Prabhakar Sunder Joins Head Digital Works As Its New CFO

Head Digital Works (HDW), that owns and operates A23 - India's first skill gaming portal has appointed Prabhakar Sunder as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

Prabhakar will be working closely with the Board to strategize, build and lead the growth and global expansion of HDW brands including A23 and Cricket.com. His focus will be to build and lead business and functional teams across key markets, and handle HDW’s corporate functions.

Prabhakar has spent significant time in new age digital companies such as NewGlobe Education, Voonik and was the former CFO of Myntra (prior to it’s acquisition from Flipkart).

Deepak Gullapalli, Founder & CEO, Head Digital Works said, “We are excited to have Prabhakar on-board with us as we grow our leadership team. We look forward to leveraging his experience and expertise to establish HDW as an eminent global gaming company with a strong community of online gaming players while building a robust, sustainable and profitable business. We are confident that Prabhakar will further boost the HDW’s story across key markets.”

Prabhakar Sunder said, “I am delighted to be a part of the team and look forward to weaving a successful story with the brand. I am joining HDW at a very exciting time for online gaming as I can contribute to building a global gaming company out of India by capitalizing on the growth opportunities in the rapidly evolving gaming market worldwide.”

About Head Digital Works:

Head Digital Works is India's premier online skill-gaming company that develops and operates skill-based gaming applications for the online gaming industry. HDW operates India’s most profitable online rummy platform A23, which has over a 20 million strong registered user base.  The company was launched in 2006 and is one of the most profitable start-ups in India. The also operates Cricket.com, a cricket content platform that has over ten million downloads, which offers a new experience to cricket fans with a greater focus on the use of data in live match scenarios to deliver an exciting second-screen experience.

During lockdowns, 99% Bengalureans Combat Stress And Loneliness With ‘Real Relationships’: MyGate Trust Circle Report

Frequent lockdowns have been imposed to manage the spread of Covid-19. Besides human and economic crisis, the coronavirus disease has also resulted in a social crisis. Social isolation is attacking societies at their core resulting in loneliness and anxiety. During such times, we rely on our most trusted circle of relationships for support. MyGate conducted a national ‘Trust Circle’ survey to understand the impact of these changes on the ‘Trust Circle’ of an individual. 99% of Bengalureans acknowledged the need to build Real Relationships (inter-personal connect) to combat stress and anxiety while only 60% in Chennai and 74.55% in Kochi felt the same. 

The psychological impact has been devastating across age groups nationally (over 80%), however, it has highly affected Gen Z (90%) and women (90%) more. Interestingly, 80.65% Bengalureans now are more likely to be dependent of their neighbours as their immediate ‘Trust Circle’ as compared to pre-covid times and 98.79% acknowledged that their relationship and dependence on neighbours, the local vendors and support staff (watchman, delivery boy, and maids) improved in this phase. 90.73% respondents in Bangalore affirmed the statement ‘My ‘Trust Circle’ has shifted to include people in my neighborhood whom I am likely to interact with every day’. 

Commenting about the report, Abhishek Kumar, COO and Co-founder, MyGate, said, “We all are surviving through tough times and the importance of ‘Trust Circle’ and ‘Real Relationships’ has come to the forefront like any time before. It is surprising to note that almost 100% of the highly tech savvy and socially inclined / connected Bengalureans felt the need of ‘Real Relationships’ to combat stress more than their southern counterparts like Chennai (59.44%) and Kochi (74.55%) or even East (Kolkata 73.39%). As many as 90.73% respondents in Bangalore acknowledged improved connect and dependability on neighbourhood, clearly defining what they are going through and the changing preferences. Gladly technology came to rescue, be it to stay connected, address community requirements, help the larger circle in need and solutions like MyGate evolved and became more relevant than ever before.”

Deep diving further, the report also highlighted that the neighborhood people ranked the highest in preference list (40%) as compared to technology (22.18%), relatives (18.95%) and close friends (16.94%) for any help or information locally. Unlike other south cities like Chennai and Hyderabad who are more inclined towards close friends and relatives, metropolis residents of Bengaluru also ranked neighborhood people as number one preference (30.45%) for a comfortable shift to a new society followed by close friends (25%). As the world marks 200 million cases of corona cases and over 4.26 million deaths of people from coworkers to friends and families, Indian inching towards the third wave, importance of staying connected together has become even more critical.

An in-depth research, MyGate Trust Circle has covered 2,867 Indians of all ages from across Tier-1 and Tier -2 cities, namely Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune. The study is an attempt from MyGate to understand the impact of the pandemic on people’s attitude towards their immediate surroundings. 

About MyGate

Founded in 2016, MyGate is the largest community app in the country, simplifying urban living of over 3.5 million homes in 20,000+ housing societies. It was ranked #4 on YourStory’s list of India’s Most Disruptive Start-ups in December 2019 and one of India’s coolest start-ups by Business Today in 2019. MyGate was founded by Vijay Arisetty, an ex- IAF pilot (Shaurya Chakra awardee), Abhishek K, former VP at Goldman Sachs, and Shreyans Daga, former project head at Oracle and Digit. 

