Saturday, July 23, 2022

Godrej & Boyce Targets 35% Growth In Its Commercial Aviation Business


* Improving infrastructure and government thrust coupled with the travel pick-up, has geared the demand for aerospace components and parts

* Godrej Aerospace is targeting 3 times growth in 3 years 

Godrej & Boyce, the flagship company of the Godrej Group, has stated that its business Godrej Aerospace is targeting a 35% growth in its Civil Aviation business. This is owing to the 50% surge in demand that has been witnessed in this segment, from global majors including OEMs and engine manufacturers. With domestic travel having recovered globally and with international travel scheduled to reach pre-covid levels by 2025, the demand for civil aviation is accelerating. The business is further eyeing three times growth by FY25 owing to the rising demand for aerospace components and parts as travel trends lift. 

The Business announced that technology expansion along with increasing global presence will drive this growth.  This projected growth is also fuelled by major engine manufacturers and global OEMs taking a keen interest in India. Catering to the current demand, Godrej Aerospace is seen as a preferred partner owing to the integrated manufacturing facility backed by capability and approvals that the Company has in the aviation industry for over a decade. Godrej Aerospace has been manufacturing and supplying complex airworthy systems for aircraft applications, including critical sheet metal brackets, complex fabrications, hydraulic aggregates, crash-proof fuel tanks for helicopters, structural assemblies, and many other products for key global partners. The business is AS9100 certified and NADCAP approved for special processes like chemical processes, welding, heat treatment & brazing, NDT, composites, elastomer seals, measurement and inspection and non-conventional machining. Godrej Aerospace has been partnering with ISRO for over 30 years to manufacture complex systems such as the liquid propulsion engines for PSLV and GSLV rockets, thrusters for satellites, and antenna systems.

Maneck Behramkamdin, AVP & Business Head, Godrej Aerospace said, “The aviation sector working towards recovering from a severe economic crisis, is now exhibiting indications of confidence. Global OEMs are opening avenues for partnering with Indian manufacturers. Considering the post-pandemic economic recovery, we are projecting three times growth in the next three years in the civil aviation segment and expect this to revive further.”

About Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd

Godrej & Boyce ('G&B'), a Godrej Group Company, was founded in 1897 and has contributed to India's journey of self-reliance through manufacturing. G&B patented the world's first springless lock and since then, has diversified into 14 businesses across various sectors from Security, Furniture, and Aerospace to Infrastructure and Defence. Godrej is one of India's most trusted brands serving over 1.1bn customers worldwide daily.

To learn more visit: www.godrej.com

Bank of Baroda Organises “Banking Beyond Tomorrow – Annual Banking Conference 2022”


* The RBI Governor, Shri Shaktikanta Das is the Chief Guest at the conference 

Bank of Baroda (Bank), one of India’s leading public sector banks, organised the first edition of its Annual Banking Conference with the theme being “Banking Beyond Tomorrow”. Shri Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India was the Chief Guest at the conference and delivered the inaugural address.  

With over 20 eminent speakers from within the banking and financial services industry and outside, the full-day conference features five stimulating and thought-provoking panel discussions covering Banking Beyond Tomorrow; New Frontiers in Financial Inclusion; Innovative Technologies and New Business Models for Digital Banking; ESG Finance and Tackling Climate Change, and ending with an Economists’ Roundtable.  

Shri Sanjiv Chadha MD & CEO, Bank of Baroda said, “As we step into the post-Covid-19 era, we have the opportunity to debate on longer-term trends and steer the discussion towards identifying the contours of Banking Beyond Tomorrow. The other aspect that we have learnt over the last few years is that banks cannot do everything theMs.elves. They need to work with partners - partners who are increasingly embedded in core banking areas. The conference is therefore all about an outside-in perspective, and how we can define and shape the future of banks.” 

The notable highlight of the event was RBI Governor’s inaugural address. He spoke about the macroeconomic backdrop, noting that India’s growth remains strong. He also mentioned that RBI will take adequate steps to ensure a ‘soft landing’ for the Indian economy. Notably, he defended the flexible inflation targeting approach of the MPC, highlighting that it ensures the stability of the overall ecosystem. He also noted that RBI is well positioned to weather any external shocks. He mentioned that spillovers from global policy tightening, ongoing geopolitical tensions, Covid-19 induced slowdown, and commodity price shock have impacted growth across economies. To reiterate India’s strong external position, the RBI Governor stated that unhedged ECBs account for only a small portion of the total debt, hence India is adequately insulated against foreign exchange risk. 

On the regulatory front, the Governor pointed out that good governance and a sound risk management framework is essential for an efficient and well-functioning banking system. He emphasised how social media can increase customer penetration and used a tool for grievance redressal. He also flagged the need to recognise climate-related risks and incorporate them into business models.  

The theme of the first session was Banking Beyond Tomorrow. Eminent panellist Ms. Arundhati Bhattacharya, Salesforce India raised an important point and suggested the need for creating end-to-end digital products. She also mentioned the need for automation of services for the efficient functioning of the entire banking system. Mr. Ashish Gupta, Credit Suisse said that customer activities should be through regulated entities to ensure KYC compliance and customer safety. Mr. Deep Gupta, Macquarie Asset Management noted that technology and green infrastructure are two of the most important emerging areas of financing. Mr. Rashesh Shah, Edelweiss Group opined that banks in the future will transform into hubs providing financial solutions.  

Mr. Dilip Asbe from NPCI who joined the conference through video conferencing, in a fireside chat with Mr. Akhil Handa, Bank of Baroda highlighted the importance of digital infrastructure. He noted the success of UPI in the payment infrastructure. He also highlighted that rural will lead the way in the digital payment space growing at a 2x-4x pace.  

The next session focused on financial inclusion. Answering the question of strengthening the movement of financial inclusion, panellist Mr. Amit Arora of World Bank’s suggestion was to collectively invest in 1) customer protection and grievance redressal and 2) financial health of households. Mr. Vikramaditya Singh Khichi of Bank of Baroda said that the Bank is punching much above its weight with a 15% share in PMJDY and the Bank is working on more products to further penetrate the rural and Agri markets. bob World already has onboarded over 20 million customers. Ms. Kalpana Ajayan, Women’s World Banking emphasised the need to focus on advocacy, gender-sensitive policies and making women more comfortable with technology. Ms. Sucharita Mukherjee and Kaleidofin spoke about the importance of account aggregators providing tailored credit solutions. Mr. Anil Gupta, MicroSave Consulting, the moderator, ended the session by stating that it is time to move from Jan Dhan to Jan SaMr.idhhi.  

A special address was delivered by Mr. Harsh Wardhan Modi from J.P. Morgan through video conferencing. He pointed out that in the current scenario, inflation is sticky and global interest rates will remain high. Banks with the best total cost-to-asset ratio will gain long-term shares. Furthermore, in terMs. of digitisation, he highlighted that customer experience is becoming a prime driver of value creation in financial services. On cryptocurrencies, he pointed out that regulatory buy-in will be necessary for any form of money and payment system to gain scale.  

The next session shed light on innovative technologies and new business models for digital banking. In this session, moderated by Bank of Baroda’s Chief Digital Officer, Mr. Akhil Handa, the conversation revolved around solutions-based services to enhance the digital outreach in the banking sector. Mr. Ajay Khurana, Bank of Baroda mentioned that micro-service-based architecture is better for enhanced customer experience. Further, he noted that Bank of Baroda’s data lake is ushering in new dimensions of analytics. Ms. Lizzie Chapman, ZestMoney spoke about complementarity between technology companies and banks wherein banks will bring stability and regulatory awareness. Pranav Arora, Accenture said that Open Banking is indeed a massive opportunity for all banks. Ms. Chetna G Sinha of Mann Deshi Bank agreed and further stated that the rural population is eager for digital financial solutions and that banks should pave the way.  

Tata Motors Bags Prestigious Order of 1500 Electric Buses From Delhi Transport Corporation Under The CESL Tender

 


Key Highlights:

* Largest order to date for electric buses by Delhi Transport Corporation

* Tata Motors will supply, operate and maintain 1500 air-conditioned, low-floor 12-metre electric buses

* Tata Starbus electric buses offer state-of-the-art technology and features designed for comfortable travel for passengers

Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, today announced that it has bagged a prestigious order of 1500 electric buses from Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) under the larger tender by Convergence Energy Services Limited. Tata Motors will supply, operate and maintain air-conditioned, low-floor, 12-metre fully built electric buses for 12 years, as per the contract. Tata Starbus electric buses offer state-of-the-art technology for sustainable, eco-friendly and economical public transportation and are equipped with modern features to enable safe, smooth and comfortable travel for passengers.

Commenting on the occasion, Mr. Neeraj Semwal, IAS, MD – Delhi Transport Corporation, said, “We are delighted to confirm the order of 1500 electric buses to Tata Motors. The induction of the environment-friendly buses will help largely in reducing air pollution and benefit millions of Delhi citizens. DTC remains committed to introducing new technologies for benefit of passengers and society, at large.”

