SME Credit & Housing Reality Check: South Africa’s housing finance has a “blind spot” in townships and rural areas where homes are built and improved but lack registered title—making it hard for banks to price and lend properly. Digital Payments Policy: India’s Payments Council says UPI stays free for consumers and small merchants won’t be hit with MDR charges, even as rules move toward a future merchant-only model. AI for Small Business Ops: Oracle and Google Cloud are integrating Gemini models into Oracle apps, aiming to help SMBs automate workflows and add AI-driven decision support without starting from scratch. SME Market Access: Mizoram is pushing “Made by Mizo” via a New Delhi kiosk and an e-commerce platform to get handloom and handicrafts into national and global markets. Local Business Resilience: A flash flood destroyed inventory at a Chattanooga-area golf cart shop, with the owner turning to a GoFundMe after insurance didn’t cover flood damage. Workforce Disruption Warning: A Philippines expert says AI will displace many digital jobs faster than it creates new ones, making retraining urgent for SMBs and workers. Community Entrepreneurship: Georgia College received $710k to launch a rural Bobcat Business Incubator, giving startups and students hands-on support. Retail Under Pressure: Russia’s Wildberries warehouse attacks are disrupting deliveries and hitting small franchise operators hard, with sales reportedly down about 50%.