Facebook Inc on Wednesday blew past Wall Street profit estimates in the first quarter and set aside $3 billion to cover a settlement with U.S. regulators, calming investors who had worried about the outcome of a months-long federal probe.

Shares of the world's biggest online social network jumped more than 10 percent to $200.50 in after-hours trade. They have now regained much of the ground lost last year amid slowing growth and costs associated with the company's privacy scandals.

Microsoft Corp on Wednesday briefly topped $1 trillion in value for the first time after executives predicted continued growth for its cloud computing business.

The Redmond, Washington-based company beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit and revenue, powered by an unexpected boost in Windows revenue and brisk growth in its cloud business which has reached tens of billions of dollars in sales.

Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio is now reportedly the second-largest telecom company in the country. The company is said to have overtaken Bharti Airtel in terms of customer base and now trails only Vodafone Idea.

While Jio presently has 306 million customers, Vodafone Idea continues to lead the industry with 387 million subscribers, according to a Times of India report. Airtel has 284 million subscribers.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Wednesday ordered cash-strapped Hotel Leelaventure to not proceed with the Brookfield Asset Management deal, following letters of objection from foods-to-tobacco major ITC and state-owned insurance giant Life Insurance Corporation (LIC).

Mumbai: The benchmark BSE Sensex jumped over 100 points in early trade on Wednesday tracking record gains on Wall Street amid easing crude prices.

After hitting an intra-day high of 38,701.52, the 30-share index was trading 75.37 points or 0.20 per cent higher at 38,640.25. The NSE Nifty too rose 21.15 points or 0.18 per cent to 11,597.10.

New Delhi: Cash-strapped Hotel Leelaventure on Wednesday said capital markets regulator Sebi has barred it from selling its four hotels and other assets to Canadian investment fund Brookfield Asset Management.

On March 18, Hotel Leelaventure Ltd (HLVL) had announced sale of its four hotels located in Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Udaipur, and a property to Canadian investment fund Brookfield for Rs 3,950 crore.

New Delhi: The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Tuesday observed that the Committee of Creditors of Essar Steel cannot discriminate between operational creditors of the debt-ridden firm.

The CoC of Essar Steel has divided operational creditors of the company into two types -- one with claims under Rs 1 crore and another above Rs 1 crore.

A division bench of the Bombay high court hearing a dispute between Kotak Mahindra Bank and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has adjourned the matter to January 9, 2020, because of “paucity of time”.

The division bench was hearing a petition filed by the private sector lender challenging an RBI directive of August 13, 2018.

An offshoot of Alphabet Inc.’s Google has become the first drone operator to receive government approval as an airline, an important step that gives it the legal authority to begin dropping products to actual customers.

The subsidiary, Wing Aviation LLC, now has the same certifications that smaller airlines receive from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and the Department of Transportation. It plans to begin routine deliveries of small consumer items in two rural communities in Virginia within months, the company said.

ITC has moved the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) against Hotel Leelaventure, alleging “oppression and mismanagement” of minority shareholders. ITC, which has a 7.92% stake in Hotel Leelaventure, has objected to a transaction involving the sale of properties by Hotel leelaventure to Brookfield.

ITC’s petition in the NCLT, Mumbai, noted that “….from the limited inspection provided, it became clear that the proposed transaction would have the effect of transferring a substantial part of the assets of Respondent No. 1 in favour of Brookfield for an amount of Rs 4,250 crore.

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