Jio-poly and India's Gilded Age

Non-linear web Notebook to explore India's Gilded Age and Jio Platforms

ZIRP

NirantK14th June 2020 at 8:56am

Concepts Zero interest-rate policy is a macroeconomic concept describing conditions with a very low nominal interest rate. This is believed to lower cost of capital, thereby increasing liquidity in the economy.

What is ZIRP? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero_interest-rate_policy

How does ZIRP explain the world? https://themargins.substack.com/p/zirp-explains-the-world

References:
Brain Dump

The Role of Civil War which led to ZIRP

Jio Things

Mukesh angle

  • Telecom has been close to Mukesh and Manoj Modi for more than a decade
  • Naked Populism - Jio's Free Pricing, Kar Lo Duniya Mutthi Mai
  • First plans of Jio leaked in 2015
  • "It has to work perfectly from Day 1" - paraphrasing Mukesh Ambani
  • "Country is on a journey from $2K to $5K PCI" - Mukesh Ambani

Cronyism?

  • Acquiring Infotel Broadband which bid for $2B, a proxy, when it had itself no existence or value
  • Change in TRAI rules which allowed Jio to make and receive voice calls on a network originally designed for data. Source 39 in the James Crabtree book.
  • "We de-merged all of that" - Mukesh Ambani when NYT spoke of "network of lobbyists and spies in New Delhi". Anil Ambani would later unsuccessfully sue Mukesh for defamation on the basis of this quote.

Oil Tycoon

  • Free cash flow from Oil Refining feeds to Telecom
  • Jamnagar Refinery - the world's largest refinery by X
  • Ignored advisors forcing him to become Exxon or Shell

Family History

  • How Kokilaben and Anil's focus on existing value over future value helped Mukesh, he got energy and oil. While Anil got Telecom.

Adani

  • VISC Coal mines in Australia and Indonesia, his own ports and railways to supply Adani Power/Electricity
  • Defended Modi publicly in 2002, against riot criticism
  • Criticized by media during 2014, when Adani's private jets were used by Modi for his political campaigns
  • Mundra Port is India's largest port with 100M MT of goods
  • Adani is India's largest port owner, and largest private Electricity producer

Further Reading: Guha Thakurta - Gas Wars: Crony Capitalism and the Ambanis

Creative Destruction

Bollygarchs Hindu rate of growth lol

How we move value

Roman aqueducts and stoned roads led to the Roman empire and coinage built economy

This Army, quite literally, borrowed from the future and paid it's debts – until it could not, losing to superior training, and better fighting tactics

Shipping, Rails, Roads, Pipes, Wires, Wireless

Grains, Spices, Armies, Oil, Currency, Favours