Stocks trade lower in narrow range, banking and metal stocks suffer

The deepening conflict in West Asia has placed the Indian economy and the broader Asian region in the "eye of the storm," as supply chain disruptions and surging energy costs threaten to trigger a significant negative growth shock.

Indian stock markets settled in the red on Thursday as escalating tensions in West Asia and again a sharp rise in crude oil prices weighed on investor sentiment.

Kuala Lumpur [Malaysia], March 12: As a strategic move to refresh and strengthen its core vision, Hong Leong Islamic Bank ("HLB Islamic" or the "Bank") is transitioning to a refreshed consumer-facing brand identity, now known as HLB Islamic, and a strengthened core proposition that approaches financial services not as a series of siloed products and transactions, but as total wealth stewardship through a Shariah-principle-guided life-cycle approach known as Hayat @ HLB Islamic. This evolution is rooted in the Bank's new philosophy, 'Timeless Principles Guiding Tomorrow's Wealth', introduced during its 20th anniversary last December to signal a new chapter in wealth stewardship.

India's non-bank financial companies (NBFCs) are expected to expand faster than traditional banks over the coming decade as lenders adopt artificial intelligence and expand into new loan segments, according to a research report by Nomura.

Dubai [UAE], March 12: Wizz Financial, the global fintech company specializing in cross-border payments and digital wallets, today announced the completion of its first stablecoin-powered cross-border remittance and treasury transaction originating from the United States, with capabilities into 80 countries, in partnership with BitGo Bank & Trust, N.A. ("BitGo"), an OCC-regulated digital asset trust bank and subsidiary of BitGo Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: BTGO). Through the partnership, Wizz Financial is utilizing BitGo's institutional-grade wallet infrastructure and e-trade services to facilitate the conversion of fiat currency into stablecoins, enabling near-real-time settlement, enhanced liquidity management, and compliant, scalable cross-border remittance flows across its global network as new corridors are progressively launched.