Ms. Mahua Acharya, MD & CEO Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL) said, “We are extremely happy that DTC has placed its largest order for electric buses under the Grand Challenge of CESL. The Delhi Government has shown exemplary leadership in transitioning over to electric buses. We are fortunate to have benefited from this and are thankful to Tata Motors in their generous collaboration.”

On the momentous occasion, Mr. Rohit Srivastava, Vice President, Product Line – Buses, Tata Motors, said, “We’re delighted to have won the largest order for electric buses by DTC. The delivery of these buses will further fortify our partnership with DTC and help in environment-friendly mass mobility for the city of Delhi. We are committed towards modernising public transportation in India and keep sustainability at the core in the designing of futuristic vehicles.”

Tata Motors has been at the forefront of bringing environment-friendly mobility to India. Its state-of-the-art research and development facilities have steadily worked to engineer innovative solutions powered by alternate fuel technology, including battery-electric, hybrid, CNG, LNG and hydrogen fuel cell technology. Till date, Tata Motors has supplied more than 650 electric buses across multiple cities in India, which have cumulatively clocked more than 39 million kilometres.

About Tata Motors

Part of the USD 109 billion Tata group, Tata Motors Limited (NYSE: TTM; BSE: 500570 and 570001; NSE: TATAMOTORS and TATAMTRDVR), a USD 34 billion organization, is a leading global automobile manufacturer of cars, utility vehicles, pick-ups, trucks and buses, offering extensive range of integrated, smart and e-mobility solutions. With ‘Connecting Aspirations’ at the core of its brand promise, Tata Motors is India’s market leader in commercial vehicles and amongst the top three in the passenger vehicles market.

Tata Motors strives to bring new products that fire the imagination of GenNext customers, fueled by state of the art design and R&D centers located in India, UK, US, Italy and South Korea. With a focus on engineering and tech enabled automotive solutions catering to the future of mobility, the company’s innovation efforts are focused to develop pioneering technologies that are sustainable as well as suited to evolving aspirations of the market and the customers. The company is pioneering India's Electric Vehicle (EV) transition and driving the shift towards sustainable mobility solutions by preparing a tailor-made product strategy, leveraging the synergy between the Group companies and playing an active role liasoning with the Government in developing the policy framework.

With operations in India, the UK, South Korea, Thailand, South Africa and Indonesia, Tata Motors’ vehicles are marketed in Africa, Middle East, South & South East Asia, Australia, South America, Russia and other CIS countries. As of March 31, 2022, Tata Motors’ operations include 86 consolidated subsidiaries, two joint operations, four joint ventures and 10 equity-accounted associates, including their subsidiaries, in respect of which we exercise significant influence.

Customs Duty Collection Arrangement Launched By South Indian Bank


Mr Murali Ramakrishnan, MD & CEO, South Indian Bank, officially launched the Customs Duty Collection Arrangement facility in the presence of Smt. Dr. Shankari Murali (ICAS), the Principal CCA (Chief Controller of Accounts) of CBIC (Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs), on July 8, 2022. The day also witnessed the inauguration of the Bank’s e-FPB (Electronic Focal Point Branch) at Delhi by Mr. Ramakrishnan. The launch of the facility enables South Indian Bank’s digital channels to collect direct and indirect taxes from taxpayers.

Mumbai: South Indian Bank’s corporate and retail customers will now be able to pay customs duty through the bank’s internet banking platform ‘SIBerNet’. The facility allows customers to make online payments by selecting South Indian Bank from the list of banks on CBIC’s portal.

The facility was kicked-off with the inauguration of the Bank’s e-FPB. The e-FPB will be attached to the Bank’s Corporate branch in Delhi. Consequently, the bank will collect customs duty on behalf of the CBIC, under authorization from the RBI.

Mr. Murali Ramakrishnan, MD and CEO of South Indian Bank applauded the achievement by saying, “This milestone achievement opens up a wide spectrum of opportunities for us. The accreditation allows us to enhance customer convenience for retail customers, small and medium enterprises and large corporations for their government-related banking transactions, taxes and other revenue payment facilities.”

Friday, July 22, 2022

An International Icon BMW Celebrates Its 50th Birthday; The BMW Headquarters Is Designed By Karl Schwanzer


Between 1970 and 1972, a timeless icon with global appeal was created in Munich in just 26 months. 3.5 million working hours on the construction site. 500 builders and 200 architects, engineers, and draftsmen. Over 3,000 façade elements manufactured for the first time in Europe using the Japanese cast aluminum process. At the time, employees from twelve nations built the BMW landmark. Today, colleagues from over 104 countries work side by side there and in the neighboring plant.

The BMW Group celebrated its corporate headquarters as a world-famous architectural icon today with over 200 international guests in attendance, from business, culture, politics and society. The keynote speech by architect and Pritzker Prize winner Francis Kéré as well as the appearance by Nihal Saad, Chief of Cabinet of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, made the ceremony a special event. Especially for this occasion, illustrator Christoph Niemann created an impressive artwork inspired by the BMW tower as an edition. In addition to the performance by star tenor Jonas Kaufmann as well as a speech by Dr Markus Söder, Minister President of Bavaria, the festivities concluded with a special highlight: With twelve vertical dancers, the US dance company BANDALOOP spectacularly transformed the BMW Headquarters into a 100-meter-high stage in its German premiere. Based on the impressive choreography by Melecio Estrella, the ensemble created a weightless synthesis for an interplay of architecture and dance. Along with specially composed music by Ben Juodvalkis, the façade dancers around Thomas Cavanagh presented "Momentum Curve", an exclusive performance as a tribute to the unique architecture.

To this day, the BMW Group Headquarters, with its suspended construction, is one of the most innovative engineering buildings of the post-war period – because the four cylinders are suspended from a cruciform steel beam construction on the roof. In the process, the building did not grow from the bottom up, as was generally the case, but rather the upper floors were first manufactured time-effectively on the ground, then moved upwards hydraulically on the massive "tower shaft" made of reinforced concrete and completed in several segments. In August 1972, opposite the renowned Olympic site designed by Behnisch & Partner with Frei Otto, the BMW Group Headquarters was completed. Designed by Austrian architect Professor Karl Schwanzer, the administrative building has since become a timeless icon with global appeal for Munich and the company. With its impressive façade, visionary construction and spatial concept, the "suspended tower" uniquely combines visual conciseness with a constructive and functional logic. The innovative power of Schwanzer's design stands for the BMW Group then as now, making the company headquarters a beacon of sustainable mobility for tomorrow. Celebrated in the media as the "most impressive and coolest corporate headquarters in the world", it is not only a symbol of economic success but also stands for international exchange, peace and interculturalism. Today, the "built communication" implemented by Schwanzer points the way to a new era of electrification, digitalization, and circularity.

Francis Kéré, architect and Pritzker Prize winner:

"Architecture and the automotive industry have been and continue to be some of the most important catalysts for innovation, economic development and the prosperity of nations. Both industries are society-changing, forward-looking, and trigger global trends that have a complex impact on the economy and the environment. Today, people, nature and industry are under enormous pressure to find solutions that require an honest examination of our actions. As a result, actors from architecture to business need to pull together more than ever, recognizing our symbioses and responsibilities in order to adapt our respective creations to focus on a sustainable future." 

Caroline Schwanzer, granddaughter of Professor Karl Schwanzer:

"When I was in Munich with my father for the first time, we visited the BMW building. He told me that Karl Schwanzer built the BMW Headquarters from the top down, meaning that the four cylinders hang from a structure on the roof. That fascinated me. I enjoyed it that my grandfather thought differently and that this 'thinking differently' was also appreciated. As a professor and teacher, he helped a generation of phenomenal architects come into being. He encouraged and challenged, but most of all, he inspired. That has always inspired me to reach for the stars!"

Dr-Ing. Dr-Ing. E.h. Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of BMW AG:

"The BMW tower has left its mark on the BMW Group. It is an icon of architecture that is brimming with a pioneering spirit. It represents BMW's awareness and self-confidence that progress comes through innovation. This building is so spectacular because it leaves no one untouched. Every generation at BMW is responsible for leading the company into the future. Karl Schwanzer's headquarters has provided the BMW Group with a sense of identification on its way to becoming a global player."

Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG:

"Talking about visions also means thinking beyond the spirit of the times and developing a sense of what will endure in the future. The BMW Headquarters has thought this out far ahead and even today it is hard to beat in terms of modernity. This building is always an incentive to leap further ahead than one would normally expect. We strive to make the next hundred years as successful as the last hundred years."

Melecio Estrella, Artistic Director and Choreographer BANDALOOP:

"We have been taking inspiration from the curvature of this building, recognizing that the human body expresses in curves and spirals. When we consider the acceleration that BMW well represents, we reflect on the momentum of the human heart, driving us toward a livable world for future generations."

Professor Karl Schwanzer (1918-1975):

"If you have decided to be an architect, you must have the courage to want to fulfill visions. Architecture is an art of communication, a means of communicating across centuries. Perseverance is creative. Accuracy, punctuality, continuity and modesty are the best of companions. Creating is not an agonizing drudgery but a means for joy. To work joyfully makes life meaningful."

