follows a quality, value, or momentum style—so that customers can create the right mix of funds that complement each other.

However, even with simplification, education remains critical. We are focusing a lot on educating customers about these concepts in a simple and accessible manner.

Kshitij Anand: Do you feel there is any single mistake that investors usually make when selecting a fund or investing?

Nilesh D. Naik: Two things I would highlight here. One is, of course, investing based on past performance. In fact, we have done several studies wherein, if you look at, say, the previous three-year ranking of funds in a category and compare it with the next three years—for example, 2019 to 2022 versus 2022 to 2025—and then look at the ranks, the rank correlation is actually close to zero.

This means there is absolutely no correlation between the two, which tells you that investing based on past performance does not work. However, it is a common behaviour among customers to look at returns and invest, and this is where one of the biggest mistakes comes from the customer side.

The second is the absolute lack of planning. It is like someone tells me that this is a good fund, and I invest without thinking about why I am investing or what my framework should be.

Every investor, no matter how small the investment, needs a framework that they can refer back to, especially during times when markets are highly volatile. Otherwise, you will keep debating whether to add more equity or redeem. Having a framework helps.

When I say framework, it means understanding that your investment is long term and defining the level of downside risk you can tolerate. For example, based on recent data, markets can fall by as much as 40% in a worst-case scenario.

But if, as an investor, I cannot tolerate more than a 20% downside, then I would probably allocate 50–60% to equity and the rest to fixed income products, gold, etc. Now, whenever something happens in the market, you can go back to that asset allocation framework and assess whether you are still aligned with your plan.

It is a very simple concept, and there can be many variations of it. But having a proper plan is extremely important, and this is something that is missing for most investors.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by experts are their own. These do not represent the views of the Economic Times)

DES MOINES, Iowa — Mediacom Communications is not experiencing a widespread outage as of Monday afternoon, according to major outage tracking sites, yet customers in multiple states continue to voice frustration over intermittent connectivity problems, slow speeds and recurring service disruptions that have plagued the cable provider in recent weeks.

Downdetector, Outage.Report and other monitoring services showed no significant spike in reports indicating a broad network failure on April 20, 2026. The company’s official outage map and support pages reflected normal operations, with no major incidents flagged for internet, television or phone services. However, scattered user complaints on social media and community forums highlighted persistent WiFi drops, broadband slowdowns and overnight blackouts in areas such as Iowa, Illinois, Missouri and parts of the Southeast.

“User reports show no current problems with Mediacom,” Downdetector stated in its real-time overview, noting that most recent complaints centered on WiFi connectivity (about 55%) and broadband internet (37%) rather than a company-wide crash. Similar assessments from IsItDownRightNow and StatusGator confirmed the service appeared operational for the majority of subscribers.

Mediacom, which provides cable television, high-speed internet and phone service to residential and business customers across 22 states primarily in the Midwest and Southeast, has faced criticism for reliability in smaller markets and rural communities. The provider promotes “99.99% network reliability” in its 2025 executive summary and offers a 90-day money-back guarantee for unresolved issues, but customers frequently report that daily or nightly interruptions undermine those claims.

On Monday, isolated social media posts continued the pattern seen throughout April. Accounts monitoring service status, such as @status_is_down, noted “Mediacom is reportedly down for some subscribers right now,” linking to community discussions where users described sudden drops during work hours or streaming sessions. One recent complaint referenced multiple outages over short periods, echoing earlier reports from mid-April when hundreds of users logged issues around early morning hours.

In mid-April, several days saw noticeable upticks. On April 14 and April 16, DownDetector graphs showed spikes beginning around 1 a.m. Eastern Time, with reports of no internet or severely degraded performance. Similar patterns emerged in late March and early April, leading some subscribers to question whether infrastructure maintenance or capacity issues were to blame. A YouTube report from mid-April discussed widespread outages in certain regions that lasted up to two days before resolution.

Mediacom customers have grown accustomed to troubleshooting advice: power cycling modems and routers, checking local outage maps or waiting for automatic recovery. The company’s support site allows account holders to view service interruptions and location-specific maps, but many say responses feel slow during peak complaint times. Social media mentions often tag @MediacomSupport with demands for refunds proportional to downtime, with some users calculating dozens or even hundreds of hours lost over recent months.

Frustrations run particularly high in smaller towns where Mediacom holds significant market share and alternatives like fiber or satellite providers remain limited or more expensive. Posts from users in Decorah, Iowa, and other communities described service flickering on and off, especially overnight when remote workers or students rely on stable connections. “It’s 2026, this shouldn’t still happen regularly like it did 20 years ago,” one customer wrote, summarizing a common sentiment that modern expectations for always-on internet clash with recurring cable network hiccups.

