Newsmakers: Hewlett-Packard to cut jobs, nod for small finance banks and more

Blackstone buys back BPO business from Serco
Global private equity firm Blackstone has bought back the BPO business (then known as Intelenet) from Britain's Serco Group for 250 million pounds (about Rs 2,558 crore), four years after it exited. In 2011, the PE firm had sold Intelenet to Serco for 250 million pounds or then $383 million.

Hewlett-Packard Co to cut up to 30,000 more jobs in enterprise business
Hewlett-Packard Co, which is splitting into two listed companies later this year, said it expects to cut another 25,000 to 30,000 jobs in its enterprise business as the tech pioneer adjusts to falling demand. The latest cuts, on top of layoffs of 55,000 workers previously announced under Chief Executive Officer Meg Whitman, notably will be in the company's faster-growing corporate hardware and services operations, to be spun off as Hewlett Packard Enterprise, or HPE, on November 1.

RBI grants in-principle nod to 10 entities for small banks
The Reserve Bank granted approval to ten entities, including Ujjivan Financial Services and Equitas Holdings, to set up Small Finance Banks to provide basic banking services to small farmers and micro industries. Other entities to get the Reserve Bank's nod are Au Financiers (Jaipur), Capital Local Area Bank (Jalandhar), Disha Microfin (Ahmedabad), ESAF Microfinance (Chennai), Janalakshmi Financial (Bengaluru), RGVN (North East) Microfinance (Guwahati), Suryoday Micro Finance (Mumbai) and Utkarsh Micro Finance (Varanasi).

S&P downgrades Amtek Global on liquidity risks at parent firm
Standard & Poor's has cut the long-term credit rating of Amtek Global, reflecting the 'heightened liquidity risks' at its parent company Amtek Auto, which might default on loan obligations. "The downgrade reflects heightened liquidity risks at India-based parent company Amtek Auto. We see a risk that Amtek Auto may not have sufficient liquidity to meet its interest or debt obligations, which could lead to a default at Amtek Auto, or a debt restructuring," S&P Rating Services said in a statement.

Sun Pharma inks deal to acquire US-based InSite Vision
Drug firm Sun Pharmaceutical Industries has entered into an agreement with InSite Vision to acquire the US-based eyecare firm for around $48 million plus related debt and other transaction costs to strengthen its branded ophthalmic portfolio in the US. One of the company's subsidiaries has offered to acquire InSite Vision, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries said in a statement.