"In the design, clearly readable forms were chosen that convey precision, technical perfection and beauty of form as an expression of and association with the image of an automobile factory."

Commissioning and film set

In 1968, BMW AG announced an architectural competition to design a new BMW administration building. To convince the BMW Board of Management, Supervisory Board and significant shareholders, Schwanzer had a 1:1 model of a complete cloverleaf-shaped floor built at the studios of Bavaria Film. In December of the same year, BMW's management awarded him the contract to build the new headquarters. Schwanzer's set and the pitch film shot also involved Rolf Zehetbauer, who won an Academy Award in 1973 for Art Direction of "Cabaret". Two years later, the Hollywood film "Rollerball" was released – with the BMW tower as the architectural protagonist. Whether "Suspiria" (1977), "Bloodline" (1979), "Zwei Nasen tanken Super" (1984) or "Vaterfreuden" (2014): the BMW headquarters celebrated its very own success on the big screen.

Described by artist Peter Blake as a "unique piece of realized pop architecture," its striking architecture remains a symbol of visionary corporate decisions for a successful future.

The large-format monochrome paintings "Red," "Yellow", and "Blue," commissioned from Gerhard Richter in 1972 and created especially for the foyer, are at the very beginning of BMW Group's half-century commitment to its cultural engagement with hundreds of initiatives worldwide. They will be restored as part of the anniversary celebrations and then re-presented as initially intended by the artist.

Architecture at BMW

The BMW Group can reflect on a decades-long tradition of working together with renowned architects. As early as Karl Schwanzer's construction of the headquarters, the company consciously opted for a dynamic type of architecture which was later to continue with trend-setting buildings by Zaha Hadid with her BMW Group Plant Leipzig (2005), BMW Welt in Munich by Coop Himmelb(l)au (2007) and Sir Nicholas Grimshaw's Rolls-Royce plant in Goodwood (2003). In 2022, Rem Koolhaas' Rotterdam-based OMA office and the Danish architects of 3XN were commissioned by BMW to transform its Munich main plant and jointly shape urban production for the future. (Press release).

A new film about Karl Schwanzer

"He Flew Ahead" is the title of a feature film about Karl Schwanzer with actor Nicholas Ofczarek in the role of the architect. Director Max Gruber created the movie on behalf of Martin Schwanzer, the late son of Karl Schwanzer and his granddaughter Caroline. As the subtitle "Architect's Poem" suggests, it is an unconventional approach to an extraordinary personality who understood architecture as materialized poetry. In addition to Karl Schwanzer himself, important contemporary witnesses and companions also have their say in the film, which will celebrate its official premiere in the fall of 2023.

Special anniversary exhibition at the BMW Museum

The BMW Group Headquarters and the BMW Museum, popularly known as the "bowl," are two of Munich's most distinctive buildings and are cherished as icons of German post-war architecture. From the beginning, the BMW Museum was integral to Karl Schwanzer's vision for the company's headquarters. A special exhibition about the ensemble, which has been a listed building since 1999, conveys the history of the headquarters area in the museum's foyer and presents architectural models from the time of its construction. The exhibition will be on display until October 3, 2022. Admission is free.

In Munich, the Olympic year 1972 will be celebrated with the exhibitions "The Olympic City of Munich. Retrospect and Outlook" at the Architekturmuseum Munich, "Visions and Reality. Art for the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich" in the City Hall Gallery as well as "The Olympic Games 72 in images – Photographs from the collections of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek".

Sify Reports Revenue of INR 7709 Million; EBITDA of INR 1525 Million For Q1 FY 2022-23


HIGHLIGHTS

Revenue was INR 7709 Million, an increase of 20% over the same quarter last year.

EBITDA was INR 1525 Million, an increase of 5% over the same quarter last year.

Profit before tax was INR 395 Million, a decrease of 10% over the same quarter last year.

Profit after tax was INR 271 Million, a decrease of 18% over the same quarter last year.

CAPEX during the quarter was INR 2241 Million.

MANAGEMENT COMMENTARY

Mr. Raju Vegesna, Chairman, said, “The last couple months has seen shifting winds in the macroeconomics of the world. Right through, India has retained a strong outlook for investments and growth. This is in large part due to the consistent economic policies of the government and its stated ambition to pursue digital methods to deliver social benefits.

The technology landscape has been the biggest beneficiary of these policies, and this is reflected in the growing number of incoming requests for Digital Transformation. We see Indian enterprises using this opportunity to adopt the best practices from around the world”. 

Mr. Kamal Nath, CEO, said, “Enterprises are displaying a growing comfort in digital adoption across all levels. They are leveraging digital transformation to spark innovation across the enterprise, and this is resulting in an increasing number of new initiatives delivered on a digital-only platform.

While earlier, our mandate was to accelerate our clients’ transformation goals, our cloud-focused Digital initiatives are now called upon to create new business processes, customer experiences and greater cost-effectiveness. Enterprises’ increasing interest in outcome-based initiatives, incoming policies around data and the government’s aggressive adoption around all-things-digital should act as tailwinds for our Data Center, Network and Digital services”.

Mr. M P Vijay Kumar, CFO, said, “We remain committed to expanding our data center and network footprint and are gradually scaling up the adoption of renewable energy in our data centers. Investment into people and tools will be complimentary to this growth, without losing sight of our fiscal roadmap.

As we scale, our focus would be on ensuring that costs are optimized and revenues are improved across our service mix.

Cash balance at the end of the quarter was INR 3794 Million”.

BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS 

The Revenue split between the businesses for the quarter was Data Center colocation services 34%, Digital services 26% and Network services 40%.

During the quarter, Sify has invested USD 150,000 in startups in the Silicon Valley area as part of our Corporate Venture Capital initiative. To date, the cumulative investments stand at USD 3.44 Millions.

Sify commissioned incremental capacity of 4MW across Noida and Hyderabad data center facilities in the quarter.

As on June 30, 2022, Sify provides services via 824 fiber nodes and 1910 wireless base stations across the country, a 11% and 5% increase respectively over the same quarter last year.

The network connectivity services crossed a critical milestone of deploying more than 5000 SDWAN service points across the country.

CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENTS

Among the most prominent new contracts during the quarter were the following:

Data Center Services

International players who colocated in Sify Data Center included a cloud security company, multiple cloud contact center software providers and an application security and multi-cloud management player.

Among those who opted to migrate from on-premise DC to Sify DC were an international digital studio, a private bank and a co-operative society.

A domestic banking major expanded their DC and DR infrastructure with hosting in Sify DC.

Digital services

One of the country’s premier steel major contracted to refresh and augment their network managed services.

Industry majors from Steel, Life Insurance, eCommerce and infrastructure contracted to migrate from on-premise DC to our Cloud platform.

A MNC steel player and a private health care provider contracted for Greenfield cloud projects.

An apex body for insurance information contracted to augment and refresh of their infrastructure managed services.

A power regulatory authority contracted to set up a Security Operations Center and for managed services.

Contracts for services such as DRaaS, PaaS and IaaS included major players from the hosiery, IT, Renewable energy, health care and banking sectors.

The regulatory body for insurance, a consumer durables manufacturer, an insurance player and a logistics major contracted for managed services.

A home-grown chemical major csigned a multiyear managed security services contract.

Multiple players from Insurance, one of the country’s premier stock exchanges, a shipping major, one of the the largest public sector banks and an investigation agency contracted for Hardware Security modules for data protection.

Network Services

A subsidiary of the Central bank responsible for payment infrastructure contracted for Data Center Interconnect, network for storage replication and DC Traffic.

One of the oldest international names in the financial media industry, a multinational investment bank and an international car major contracted for an independent network.

One of the oldest supply chain management players contracted  for a full refresh of their network connectivity.

AMS-IX India, a carrier-neutral, open Internet Exchange, is now operational at Kolkata and Hyderabad.

Continental Inaugurates Water Conservation Infra, A Step Towards Building A Sustainable Water Future

 


·       The watershed development program included the construction of a mini-reservoir, four check dams, and 500 trenches that conserve about 28,000,000 liters of water

·       The check dam project is part of the larger integrated rural development program, which commenced in January 2020 at the Anekal Taluk

·       “Water conservation is at the core of sustainable development. Sustainability is a key driver of innovation at Continental, and we are committed to safeguarding water as a resource.” – Prashanth Doreswamy, President & CEO, Continental India

As part of its sustainability commitment, technology company Continental today launched the water conservation infrastructure – one reservoir and four check dams - at Pearl Valley, Anekal. This will potentially address the water scarcity in the region and benefit the community immensely. Estimated to conserve about 28,000,000 liters of water, the large-scale project covers a geographical area of 2200 hectares, with a catchment area of 10.5 sq. kilometers and a command area of 4046 hectares. UnitedWay of Bengaluru was the implementation partner for this project fully funded by Continental.