Industry analysts note that cable providers like Mediacom, which rely on hybrid fiber-coaxial infrastructure, can face congestion during high-usage periods or vulnerabilities from physical plant issues such as weather, construction or aging equipment. Upstream usage caps and potential speed reductions for heavy data consumers add another layer of customer irritation, even when the core network remains up.

Mediacom has invested in network upgrades, including WiFi powered by eero equipment and promotions around fast, reliable internet without contracts. The company highlights its mobile service running on a network recognized for 5G reliability. Yet for many households dependent on home broadband for work, education and entertainment, the gap between advertised performance and real-world experience fuels ongoing dissatisfaction.

No official statement from Mediacom addressed widespread problems on April 20. The company’s website and support portal remained accessible, directing users to account tools for checking status. In past incidents, Mediacom has communicated via Twitter and email alerts when fiber cuts or other technical failures affected multiple states, as seen in older reports from the Southeast. Customers experiencing issues are encouraged to reset equipment or contact support directly.

For those still facing problems despite the all-clear from outage trackers, common fixes include verifying connections on multiple devices, testing wired versus wireless performance, and monitoring for localized issues such as neighborhood node overload. Advanced users sometimes bypass provided gateways to test deeper network health.

The situation reflects broader challenges in the U.S. broadband landscape, where regional cable giants serve millions but face scrutiny over uptime compared to fiber-based competitors. Mediacom’s service area includes many mid-sized cities and rural pockets where competition is thinner, potentially reducing urgency for rapid improvements.

As remote and hybrid work remains common, even brief outages disrupt video calls, cloud applications and online learning. Streaming services and gaming add further strain during evenings. Some customers have explored switching to Starlink or other satellite options despite higher costs and latency trade-offs, citing reliability as the deciding factor.

Mediacom’s promotional materials emphasize “stress-free connectivity” and commitment-free plans, positioning the provider as a straightforward choice. The 90-day guarantee offers an exit ramp for new customers unhappy with service, but long-term subscribers often feel locked in by limited alternatives or bundled TV packages.

Looking ahead, continued complaints could pressure Mediacom to enhance transparency with real-time status updates or accelerate infrastructure hardening. Regulators and consumer advocacy groups periodically examine broadband reliability metrics, though enforcement varies by state.

For now, the absence of a major outage on April 20 brings relief to most of Mediacom’s customer base. Yet the steady drip of individual reports serves as a reminder that “no widespread problems” does not always translate to flawless daily performance. Subscribers dealing with spotty service are advised to document incidents, reach out to support and explore any available credits for extended downtime.

In an increasingly connected world, stable internet has become essential infrastructure. Mediacom’s challenge remains delivering consistent service that matches its reliability claims across diverse markets. While trackers show the network holding steady Monday, many eyes — and modems — will stay tuned for any evening or overnight shifts that have frustrated users in recent weeks.

Customers can check the official Mediacom outage map or Downdetector for the latest updates. Those with persistent issues should contact support or review account options, including potential speed tests to verify advertised versus delivered performance.

As the day progresses, the story for most remains business as usual. For the subset still staring at spinning wheels or error messages, however, the question “Is Mediacom down?” hits closer to home than any dashboard statistic.

Business

Exclusive-Indian refiners pay for Iran oil in yuan via ICICI Bank, sources say

Published

50 minutes ago

20 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Exclusive-Indian refiners pay for Iran oil in yuan via ICICI Bank, sources say

CUPERTINO, California — As anticipation builds for Apple’s first foldable smartphone, expected to launch as the iPhone Ultra in September 2026, early leaks and analyst reports highlight a device poised to redefine premium mobile computing with innovative form factor, near-crease-free displays and powerful internals.

The book-style foldable, set to join the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max lineup, promises to blend the portability of a smartphone with the productivity of a small tablet. With a rumored starting price north of $2,000, the iPhone Ultra targets users seeking the ultimate convergence device. Here are 10 compelling reasons why tech enthusiasts and power users may want to consider purchasing Apple’s ambitious new flagship when it arrives.

1. Revolutionary Book-Style Design with Passport-Like Form Factor

The iPhone Ultra is expected to feature a wider, more square “passport-style” shape when closed, offering better one-handed use and pocketability than tall, narrow competitors. When unfolded, it transforms into a spacious inner display ideal for multitasking, reading or watching content without the bulk of carrying a separate tablet.

2. Virtually Crease-Free 7.8-Inch Inner Display

One of the biggest pain points for existing foldables is the visible crease. Apple is reportedly investing heavily in new materials and hinge technology to deliver a nearly invisible crease on the 7.8-inch inner OLED panel. This could make the unfolded experience feel closer to a traditional flat screen, enhancing immersion for videos, games and productivity apps.

