Adani, Sirius joint venture to transform India’s $175B digital economy

Adani Enterprises Ltd (AEL) has confirmed its partnership with Sirius, a subsidiary of International Holding Company (IHC) based in United Arab Emirates (UAE), to invest in emerging technologies to improve India’s digital economy.

The partnership creates a new joint venture (JV) named Sirius Digitech International to spearhead its efforts in India. Based out of Abu Dhabi, Sirius JV will explore opportunities in blockchain, artificial intelligence, and the Internet of Things (IoT).

The new investment entity will focus on the verticals of finance, health, and environmental sustainability projects. Projects working with the emerging technologies across the verticals are likely to receive capital injection from the joint venture, although the exact details are unavailable to the public.

Sources say the company will employ various digital platforms to tap into India’s fast-growing digital economy, according to reports. While the company might float new projects from scratch, analysts say the ideal route for the joint venture will be an investment in existing early-stage projects in India built with disruptive emerging technology.

“Sirius JV will capitalise on the global digital transformation expertise of Sirius and Adani’s strategic insights to focus on leading the $175 billion opportunity in the digitalisation of the Indian economy,” read the statement. “This digital opportunity is rapidly evolving to become a $1 trillion market by 2030.”

Executives at both Adani and Sirius are optimistic over the prospects of the joint venture, relying on the combination of both their strengths. The joint statement hinted at deploying sensor technologies with AI in key industries for “real-time decision making” while mulling opportunities stemming from incorporating blockchain in industrial applications.

Adani will own 49% of the joint venture, while Sirius will enjoy a majority stake of 51%, with Indian regulators required to give final approval before the commencement of business.

India’s emerging tech scene

With over 1.4 billion population, India has been touted as the next frontier for emerging technologies. Web3 and AI startups have set up shops in India despite the murky nature of regulations and harsh government policies.

India’s banking regulator proposed AI-powered conversational payments, but the misuse of generative AI has seen officials harden their stance toward the technology. Blockchain, on the other hand, has recorded rising use cases in India, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman predicting an adoption rate of 46% before the end of the decade.

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