Among the dignitaries present were Shri Gopinath Reddy, MLC, Bangalore Urban District, Shri Sangappa IAS, CEO - Bangalore Rural; and Shri R Srinivas, President - Vanakanahalli Gram Panchayat.

Speaking at the inaugural event, Prashanth Doreswamy, President and CEO, Continental India, said, “Water is a finite resource, and water conservation is at the core of sustainable development. Sustainability is a key driver of innovation at Continental. We are committed to safeguarding water as a resource, be it in operations across our plants by reducing consumption, recycling, or by supporting community needs through projects such as this. Water conservation positively impacts critical topics like socio-economic development and the creation of healthy and sustainable ecosystems. The multiplier effect is tremendous. We are honored to launch this project for the community.”

The check dam project has seven primary objectives:

1.     Regulation of water runoff and mitigation against flooding

2.     Optimal capture of rainwater and ensuring above surface storage

3.     Support flora and fauna to access water and help their safer habitat

4.     Mitigate human-animal conflict by making water available for animals within their safer habitat and avoid them from wandering off

5.     Ensure groundwater recharge in the valley

6.     Enhancement of natural, indigenous vegetation and biodiversity

7.     Positive impact on the eco-system in the pearl valley where the human, animal, and vegetative life can thrive

Continental’s Sustainability Goals

Continental recently launched the Net|Zero|Now program which enables customers with ambitious sustainability goals to neutralize the remaining carbon backpack of their relevant business with Continental. Sustainability forms the key driver of innovation in the company’s corporate strategy. The company’s sustainability ambition comprises four focus areas: carbon neutrality along the organization’s entire value chain, emission-free mobility and industry, a circular economy, and responsible value chains. The company aims to achieve this by 2050.

Continental India undertakes social responsibility initiatives through its CSR arm CONSCIENCE. In 2020, Continental began working with the gram panchayat of Anekal Taluk, Bengaluru, to implement sustainability initiatives in villages. These include soil and water conservation, sustainable agricultural practices, rooftop rainwater harvesting, entrepreneurial opportunities, and women's livelihood support, aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

In its other initiatives within CONSCIENCE, the company planted 150,000 trees across India to mark its 150th anniversary. Another notable initiative is its flagship program Women for Manufacturing. The program aims to empower and support women from underprivileged backgrounds to take up a career in manufacturing through structured skill development and training course works.

Continental develops pioneering technologies and services for sustainable and connected mobility of people and their goods. Founded in 1871, the technology company offers safe, efficient, intelligent, and affordable solutions for vehicles, machines, traffic and transportation. In 2021, Continental generated sales of €33.8 billion and currently employs more than 190,000 people in 58 countries and markets. On October 8, 2021, the company celebrated its 150th anniversary.

Continental has been present in India for close to 50 years through technology partnerships (Continental Tires since 1974) and joint ventures for its various businesses. Today, the tier 1 automotive supplier, tire manufacturer, and industrial partner operate across India – with about 8000 employees across 13 locations, including seven plants that cater to the Indian market and a Technical Center that supports Continental's global R&D activities.

Indispensable To Educate The Masses About Ayurveda, Said Ayush Ministry


Acknowledging the efforts of Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai in encapsulating and expanding the knowledge of Ayurveda globally, Dr Manoj Nesari, Advisor, Ministry of Ayush, Government of India, at a Global Conference on Vedic Ideas for a Better Society organised by Sri Sathya Sai University for Human Excellence stated that it is indispensable to educate the masses about Ayurveda. The two-day conference aimed to assemble a panel of experts and academicians in the field of vedic sciences and research to discover those vedic thoughts that have gone unnoticed, and relating them to the contemporary needs of the society.

Delving into the transcendental secrets of the Universe and uncovering the profound truths underlying all that exists, the vedas are a treasure house of knowledge and wisdom, covering a vast array of subjects ranging from art and architecture to science, medicine, healthcare, and spirituality. Exploring the realms of vedic thought offers an insight into living a holistic lifestyle that takes care of our inner and outer sanctuaries of existence. Vedas are beneficial to the society in more than one way; be it their intonations, the words, the sound, the meaning, and its effect—it comes as a package of three aspects – the head of Shankara, the heart of Buddha, and the hands of Janaka. In other words, it is a compendium of wisdom and a treasure trove of compassion that translates into the magnanimity of service to all without any discrimination.

“?yurveda is the knowledge of life, and hence is more than just a science. Like the vedas, ?yurveda is also apaur???ya. Infact ?yurveda teaches that wellness is beyond health, and this wellness manifests in a happy being, who is practising truth, charity, equanimity, and forgiveness. In order to promote this kind of health and wellness, educating the masses about ?yurveda is indispensable. While the Government is working towards the upkeep of good health for all, individual participation, and support of organisations like these are paramount. I appreciate Sri Sathya Sai University for Human Excellence for conducting this conference on vedic ideas to build a better society”, Dr Manoj Nesari, Advisor, Ministry of Ayush, Government of India said in a statement.

The objective of this conference was to understand and consolidate vedic ideas on physical, mental, emotional, spiritual health and well-being, to learn about ?yurvedic healthcare practices for a healthier society and to gain insight into the vedic perspective of education, its principles, purpose and schooling system.

“To me, there is no other way to redeem the world, other than making vedic knowledge reach every person on earth…In order to spread goodness in the world, the knowledge of the vedas, which is nothing but the knowledge of our own higher Self has to reach every human being. As Indians, we are blessed to have with us this vedic knowledge that has come from saints and sages of yore, who have themselves experienced this knowledge. To practise the knowledge of the vedas in our day-to-day life is definitely the only way to solve all the problems of the world”, the Founder of the Varsity, Sadguru Sri Madhusudan Sai, said in a statement.

It is the need of the hour to not merely learn the truths of the vedas but to understand and interpret them correctly, apply them in our daily lives and thus make vedic knowledge relevant to modern society.

Cetaphil Celebrates Skin Awareness Month; Hosts Bloggers And Doctors Meet In Mumbai


* Cetaphil urges customers to know their skin to keep it healthy & beautiful

Cetaphil, the #1 doctor-recommended sensitive skincare brand, celebrated Skin Awareness month across May & June. It was Galderma India’s first initiative for Skin Awareness Month where they created awareness about the initiative with consumers and educated them to Know their Skin and what is needed to keep it healthy and beautiful.

For 75 years, Cetaphil has been dedicated to the advancement of skin science, formulating products for all types of sensitive skin and now Cetaphil is extending this commitment even further by actively educating its customers about skin issues like pigmentation and acne, including their causes and potential long-term effects.

The event was initiated by Galderma under the Cetaphil & Biluma flagship with top dermatologists, bloggers, and influencers from the beauty and lifestyle space in attendance. They started conversations with the doctors on their expert panel, who provided guidance on common skin issues. Additionally, they hosted discussions with the bloggers and influencers who talked about their personal experiences with different skin problems as well as the kinds of queries and worries that their followers had for them.

The panel discussion was led by renowned dermatologist experts like Dr. Kaleem Khan & Dr. Suraj Shetty along with beauty and skincare influencers Debasree Banerjee, Mandavi and Simmy Goraya. They collectively spoke about how one can understand their skin type and the need for a minimalist routine for sensitive skin.

They also spoke about the benefits of moisturization and shed light on Skin Circadian Rhythm and the benefits of wonder ingredients Niacinamide and what it does for the skin.

The brand’s distinction as the #1 Doctor Recommended Sensitive Skincare Brand continues with such initiatives. Cetaphil has also recently revamped its packaging and logo along with changed upgraded formulations that are clinically proven to improve sensitive skin's general resilience and guard against the five signs of skin sensitivity. The products are available on Nykaa, Amazon & its store www.cetaphil.in for purchase

About Cetaphil:

Cetaphil is a gentle skincare brand that has been recommended by dermatologists for over 75 years and is today used by millions of people with sensitive skin from all around the world. Invented in 1947 by a pioneering pharmacist in Texas, the first product - “Cetaphil Cleansing Lotion” - known today as Cetaphil Gentle Skin Cleanser – continues to be the flagship product. Quickly recognized for its gentle cleansing power, the Cetaphil range of products started to grow. Today Cetaphil is available in more than 75 countries worldwide and offers a wide range of everyday products from cleansers and moisturizers to baby products and solutions for sensitive skin conditions such as acne and eczema. Specifically formulated to provide effective skincare for a variety of skin types and conditions, Cetaphil has become one of the top skincare brands recommended by dermatologists and other healthcare professionals across the world.

About Galderma:

We are the world’s largest independent global dermatology company, created in 1981 and are now present in over 100 countries with an extensive product portfolio of prescription medicines, aesthetic solutions, and consumer care products. Galderma aims to enhance the quality of people’s lives by focusing on science-based solutions for skin health. Our products help protect, nourish, and enhance, and - when needed - treat, correct and restore skin health. This holistic view of skin health, addressing both healthy and compromised skin, is fundamental to our mission.

