🍳 The bee-conomy, things you forget in an Uber and more…

Hey folks!

Some people lose money in the stock market. Others? Well… they lose 25 kilograms of cow ghee in an Uber.

Yup! Uber just dropped its latest edition of the Lost and Found Index this week, and it’s wild (also funny). Bags, wallets, phones, are predictable things to leave in an Uber. But a bansuri (flute), a gold biscuit, a wedding saree and even a gas stove made the list this year. And while Delhi has finally stepped down from its forgetfulness throne, passing the crown to Mumbai, there’s been another shuffle too. Hyderabad has dropped off the list, making room for Kolkata’s grand entry into the top five.

What’s even better is that people are most likely to misplace things at 7 pm, mostly on Saturdays. No surprises there. And if it’s a festive day, well… let’s just say Uber drivers probably double as unofficial lost and found officers.

Anyway, while people are busy losing things in Ubers, let’s make sure we aren’t misplacing any interesting, unusual business stories this week.

On that note, let’s dive in.

Here’s a soundtrack to put you in the mood 🎵

Something Stupid by Lola Marsh

We normally like picking songs from underrated Indian artists, but this recommendation by our reader Amit Kumar Eshore was worth breaking the mould for. Thanks, Amit!

What caught our eye this week 👀

The bee-conomy is crashing and so are nature’s smallest workers

I used to think honeybees were the villains of my childhood.

One sunny afternoon, while playing outside, I got stung on the finger. Which ballooned up like a cartoon thumb, and I swore vengeance (well, at least a week of grumbling). But then, on the way to the doctor, my uncle told me something that changed everything. “Those bees you’re mad at? They’re the heroes of the food world”, he said.

He gave me an analogy of how bees were like the unpaid interns of our planet’s kitchen. Because these tiny creatures pollinate most of the world’s flowering plants (over 75% today) — fruits, veggies, nuts, even your morning coffee. They have a big production value (of $350 million in 2023 alone). So without them, grocery shelves would look bleak, and diets would turn bland.

But here’s the stinger. Bees are vanishing. This winter, commercial beekeepers in the US lost nearly 60% of their colonies. That’s the biggest collapse since tracking began in 2011, affecting over two-thirds of managed bees. And the fallout is already showing. California’s almond orchards (home to 80% of global almond production) are facing pollination shortfalls.

And what’s weird is that scientists still don’t know the exact cause. Virus? Pesticides? Climate stress? Probably all of it.

But this isn’t new. Since the early 2000s, we’ve seen a rise in something called Colony Collapse Disorder, where entire hives vanish without warning. One big reason? Bees are starving. Erratic weather messes with blooming cycles, and when flowers don’t appear on time, bees go looking and don’t make it back. Throw in pesticide exposure, and it’s a disaster waiting to happen. Meanwhile, the ongoing USDA budget and funding cuts have slowed crucial research and support for beekeepers.

It’s not just bees either. Insects overall like butterflies, beetles and ants are vanishing fast. These little guys are vital to food production, plant growth and waste breakdown. And their disappearance is nature’s giant red flag.

But here’s something that caught our attention…

The US has a record 3.8 million honeybee colonies. But beekeepers are simply cloning hives to keep up. Think of it like making copies of a sick patient and hoping one survives. Some are turning to mason bees, who pollinate better but they don’t produce honey or live in hives (perhaps the reason for their low adoption among beekeepers).

And yeah, this isn’t just America’s problem. India, too, has had its brushes with bee crises. Mass bee disappearance in Orissa, Punjab, Maharashtra and Kerala have been linked to excessive pesticide use and the push for non-native bee species.

Sure, there’s hope as localised beekeeping, rooftop hives and indigenous bee initiatives are taking root.

But the bottom line is that bees are going. And that’s nature telling us something. These tiny creatures are nature’s early warning system. And when they’re distressed, it means the planet is too. Strangely fascinating, but unsettling too, yeah?

So the next time you see one buzzing by, maybe don’t shoo it away. Bee kind. It’s doing a lot more for your diet than you think.

Infographic 📊

This Day in Financial History 📜

10th of April, 1912 — The Titanic sets sail. But so do insurance payouts that shook the maritime world.

On this day, the RMS Titanic left Southampton, England, on its maiden voyage to New York City with 2,200 passengers onboard. It was supposed to be unsinkable and a floating marvel. Massive, luxurious and powered by cutting-edge marine engineering. But just four days later, the ship struck an iceberg and sank in the Atlantic, claiming over 1,500 lives.

Now, you probably know this story. Maybe even watched it unfold with Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio on screen.

But here’s a version you probably haven’t: the financial one.

The Titanic was insured for $5 million. And that was a staggering amount back then. The coverage came from a syndicate of insurers and was led by the renowned insurer Lloyd’s of London.

And when disaster struck, the claims rolled in fast. Life and accident insurance claims alone crossed $3.4 million. Some of them made headlines. The family of railroad executive John B. Thayer received over $170,000, and another passenger, Herbert Chaffee, held the largest individual policy of $146,750. So adjusted for inflation, we’re talking millions today. And all of it collectively made Titanic not just one of the deadliest disasters, but one of the costliest in insurance history.

And just like that, the business of risk changed.

Insurers rewrote the rules. They raised premiums for transatlantic voyages, tightened underwriting standards and turned to reinsurance (basically, insurance for insurers) to spread risk. Marine actuarial science, the business of calculating the odds of sinking, suddenly got a lot more serious.

And the episode also reshaped global regulations. Because within two years, in 1914, countries created the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), which set new rules for lifeboats, emergency drills and continuous radio communication. In short, governments began treating safety as a financial priority and not just a moral one.

So yes, the Titanic sank. But what rose in its place was a new era of risk management that still anchors the insurance and shipping industries today.

Oh, and if you want to know how some folks turned the Titanic tragedy into a money making scheme, you can check out this piece by NDTV.

Readers Recommend 🗒️

This week, our friend Anuradha Rao is back with another book recommendation ― Plato and a Platypus Walk Into a Bar, by Thomas Cathcart and Daniel Klein.

Interestingly, it’s a book that explains several philosophical concepts with jokes.

Thanks for the rec, Anuradha!

That’s it from us this week. We’ll see you next Sunday!

Until then, send us your book, music, business movies, documentaries or podcast recommendations. We’ll feature them in the newsletter! Also, don’t forget to tell us what you thought of today's edition. Just hit reply to this email (or if you’re reading this on the web, drop us a message: morning@finshots.in).

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