3. Functional 5.5-Inch Outer Screen for Quick Tasks

Users won’t need to unfold the device for simple actions like checking notifications, replying to messages or taking quick photos. The outer display, around 5.5 inches, provides a practical phone-like experience while maintaining the device’s compact folded profile.

4. Ultra-Thin Profile at Just 4.5mm Unfolded

Despite the complex mechanics, the iPhone Ultra is rumored to measure only about 4.5mm thick when open — potentially Apple’s thinnest iPhone ever. This slimness, combined with a closed thickness of roughly 9-10mm, addresses common complaints about bulkiness in foldable phones while delivering premium feel.

5. Advanced Titanium Frame and Liquid Metal Hinge

Durability concerns have plagued early foldables. Apple is said to use a hybrid titanium-aluminum chassis for strength and lightness, paired with a sophisticated hinge possibly incorporating liquid metal or amorphous alloys. This engineering focus aims for smoother operation and long-term reliability through hundreds of thousands of folds.

6. Return of Touch ID for Reliable Authentication

Facing challenges with under-display sensors on a foldable, Apple may replace Face ID with Touch ID integrated into the power button. This could offer faster, more consistent unlocking across both inner and outer displays, especially in varied lighting or when wearing masks or sunglasses.

7. Powerful A20 Pro Chip and Ample RAM for Demanding Tasks

Powered by Apple’s next-generation A20 Pro on a 2-nanometer process and up to 12GB of RAM, the iPhone Ultra should deliver significant gains in speed, efficiency and AI capabilities. The larger unfolded screen will shine for split-screen multitasking, professional video editing, high-end gaming and advanced Apple Intelligence features.

8. Dual 48MP Camera System Optimized for Dual Modes

Photography remains a strength for Apple devices. The iPhone Ultra is expected to feature a dual rear 48MP setup (wide and ultrawide) arranged horizontally, plus front cameras suited for both folded and unfolded use. This configuration could deliver pro-level imaging while adapting seamlessly to the device’s versatile form factor.

9. Massive Battery for Extended All-Day Use

Foldables typically face battery challenges due to dual screens. The iPhone Ultra is rumored to pack one of the largest batteries in iPhone history, potentially 5,400mAh to 5,800mAh. Combined with efficient hardware, this could provide exceptional endurance for productivity sessions, media consumption or travel without frequent charging.

10. Seamless iOS Optimization and Ecosystem Integration

Apple’s greatest advantage may lie in software. iOS 27 is expected to include tailored features for foldables, such as improved app continuity when unfolding, enhanced multitasking gestures and better support for productivity tools. Deep integration with the broader Apple ecosystem — including continuity with Mac, iPad and Watch — could make the iPhone Ultra feel like a true multi-device hub rather than just another phone.

Beyond these highlights, the iPhone Ultra represents Apple’s long-awaited entry into a category it has studied carefully. While competitors like Samsung have iterated on foldables for years, Apple is positioned to address common shortcomings with its signature attention to detail, premium materials and refined user experience.

Early dummy units and supply chain reports suggest Apple has ordered significant volumes of foldable displays, indicating serious commitment despite past delays in the project. Some analysts note potential minor production tweaks that could shift full availability slightly later in 2026 or into early 2027, but the September announcement window remains the consensus target.

For prospective buyers, the high price tag — likely starting around $2,000 or more depending on storage — positions the iPhone Ultra as a luxury device for those who value innovation and versatility. Early adopters may appreciate the novelty of a phone that doubles as a mini-tablet, while professionals could benefit from expanded screen real estate for emails, documents or creative work on the go.

Critics caution that real-world durability, crease visibility under various lighting and software maturity will only be confirmed upon release. Battery life in heavy dual-screen use and the longevity of the hinge mechanism will also be key tests. Still, the combination of rumored specs suggests Apple aims to deliver a polished product that feels less like an experiment and more like a natural evolution.

As September 2026 approaches, more concrete details may emerge through regulatory filings or developer previews. In the meantime, the iPhone Ultra rumor mill underscores Apple’s willingness to push boundaries in a maturing smartphone market where incremental upgrades have become the norm.

Whether the device ultimately justifies its premium cost will depend on individual needs. For users tired of switching between phone and tablet, or those seeking the latest in mobile form-factor innovation backed by Apple’s ecosystem, the iPhone Ultra could represent a compelling upgrade. For others content with traditional slab designs, the standard iPhone 18 Pro lineup may suffice.

As the tech world watches closely, Apple’s foldable ambitions could accelerate mainstream adoption of the category while setting new standards for quality and refinement. With its blend of cutting-edge hardware and thoughtful software, the iPhone Ultra has the potential to become not just another phone, but a versatile daily companion that adapts to how people actually use their devices in 2026 and beyond.