Happiest Minds Raises Revenue Guidance For FY23 To 25% And Target Compounded Annual Growth of 25% Over Next 5 Years.


Happiest Minds Technologies Limited (NSE:HAPPSTMNDS), a ‘Born Digital. Born Agile’, digital transformation and IT solutions company, today announced its consolidated results for the first quarter ended June 30, 2022 as approved by its Board of Directors.

Financial highlights for Q1FY23 ended June 30, 2022

·         Operating Revenues in US$ stood at $42.2 million (growth of 5.9 % q-o-q; 27.4% y-o-y)

·         Total Income of Rs 33,274 lakhs (growth of 7.2% q-o-q; 31.1% y-o-y)

·         EBITDA of Rs 8,775 lakhs, 26.4% of Total Income (growth of 7.6% q-o-q; 32.7% y-o-y)

·         PAT of Rs 5,634 lakhs (growth of 8.1% q-o-q; 57.7% y-o-y)

·         Free cash flows of Rs 8,639 lakhs

·         EPS (diluted) for the quarter of Rs 3.88 (growth of 8.4% q-o-q; 58.4% y-o-y)

Ashok Soota, Executive Chairman, “We have started fiscal FY23 showing industry leading performance.  Our 10-year vision statement is to be a billion-dollar Company by 2031. In line with this goal, based on the growth we are experiencing and continued demand for digital services, we are increasing our revenue guidance for FY 23 to 25% while targeting to grow at a CAGR of 25% over the next 5 years”

Venkatraman N, MD & CFO “I am very happy with our performance for the quarter. While we make changes to our revenue guidance reflecting our confidence on our ability to perform, we continue to hold onto our EBITDA margin guidance of 22% to 24%”

Joseph Anantharaju, Executive Vice Chairman, “Our performance continues to lead the industry with results that demonstrate the strategic relevance of our services and our trusted customer and ecosystem partnerships. The results were broad-based over delivery across all markets, services, and industries. The demand for our services remains strong as enterprises continue to tread the path of a multi-year technology upgrade cycle through cloud adoption & migration, data engineering, analytics, and intelligent automation”

Clients:

·         211 as of June 30, 2022

·         5 additions in the quarter

Our People - Happiest Minds:

·         4,188 Happiest Minds as of June 30, 2022 (net addition for the quarter 20)

·         Trailing 12 months attrition of 24.4%

·         Utilization of 79.1%, from 79.4% in last quarter

Key Project Wins:

·         For a large British based construction and Infrastructure company, Happiest Minds is chosen as a digital technology partner to build an IoT and Analytics platform to deliver data led insights for improved operational efficiency, sustained competitive advantage and customer experience

·         For a large bottling company in North America, Happiest Minds is chosen as a trusted advisor for their large-scale implementation of business intelligence transformation engagement to drive better business decisions

·         For a leading Semiconductor company, Happiest Minds is providing engineering services support for their network security product

·         For a reputed animal management solutions company in the ANZ region, Happiest Minds is providing engineering services to improve animal performance and drive better customer experience

·         For a global tech led mobility company, Happiest Minds is advising on running, managing and improving their third-party risk assessment program using next gen digital tools 

·         For a non-profit organization in the US, this consulting led engagement entails Happiest Minds to provide discovery, assessment and design services for their infrastructure migration to cloud

Awards:

Happiest Minds is ranked #29 in India’s Best Companies to Work For 2022 by Great Place To Work® Institute

Happiest Minds is recognized as a Finalist for Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards 2022 in Business Applications Power Automate Category

Ashok Soota is conferred with the prestigious CII Quality Ratna Award 2021

Priya Kanduri wins the ‘Women in AI’ award at Trescon World AI show, Dubai

Happiest Minds’ AI/Analytics CoE is a winner at the ET DataCon Awards 2022

Analyst Mentions:

Happiest Minds is recognized as an ‘Innovator’ in NelsonHall’s Digital Banking Services NEAT Report

Happiest Minds is recognized as a ‘Major Contender’ in Everest's Digital Product Engineering PEAK Matrix 

National Skill Development Corporation Partners With LawSikho To Provide Upskilling In Legal Courses


* The partnership aims to benefit more than 10,000 learners in three years and will focus on tier-2, tier-3 cities, small towns, and villages across India

* It will facilitate internships and freelancing opportunities in programs such as contract drafting, and diploma and degree courses for lawyers and law students

* NSDC and LawSikho will provide joint certification for various courses, and facilitate low-interest skill loans to the learners through NSDC’s network

National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), a strategic implementation and knowledge partner for Skill India Mission, working under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Government of India, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with LawSikho, a fast-growing legal education startup, to impart skill training to aspiring learners (from legal and non-legal backgrounds) and provide upskilling in legal programs.

The MoU was signed by Ved Mani Tiwari, Chief Operating Officer and Officiating CEO, NSDC and Ramanuj Mukherjee, CEO, LawSikho. The MoU signing ceremony was also attended by Abhyuday Agarwal and Siddhant Baid, who are both co-founders of LawSikho.

The partnership will facilitate internships and freelancing opportunities in programs such as contract drafting and, diploma and degree courses for lawyers and law students. It will also provide entry-level courses such as virtual assistant, paralegal, among others, for non-lawyers. NSDC will be able to leverage LawSikho’s model that facilitates remote working for high-paying legal and non-legal jobs.

The collaboration seeks to benefit more than 10,000 learners over a period of three years, focusing on tier-2, tier-3 cities, small towns, and villages across the country. The program will introduce the learners to cutting-edge digital skills, which can provide them with remote jobs, freelance, internships and other career opportunities. Moreover, after learning the relevant skills, the learners can benefit from talent arbitrage jobs where they can work with clients and employers overseas.

Under the partnership, NSDC and LawSikho will also provide joint certification for various courses. They will facilitate low-interest skill loans to the learners through NSDC’s network and strategic support will be extended to LawSikho. The collaboration will also enable skilling the youth of the country in line with international standards.

Commenting on the partnership, Ved Mani Tiwari, Chief Operating Officer and Officiating CEO, NSDC, said, “Our collaboration with LawSikho is a step towards fulfilling the need for a skilled workforce in India and narrowing the existing gap between the demand and supply of future skills. As NSDC, we constantly strive to make skilling and vocational education available for all. Skilling and upskilling are key tools in not only empowering the workforce but in creating new booming sectors in the economy. I am certain that this holds huge growth potential for both the organizations.”

Ramanuj Mukherjee, CEO, LawSikho, said, “LawSikho offers the most advanced legal courses learners can find anywhere, helping them acquire the right skills and knowledge. It is an online legal education platform that is focused on creating access to justice in India. Our partnership with NSDC will cater to the need of a skilled workforce in our country. Through this collaboration, NSDC and LawSikho will become great partners in driving meaningful skill development initiatives”. 

Largest Hybrid Learning Workshop For Heads of 10KAICTE Approved Institutes And Colleges, Conducted By Tech Avant-Garde


Prof. Anil Dattatraya Sahasrabudhe, Chairman,AICTE  as Chief Guest inauguratedthe Hybrid Learning Curtain Raiser mega event held on 21 July 2022 at the WelcomHotel by ITC Hotels. He was accompanied by the Guests of Honour Dr. Buddha Chandrashekhar, Chief Coordinating Officerand Prof. B. Thimme Gowda, Vice Chairman, Karnataka State Higher Education Council.

AICTE has advised allits approved colleges to adopt Hybrid Learning to make them robust and lockdown proof. Tech Avant-Garde (TAG)has been chosen to assist these colleges to transform into Hybrid Learning Spaces. Ali Sait, CEO, TAG, was also present.

As the first step towards Digital Transformation,TAG is conducting free certification program to train heads of Institutionsin Hybrid Learning.Tech Avant-Garde, the Global Partner of Microsoft, in association with Microsoft Education is conducting this training program for Education Leaders on new paradigms of learning – Hybrid Learning.

Speaking at the event,Ali Sait, CEO of Tech Avant-Garde, said, “In Hybrid Learning, education will be reimagined, teachers will find their potential, learning will be from anywhere, any place on any device and there will be only one degree of separation between Learning and Education”.

Hybrid Learning Training Program

Thisprogram will commence from 29 July 2022. Training will be conducted in three batches. The sessions will be conducted onlineover a period two days.The duration of training for each day will be for one hour and thirty minutes. The participants can select the batches during registration.

The training dates are as follows:

•               Batch 1: Friday 29th July 2022 - Saturday 20th July 2022

•               Batch 2: Friday 05 Aug 2022 - Saturday 06th Aug 2022

•               Batch 3: Friday 12th Aug 2022 - Saturday 13th Aug 2022

The registration link for training program is  -https://tagevent.in/aicte

Training Agenda:

This training program will cover the following topics:

•               Develop your vision and build a roadmap to get there

•               Prepare your Stakeholders

•               Develop model Colleges

•               Stay connected

•               Real time case studies

The Education Leaders who attend this program will get certified and the colleges will become eligible for two sessions of advisory on Hybrid Learning, to be availed  within 2 months of the program.

