💊 Drug pricing

Good morning. A Bridgerton-themed ball in Detroit this past weekend turned out to be a major disappointment (reminiscent of Fyre festival) for attendees, as it was revealed to be an unofficial event.

• Tickets: $150 to $1,000

• Agenda: classical music, dinner, dancing, and contests

Reality, however, included:

• A single violinist as the only musical entertainment

• An exotic dancer

• An undercooked meal, with reports of raw chicken and cold pasta

Yikes 🙀 

- Ruchirr Sharma & Shatakshi Sharmaa  

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• 📈 Zerodha records another profitable year

• 💊 Drug pricing

• 🗞️ Bite-sized summaries

  • 🇨🇦 Canada’s immigration plan

  • 😍 Cool startup alert

• 🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

• 🍿 Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

MARKETS

🇮🇳 India

• The Indian stock market hit historic highs on Wednesday. Energy, metal and media sectors led gains, while IT and FMCG lagged. Power Grid, Axis Bank and NTPC were top gainers, while LTIMindtree and Tech Mahindra were top losers

🌍️ International

• U.S. stock markets cooled on Wednesday, after reaching record highs, with the Dow down 0.7% and the S&P 500 slipping 0.2%. Concerns about economic health and consumer confidence were heightened by declining new home sales and mixed mortgage application data. Meanwhile, Micron's strong earnings boosted its stock by 10%, reflecting ongoing demand in the semiconductor sector.

ANNUAL RETURNS

📈 Zerodha records another profitable year

Zerodha, the popular stockbroking platform, reported impressive financial results for FY24, with revenue reaching ₹8,370 Cr. and around ₹4,700 Cr. profits - marking a significant growth from FY23, when the company reported revenue of ₹6,875 Cr. and a net profit of ₹2,900 Cr..

But despite this good news, the Kamath bros aren’t too optimistic about the future. 

• CEO Nithin Kamath warns of potential headwinds due to SEBI's recent regulatory changes. The 'true to label' circular is expected to cause a 10% drop in revenues, while new rules for index derivatives could lead to a 30-50% revenue decline.

• Plus. Zerodha faces increased competition from rivals like Groww and Angel One. Its active clients' market share on BSE decreased from 19% in March 2022 to 16% in June 2024. Monthly account openings have also dipped from a peak of 4 lakh to just under 3 lakh.

• In response to market pressures, Zerodha has eliminated account opening charges, which will further impact revenue. Despite these challenges, Kamath remains cautious about going public, citing the company's profitability and lack of need for additional funding.

Overall: While Zerodha has no immediate plans for a public listing, Kamath highlighted the company's investments through its Rainmatter fund, which supports over 120 companies with ₹680 Cr. invested.

Zerodha is also committed to philanthropy through the Rainmatter Foundation, with ₹1,000 Cr. allocated to non-profit initiatives.

Additionally, the company has a small lending business and an asset management arm with ₹3,000 Cr. in assets under management.

Read more: Economic Times

OZEMPIC

💊 Drug pricing

Heard about Ozempic? The popular diabetes drug now widely used for weight loss?

Well, so has the U.S., and they’re fed up with its sky-high prices.

Novo Nordisk CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen faced tough questions from the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee over the high costs of Wegovy (a weight loss drug) and Ozempic (a diabetes treatment).

Here’s the scoop:

• Committee Chair Senator Bernie Sanders pointed out the massive price disparity. In the U.S., Ozempic costs $969 per month, and Wegovy $1,350—compared to under $100 in some European countries.

• While Jørgensen didn’t promise price cuts, he expressed openness to addressing systemic pricing issues. He also agreed to discuss affordability with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) after Sanders revealed that PBMs had committed in writing to maintaining coverage if prices dropped.

So, why are the prices so high?

• Jørgensen blamed the U.S. healthcare system’s complexity and the need to pay rebates to PBMs. 

• He also cautioned that lowering prices might lead to reduced insurance coverage, citing past issues with an insulin product.

What’s next?

• Concerns loom about the impact on the healthcare system if demand for these drugs keeps rising. 

• The committee estimated a staggering $411 billion annual cost if half of Americans took weight loss drugs from Novo Nordisk and competitor Eli Lilly.

Overall: this hearing is part of broader efforts by the Biden administration to tackle rising healthcare costs. Ozempic could even be subject to Medicare price negotiations under the Inflation Reduction Act, with changes possible by 2027.

Read more: CNBC

GENERAL OVERVIEW

🗞️ Bite-sized summaries

🇨🇦 Canada’s immigration plan - Canada's population growth is slowing as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reduces immigration. Despite this, over 3 million temporary residents remain in the country, with 250,000 people added in the second quarter, mostly through international migration. Temporary residents, including students and workers, continue to rise despite the government's plan to reduce their numbers. The population now stands at 41.3 million, with international migration accounting for 96% of recent gains. Although the median age slightly decreased due to immigration, Canada's economic growth is expected to slow as population increases return to historical averages.

😍 Cool startup alert - Elemind, a startup founded by MIT researchers, has developed an EEG headband that uses acoustic stimulation aligned with brainwaves to help people fall asleep faster. In a small study, the device reduced the time to fall asleep by 10-15 minutes. Elemind’s headband detects brain activity and generates auditory pulses to promote sleep, offering a non-chemical alternative to sleeping pills. The company is collecting feedback from early users and collaborating with universities to explore additional applications, including memory improvement and tremor reduction. Elemind aims to expand beyond sleep into broader neuroscience applications.

HEADLINES

🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

What’s happening in India (and around the world 🌍️)

• US elections: Kamala Harris and Donald Trump target economy in close US election battle.

• Chief economists bullish on India, cautious optimism for global recovery: WEF survey.

• India's manufacturing incentives progress amid efforts to cut China imports.

• SaaS startup Whatfix raises $125M from Warburg, SoftBank, valuation hits $900M.

• Foxconn plans $1B display assembly unit in Tamil Nadu.

• US company Southwest Airlines to cut service and staffing in Atlanta to slash costs.

CULTURE

🍿 Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

• Ananya Panday’s cyber crime thriller, CTRL trailer out now.

• Kartik Aaryan confimrs Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 release on Diwali.

• Priyanka Chopra, Samantha Ruth Prabhu steal the show at Citadel Honey Bunny premiere in London