The program will be conducted on Knowledege L’avenir platform.

About Tech Avant-Garde:

Tech Avant-Garde (TAG) is India’s largest Solution Provider in the education segment, supporting all genre of institutes, ranging from K-12 schools to universities. TAG is a part of the Accelerator program of Microsoft and has been certified as a Global Trainer for Microsoft in Education. TAG won the award for the Best Worldwide Training Partner of Microsoft Asia region. TAG, as a co-sell partner and ISV of Microsoft, has implemented the Digital Transformation and Holistic Learning program to help educational institutions to navigate from physical classrooms to digital classrooms. Some of the products and solutions of Tech Avant-Garde include Lycee-Cyber Academe, an ERP Campus Management solution, Efeeonline, an Online Multimode Fee payment solution for educational institutions which is connected to the Bharat Bill Payment System developed by NPCI. TAG also works in knowledge enhancement of educators through Knowledge L’avenir, the largest social learning platform for teacher and Knowledge Key Foundation, to bring state-of-the-art technology and tools to aid institutions and teachers to enhance their digital teaching and learning skills.

ICICI Securities Q1 FY23 Results Show Revenue At Rs. 795 Crore, Up 6% YoY


 Q1 FY23 Performance Highlights:

·         Revenue at Rs 795 crore, up 6% YoY on back of healthy growth in retail allied and distribution income

·         PAT for the quarter stood at Rs 274 crore

·         The company saw improvement in market share across various segments:

o   Retail derivative market share registered growth for first time in 4 quarters as our market share improved from 3.3% in Q4FY22 to 3.5%

o   Recently launched commodity trading segment is performing well and continues to gain market share. It was 4.4% for Q1FY23.

o   Stable NSE Active market share of 8.4%

o   MF AUM market share increased to 1.7%, up from 1.6% YoY.

·         The company witnessed continued traction in product proposition:

o   Average MTF book grew 97% YoY; maintained leadership position with 22.4% market share.

o   More than a million customers have taken Prime membership. Prime and Prepaid customers together contribute 71 % of retail equities revenue.

o   ISEC Mutual Fund average AUM (exc. Direct) up 11% YoY; Equity AUM up 20%

o   SIP Equity AUM increased by 9% YoY to ~Rs 126 bn v/s industry growth of 8%

o   PMS book grew 10% QoQ; crossed INR 8 bn

o   Markets and Money app combined downloads have crossed 2 million mark and are rated ~4 on play store.

·         The company made several launches to further improve its product proposition:

o   LIFEY and Masters of the Street which resonates well with wealth customers.

o   On Experience and Analytical tools side for trading segment, the company rolled out new products like Smart Order Platform, Easy Options and Trading View

·         The company entered into exclusive partnership with HSBC Bank which is the first of its kind for them globally, to offer 3-in-1 broking services to their customers in India. This will provide us access to their HNI customer base.

Commenting on the results and financial performance, Mr. Vijay Chandok, Managing Director and CEO of ICICI Securities said: In this “quarter of moderation” for the industry, we focused on gaining market share, diversifying our revenue mix, containing costs and building product pipeline as we continued to make strategic investment in technology to be “Future Ready”. Our recently launched product proposition and digital properties continue to witness healthy traction which is a testimony to our execution capabilities. Our digital innovation helps us differentiate our product proposition and embrace a broader client universe as momentum continued in our broad-based and digital-led customer acquisition engine. As we continue our journey towards becoming a “digitally integrated financial marketplace”, our emphasis continues to be on diversification, operating leverage and strengthening product positioning by making strategic investments in technology to build a “future ready architecture” as well as on building a diversified talent pool. Through these strategic levers, we will offer highly customized solutions to partner our customers though their financial journey.

Business Highlights

ICICI Securities has a client base of ~80 lakhs, of which over 4.4 lakh customers were added during the quarter. Digital sourcing and open architecture approach continue to demonstrate strength with ~72% of new customers in the quarter coming from channels other than ICICI Bank. During the quarter, 62% of customers acquired are under 30 years of age (vs 60% YoY) and 85% are from tier II and below geographies (vs 78% YoY).

The company has over ~35 lakhs active clients (those who have transacted across any product categories in the last 12 months) and over 31 lakhs NSE active clients (those having traded on the NSE in the last 12 months), up 62% and 73% YoY respectively.

Total client assets stood at Rs 5.3 Lakh crore on 30th June, 2022, vs Rs 4.4 Lakh crore a year ago, up 20%.

In Q1FY23, Equities and Allied Business, which comprises retail equity, institutional equity, lending towards ESOP (Employee Stock Option Plans) & MTF (Margin Trade Funding), Prime & NEO subscription fees and other charges stood at Rs 524.6 crore. The Retail Equities and Allied Business reported revenues at Rs 475.9 crore, up 2% y-o-y, vs Rs 466.2 crore in Q1FY22. ESOP & MTF interest income rose 83% year-on-year to Rs 151.2 crore in Q1FY23 and the daily average funded book for the quarter for these businesses stood at ~ Rs 7,100 crore against Rs 3,630 crore in Q1FY23.

We continue to remain market leader in MTF with a 22.4% market share. The company continued to receive encouraging response to Prime plan that provides a package of privilege pricing, exclusive research, and higher eATM limits per day.

Our NPS score continued to increase this quarter as well as a result of improvements made in our customer journeys.

Institutional equities revenue during the quarter decreased by 17% y-o-y to Rs 48.6 crore, primarily due to slowdown in market volumes and decline in capital market deals.

Distribution business continues to scale well as revenue stood at Rs 152 crore in Q1FY23, up 28% y-o-y on the back of strong performance from Mutual Fund, Insurance and Other Products.

I-Sec is India’s leading MF distributor by revenue and assets and its MF revenues grew by 21% YoY to Rs 89.2 crore in Q1FY23. On the back of SIP count rising to ~ 10 lakhs in June 2022, from 8.5 lakhs in June 2021, the company’s market share in SIP flows stands at 3.4%. ICICI Securities’ MF AUM (excl direct) is up 11% YoY.

ICICI Securities is also a leading distributor of other financial products like loans, fixed income products, corporate bonds and deposits, insurance, bank Fixed Deposits (FD), Alternate Investment Funds (AIF), Portfolio Management Services (PMS), Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGB), and National Pension Scheme (NPS). Revenue from Life Insurance business grew 61% YoY to Rs 12.6 crore while revenue from other distribution products grew 34% on YoY basis. The company disbursed Rs 619 crore worth of loans during the quarter, against ~ Rs 318 crore in the same period last year. I-Sec’s Private Wealth Management (PWM) business reported Rs 2.3 billion of revenue in Q1FY23 up 26% y-o-y. The PWM business is a home-grown franchise serving ~70,000 High Networth and Ultra High Networth (HNI/U-HNI) clients (~1,600 clients added during the quarter), with an asset base of ?2.8 Lakh crore, up 38% year-on-year.

Our Issuer Services and Advisory business (Investment Banking) revenue stood at Rs 35 crore in Q1FY23. This business was impacted as this quarter was not deal conducive due to postponement of public market issues. ICICI Securities is ranked #1 in IPO/ FPO/ InvIT/ ReIT issuance with a 66% mobilization market-share. The company has a strong pipeline of 42 deals amounting over Rs 825 bn, and 23 deals where amount is yet to be decided

Future Generali’s #StandWithPride Campaign Goes Big With ‘Breaking Free’ Video


Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited (FGII) is an inclusive employer and is committed towards creating an environment that fosters inclusivity, openness, and acceptance. A step in that direction is the grand celebration held during the PRIDE month at FGII offices in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore.

As a true proponent of diversity and inclusion, FGII recently conducted a social experiment in support of the LGBTQIA+ community. This social experiment was conducted in an effort to boost awareness and sensitization towards the LGBTQIA+ community and foster affinity for its members while showing solidarity and support.

This social experiment video on breaking free brought together 20 participants of different genders, age, and sexual orientations and asked them questions regarding the biases they have faced. Through the video, people will learn of the biases that the LGBTQIA+ community faces on a regular basis, making it a compelling and thought-provoking watch. To help break biases, they need everyone’s support hence it is important to be a friend and an ally. 

Watch the video here. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TUHcaB_CXLE

Speaking on the social experiment, Ms. Ruchika Malhan Varma, Chief Marketing Officer, Future Generali India Insurance said “Our efforts to support the LGBTQIA+ community are not limited to the Pride month alone. For us, diversity and inclusion is a strategic imperative, one that we strive to imbibe in our work culture. We are committed to promoting inclusive growth throughout the year and beyond, and our latest initiative, which features the video ‘Breaking Free’, aims to help people across communities to break free from the habit of limiting LGBTQIA+ conversations to just Pride month. As a brand that leads with ‘Human – Touch’ and an organization that is focused on building a diverse and inclusive environment, we have made concerted efforts to encourage dialogue, build sensitization, and foster communication amongst individuals and the society as a whole.”

As one of the communities facing a high degree of biases from peers and family members, the LGBTQIA+ community requires all the support possible to withstand and break free of the barriers impacting them on a daily basis. In the months ahead, Future Generali India Insurance aims to #StandWithPride and further the cause of the community.

Thursday, July 21, 2022

PayMate B2B Customers To Make Utility Bill Payments Using Visa Commercial Credit Cards


PayMate India Limited (“PayMate”), a leading B2B payments and services provider that digitizes, automates, and streamlines business-to-business (B2B) payments in supply chains, has integrated the capability to make utility bill payments using commercial credit cards as a new feature on its platform.

PayMate’s customers and users can make utility bill payments such as landline bills, electricity bills, water bills, broadband bills, among others along with their other statutory and vendor payments.

Speaking on this, Ajay Adiseshan, Managing Director and Chairman, PayMate says “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses faced challenges with traditional methods of payments. By adding Utility bill payments on the PayMate platform, we have created yet another avenue for PayMate’s customers to use commercial credit cards; ultimately providing a fully integrated B2B payments stack to our customers.”

From April to December 2021, PayMate processed ?22,467.92 million of direct tax payments and ?99,929.67 million of GST payments on its platform through commercial credit cards, while the overall commercial credit card-processing TPV increased from ?187,142.31 million in Fiscal 2021 to ?464,766.45 million. As of December 31, 2021, the total number of Customers and Users using the PayMate platform is 166,811.

PayMate is also a Visa-certified Business Payment Solution Provider (BPSP) in the UAE and is also aiming to expand into other parts of Central Europe, the Middle East and Africa (“CEMEA”) region. PayMate has a relationship with Visa, pursuant to which Visa facilitates introductions of PayMate to Visa issuing financial institution partners, and PayMate will ensure that commercial credit cards processed through PayMate’s system are Visa cards for certain international territories agreed with Visa.

Onsurity Wins “Innovator In Mass Market- Emerging & Mature Award” At PICUP Fintech Awards 2022


India’s first tech-led monthly subscription-based employee health benefits platform, Onsurity has won the “Innovator in Mass Market- Emerging & Mature Award” at the 4th edition of PICUP Fintech conference and Awards on 20th July 2022 organized by Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

 Kulin Shah, Co-Founder, Onsurity and Rohan Srivastava, Head of expansion received the award from Mr Sunil Mehta, Chief Executive Officer, Indian Banks’ Association & Ms Jyoti Vij, Deputy Secretary General, FICCI.

 PICUP fintech is a marquee event organized by FICCI and Indian Banks Association (IBA) where BCG was the knowledge partner. The conference aims to bring together leading fintech players, bankers, NBFCs, insurance companies, technology experts and policy makers at a common platform to discuss and analyse several innovations that are redefining the financial services industry and also look at developing potential fruitful collaborations.

 “We are proud to be?recognized?for our team’s unwavering dedication and passion in making equitable healthcare a reality in India through innovative technology solutions. Onsurity is scaling new heights with unparalleled growth by providing affordable healthcare benefits and encouraging health and wellness benefits across a community of over  2,500 SMEs in India" says Kulin Shah, Co-Founder, Onsurity.

 He further added, “The recognition highlights that our unique technology led healthcare benefit solution with monthly affordable payment options has a clear added value to the mass market segment. We look forward to further enhancing the healthcare experience with an aim to reach 10,000 SMEs by 2024, by owning the entire employee health and wellness benefits value chain and claims experience in the industry.”

 Onsurity, in its endeavour, to democratize healthcare is consistently trying to disrupt the employee health benefits space. It is providing seamless experience to its clientele through its self-serve tech platform by offering customised and flexible healthcare and wellness solutions in a sachet making it affordable and accessible to millions of SME’s.

 Onsurity benefits range from preventive care like doctor teleconsultations, online medicine delivery, free fitness, insurance and wellness webinars, to in-hospitalization support related to claim processing and reimbursements.

 About Onsurity:

Founded in 2020, Onsurity simplifies employee healthcare with technology solutions that make healthcare work for everyone. With over 3,00,000 members and over 2,500 companies and partners including VISA, BSE, Jupiter Money, Terrapay, Infra.Market, Ferra Engineering, Clevertap among others—Onsurity is democratising the healthcare experience for SME and their workforce across India. Onsurity is India’s top 10 Innovative Fintech Start-up recognised by The Digital Fifth, has built smarter technology that’s easy to use, gives people an advocate in their health journey, and helps employers unblock working capital by managing costs. 

 Onsurity, headquartered in Bengaluru is backed by Quona Capital, Nexus Venture Partners, Whiteboard Capital, and other leading healthcare and technology investors and advisors.

Read more about Onsurity at www.onsurity.com

Ashraya Hastha Trust And Smile Train India Announces Five-Year Commitment To Support Cleft Care Across Seven States In India


* More than 10,000 cleft affected children and their families from resource poor communities will directly benefit from this partnership. 

Ashraya Hastha Trust, a Bangalore based charitable organization funded by Infosys’ Co-Founder K. Dinesh and his family and Smile Train India, the country’s largest cleft focused NGO have announced a five-year partnership with an aim to boost the cleft care ecosystem in India. Ashraya Hastha Trust will support 10,000 cleft surgeries, five capacity building trainings and safety medical equipment at Smile Train treatment centers across seven states to include Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu & Kashmir.

The partnership was launched with an event at Smile Train’s treatment partner, CHL Hospitals at Indore in the presence of Ms. Asha Dinesh, Trustee, Ashraya Hastha Trust, hospital cleft team, Smile Train officials, cleft patients and families.

"We have worked closely with Smile Train India in the past and are completely aligned with their efforts to support safe cleft treatment across the country. Their commitment and passion is unparalleled and inspiring,” said Ms. Asha Dinesh, trustee at Ashraya Hastha Trust. "The consequences faced by children with clefts, if not treated on time, are profound and often enduring. I have been a part of the cleft journey as my daughter Divya was born with a cleft. With proper treatment, she leads a normal life today as a successful woman entrepreneur. I empathize with mothers who may not have access to the care their children need to live healthy and full lives. With this partnership, we intend to work together to better facilitate safe, quality cleft care for children in need. We hope that we can collectively work towards making healthcare affordable and accessible and influence all the ecosystem stakeholders to make policy level changes so that no child with cleft is ever left behind ”

Speaking at the launch, Dr Jaideep Chauhan, Maxillofacial Surgeon and Smile Train Project Director at CHL Hospitals, Indore said, “We at CHL Hospital, with support from Smile Train India have managed to perform  surgeries thus far. We are truly grateful to the additional support that Ashraya Hastha Trust has extended and we hope to continue our journey with cleft warriors diligently.The medical equipments, trainings and support that Smile Train and Ashraya Hastha Trust have provided us with is phenomenal and we hope to put it all to best use. Our aim is to ensure safe surgeries, promising forever smiles to children”

In India, an estimated 35,000 babies are born with a cleft lip and/or palate every year, and hundreds of thousands of children with untreated clefts live in isolation and face difficulties with eating, breathing, hearing and speaking. The partnership will focus on supporting cleft treatment in the seven identified states, while also strengthening safety and best practices in cleft care.

Mamta Carroll, Smile Train’s Senior Vice President & Regional Director for Asia, expressed her gratitude towards Ashraya Hastha Trust and their dedication towards the cause. She said, "Facilitating free, safe and quality cleft treatment is Smile Train India’s priority. With this prestigious partnership, we hope to continue supporting cleft surgeries by enabling underprivileged children born with clefts to live healthy and productive lives. We aim to strengthen our local cleft ecosystem and reach children in some of the most remote regions of the country." 

About Smile Train India

Smile Train empowers local medical professionals with training, funding, and resources to provide free cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care to children globally. We advance a sustainable solution and scalable global health model for cleft treatment, drastically improving children’s lives, including their ability to eat, breathe, speak, and ultimately thrive. Since 2000, Smile Train India has supported more than 650,000 free cleft surgeries across India, through a network of 150+ partner hospitals. To learn more about how Smile Train's India’s sustainable approach, please visit smiletrainindia.org.

About Ashraya Hastha Trust

Ashraya Hastha Trust was founded in May 2000 by Maj. (Retd)S. Nanjundiah in Bangalore along with founding trustees Mr. K.Dinesh (Infosys co-founder) and Mrs. Asha Dinesh (Women entrepreneur promoting vegan beauty products), with the primary purpose of helping the poor and needy, mainly in the areas of education and Rural Health Care. With the passage of time, their daughters Mrs Divya and Ms. Deeksha also became the trustees. In the initial years, the trust focused on initiatives in education and health in rural Karnataka. Eventually, the trust expanded its support to varied causes and organizations, from the education of economically backward students to setting up infrastructure or addressing challenges in health systems.

Currently the trust operates in 6 major thematic areas; health, education, livelihoods, animal welfare, disaster relief and management and environment, across India.

EatFit Becomes The Official Online Food Partner For ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022


* Through this partnership EatFit aims to convey its ethos of healthy food eating to a larger global audience

* The brand will conduct large TV and social media campaigns with EatFit brand ambassadors Varun Dhawan and Mithila Palkar and share the love and joy for cricket and healthy food across millions

* 100 EatFit users will win a free ticket to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup through its Cricket Mania offers

EatFit, India’s largest healthy food platform housed under Curefoods, has announced its partnership with ICC for the upcoming Men’s T20 World Cup this year. EatFit will be ICC’s official online food partner. Through this collaboration, EatFit aims to convey its ethos and the message of healthy food eating to a larger global audience and continues its efforts to help the world lead a clean, better, and health-conscious lifestyle.

For the next few months, EatFit will celebrate the joy of cricket through its cricket mania and will be designing a menu, especially for the World Cup. This menu will include healthy and tasty food options across cuisines while keeping in mind the nutrition and calorie intake and will be available for users online on Eatfit.in, for everyone to come together and celebrate the joy of cricket and food synonymously. As part of the partnership and the Cricket Mania, 100 EatFit customers will have the opportunity to win tickets to the Men’s T20 World Cup.

In an age where the need for an active healthy lifestyle is more pronounced than ever, EatFit will be launching a large TV, an on-ground and social media campaign to reach millions of people through the platforms of Hotstar & Star Network. The campaign will include EatFit brand ambassadors Varun Dhawan and Mithila Palkar to further convey their belief in sustainable eating and inculcate the habit of nutritious food ordering in users.

This campaign will promote the love for cricket and food, and the need for people to follow a tasty but conscious diet while raising attention towards the health of people.

Ankit Nagori, Founder of EatFit expressed his pleasure in the partnership. “The love for cricket, its celebrations and food come collectively to millions of people. This partnership between EatFit and ICC marks the happiness of enjoying the highs and lows of cricket with nourishing food, among all its audience. Starting with the Men’s T20 World Cup, I hope to build a robust collaboration with ICC in the future and would love to continue this partnership year on year. EatFit is the best repeatable food brand in India that users can rely on daily. With ICC showing a strong belief in EatFit, we want to convey the EatFit ethos to a large audience and give a chance to users to honour the same”, said Nagori.

Anurag Dahiya, Chief Commercial Officer, ICC said, “We are pleased to have EatFit as our official online food partner for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in Australia, later this year. We look forward to working this partnership with EatFit on this cricketing extravaganza.”

EatFit promises clean and healthy food to its customers by not letting users have the doubt of what they will receive at the time of delivery. With EatFit, users will get the food that they see on the portal and have an idea of the calorie and food that they will be consuming before placing the order, unlike any other food and cloud kitchen platform. This credibility by EatFit assures the fact in users that everyday repeatable food can be outsourced in our homes entirely.

About EatFit

EatFit is one of India’s largest healthy food platforms housed under Curefoods - a leading Indian cloud kitchen player. The company serves a wide range of bold & fun food options while retaining the honest, clean, and healthy aspect that EatFit has been known for since 2017. EatFit currently operates 100 cloud kitchens. Headed by Ankit Nagori, co-founder of Curefit, EatFit aims to expand the reach and acceptance of healthy food across the nation. At its core, the company is all about making healthy food fun, delicious and honestly Indian.

In 2020, EatFit was hived off as a separate entity from Curefit. Since then, it has been operating under the umbrella of Curefoods, to capitalise on India’s growing cloud kitchen segment.

About ICC

The ICC is the global governing body for cricket. Representing 106 members, the ICC governs and administrates the game and is responsible for the staging of major international tournaments including the ICC World Test Championship Final, ICC Men’s and Women’s Cricket World Cups, T20 World Cups as well as all associated qualifying events.The ICC presides over the ICC Code of Conduct which sets the professional standards of discipline for international cricket, playing conditions, bowling reviews and other ICC regulations. The Laws of the game remain under the auspices of the MCC.

The ICC also appoints the umpires and referees that officiate at all sanctioned Test matches, One Day International and T20 Internationals. Through the Integrity Unit it coordinates action against corruption and match fixing.

The ICC Development department works with Associate Members to improve the quality of international cricket, build better cricket systems, get more people playing cricket and grow the game.

IDBI Bank Reports Net Profit At Rs 756 crore, YoY Growth of 25% For Q1 FY 2023


* Net Advances at Rs 1,38,046 crore, YoY growth of 12%,

* CRAR stood at 19.57%, YoY growth of 334 bps

Highlights of Q1 FY 2023:

*      Net profit of Rs 756 crore, QoQ growth of 10%.

*      Operating Profit of Rs 2,052 crore, QoQ growth of 36%.

*      NII stood at Rs 2488 crore, QoQ growth of 3%.

*      NIM at 4.02% (3.73% excluding interest on IT refund), QoQ growth of 5bps.

*      Cost of Deposit stood at 3.36% for Q1 of FY 2023 as against 3.43% for Q4 of FY 2022.

*      Cost of Funds stood at 3.63% for Q1 of FY 2023 as against 3.69% for Q4 of FY 2022.

*      CRAR at 19.57%, QoQ growth of 51 bps.

*      Return on Assets (ROA) at 1.03%, QoQ growth by 8 bps.

*      Return on Equity (ROE) at 14.80%, QoQ growth by 32 bps.

*      CASA ratio stood at 55.65% for Q1 of FY 2023 as against 56.77% for Q4 of FY 2022.

*      Net NPA at 1.25% for Q1 of FY 2023 as against 1.36% for Q4 of FY 2022.

*      PCR stood at 97.79% as against 97.63% as on March 31, 2022.

Operating Performance:

* Net Profit improved by 25% for Q1-2023 to Rs 756 crore as against net profit of Rs 603 crore for Q1-2022. Net Profit for Q4-2022 was Rs 691 crore.

* PBT improved by 7% for Q1-2023 to ?1,093 crore as against Rs 1,024 crore for Q1-2022. PBT for Q4-2022 was Rs 844 crore.

* Operating profit stood at Rs 2,052 crore for Q1-2023 as against Rs 2,868 crore  for Q1-2022. Operating profit was at Rs 1,513 crore for Q4-2022.

* Net Interest Income stood at Rs 2,488 crore for Q1-2023 as against Rs 2,506 crore for Q1-2022. NII stood Rs 2,420 crore for Q4-2022.

* Net Interest Margin (NIM) stood at 4.02% (3.73% excluding interest on IT refund) for Q1-2023 as compared to 4.06% for Q1-2022. NIM stood 3.97% for Q4-2022.

* Cost of Deposit reduced by 36 bps to 3.36% for Q1-2023 as compared to 3.72% for Q1-2022. Cost of deposit stood at 3.43% for Q4-2022.

* Cost of Funds reduced by 35 bps to 3.63% for Q1-2023 as compared to 3.98% for Q1-2022. Cost of funds stood at 3.69% for Q4-2022.

Business Growth

* CASA improved to Rs 1,25,356 crore as on June 30, 2022 as against Rs 1,16,595 as on June 30, 2021 (YoY growth of 8%). CASA stood at Rs 1,32,359 crore as on March 31, 2022.

* Share of CASA in Total Deposits improved to 55.65% as on June 30, 2022 as against 52.43% as on June 30, 2021 and 56.77 % as on March 31, 2022.

* Net advances grew by 12% YoY to Rs 1,38,046 crore as on June 30, 2022.  Gross advances stood at Rs 1,70,390 crore as on June 30, 2022, YoY growth of 9%.

* The composition of Advances portfolio Corporate v/s Retail was at 37:63 as on June 30, 2022. 

Asset Quality

* Gross NPA ratio improved to 19.90% as on June 30, 2022 as against 22.71% as on June 30, 2021. Gross NPA stood at 20.16% as on March 31, 2022.

* Net NPA ratio improved to 1.25% as on June 30, 2022 as against 1.67% as on June 30, 2021. Net NPA ratio stood at 1.36% as on March 31, 2022.

* Provision Coverage Ratio (including Technical Write-Offs) improved to 97.79% as on June 30, 2022 from 97.42 % as on June 30, 2021. PCR stood at 97.63% as on March 31, 2022.

Capital Position

* Tier 1 improved to 17.13% as on June 30, 2022 as against 16.68% as on March 31, 2022 and 13.64% as on June 30, 2021.

* CRAR improved to 19.57% as on June 30, 2022 as against 19.06 % as on March 31, 2022 and 16.23% as on June 30, 2021.

* Risk Weighted Assets (RWA) reduced by 0.29% to Rs 1,53,832 crore as on June 30, 2022 as against Rs 1,54,285 crore as on June 30, 2021. Total RWA was Rs 1,54,559 crore as on March 31, 2022. Credit Risk weighted assets reduced by 0.88% to Rs 1,21,798 crore as on June 30, 2022 as against Rs 1,22,876 crore as on June 30, 2021. Credit RWA was Rs 1,22,451 crore as on March 31, 2022.

The Board of Directors of IDBI Bank Ltd. (IDBI Bank) met in Mumbai today and approved the financial results for the Quarter ended June 30, 2022.

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