Cinthol Announces Actor Siddharth As Brand Ambassador For Its Germ Protection Health Soap - Cinthol Health Plus

* Siddharth and Cinthol join forces to enable you take on your duties fearlessly

Cinthol, the legacy brand from the Godrej Consumer Products Limited (GCPL), brought onboard actor Siddharth Suryanarayan, as the brand ambassador for Cinthol Health Plus soap. This association is to drive awareness about the health soap which provides 99.9% germ protection along with a pleasant deo fragrance. A new Cinthol Health Plus TVC campaign #HaiTaiyaarHum featuring Siddharth, conceptualized by Creativeland Asia, will also go live to highlight product features and increase visibility of the brand.

Cinthol, as a brand, has always stood for the philosophy of ‘Alive is Awesome’. It encourages people to step outside their comfort zone, be adventurous and experience the thrill of outdoors in all its glory. Cinthol Health Plus is the new entrant in the Cinthol family.  Popularly known for being strong, daring and honest, Siddharth is one of the celebrated actors in the country. This makes him the perfect choice for Cinthol Health Plus, which stands for fearless protection. Cinthol Health Plus symbolises being unafraid while taking on challenges and always prepared. This thought is showcased through the brand’s new #HaiTaiyaarHum campaign.

Speaking about the collaboration, Siddharth said, “Cinthol is a legacy soap brand which I have personally used over the years.  I will be endorsing Cinthol Health Plus which stands for fearless protection. Being objective, firm and brave are some of the qualities which defines me as a person. This is the reason I feel my collaboration with the brand makes complete sense. Cinthol Heath Plus soap has the power of 99.9% germ protection with an amazing deo fragrance, which makes you confident as you take on everyday challenges. Given the ongoing COVID-19 situation, Cinthol and I want to encourage people to continue answering our call of duty because we have the assurance of Cinthol Health Plus.”

Commenting on the appointment of the brand ambassador, Sunil Kataria CEO - India and SAARC, Godrej Consumer Products Limited, said, “Cinthol is amongst the iconic brands that we have from the house of Godrej. With our new partnership with Siddharth, we expect to disrupt our core markets and further strengthen the brand position. Together with Siddharth, we are bringing the messaging of taking on one’s duties fearlessly with the assurance of Cinthol. The new TVC anchored on fearless protection will bring alive Cinthol philosophy of Alive is Awesome in a unique way. Unlike other health soaps, Cinthol Health Plus delivers protection from germs without compromising on fragrance.”

Cinthol Health Plus and Siddharth, aim to communicate how the soap safeguards you from bacteria and viruses. Being built on the strong association with protection outdoors, Cinthol Health Plus is a health soap that gives all-round protection with a refreshing fragrance, unlike other health soaps which smell “hospital like”.

Link for new TVC: https://youtu.be/T5hJgnj2dmg

Hyundai Takes Fun Driving To A New Level: Announces Introduction Of N Line Range For India

 

·         Hyundai to introduce its first N Line model for India in 2021, subsequently followed by additional model launches over the next few years

·         N Line models to offer customers Motorsport Inspired Styling Cues that evoke excitement and athleticism

·         Introduction of N Line showcases Hyundai’s commitment of redefining driving experiences for customers in India

·         Hyundai N Line is now coming to India - https://youtu.be/hUGLD2eQPx8

Hyundai Motor India Ltd. (HMIL), country’s First Smart Mobility Solutions provider and the largest exporter since inception, today announced the introduction of N Line range of cars for India. Hyundai will introduce the first N Line model for India in 2021. With the introduction of N Line range for India, Hyundai continues to redefine mobility experiences with products that elevate customer aspirations. 

Commenting on the introduction of N Line, Mr. S S Kim, MD & CEO, Hyundai Motor India Ltd., said, “As the country’s leading smart mobility solutions provider, Hyundai has been redefining the mobility landscape with products that take customer aspirations to new heights. The introduction of our N Line range to India, will induce sporty experiences like never before, making every drives a fun experience with products that personify excitement and athleticism. As an organization committed to India, Hyundai has been introducing superior products and services for customers. We have surpassed customer expectations and assumed leadership across various segments by winning the hearts and minds of our most valued customers. With N Line, Hyundai Motor India will continue to challenge new boundaries and introduce new cars that amplify the aspirations and personalities of new age Millennial and Gen Z buyers.”

Mr. S S Kim, added, “To augment customer delight, we will introduce a new N Line model in 2021 and subsequently launch additional N Line models for Indian customers over the next few years.”

Hyundai has set the stage for the next generation of smart mobility solutions in India with the introduction of revolutionary new product concepts. Hyundai N Line will further amplify these efforts with cars that evoke excitement and athleticism like never before. To induce fun driving experiences, Hyundai will develop N Line cars in India on three brand values: 

Motorsport Inspired Styling Cues                                     

·         Accessible for All

·         Everyday Excitement

MOTORSPORT INSPIRED STYLING CUES

To amplify sportiness and fun driving experiences, N Line cars will feature motorsports inspired styling cues creating a playful appeal. Hyundai N Line draws strong synergies from motorsports that has led to the creation of visually differentiated styling to perfectly compliment the individualistic aspirations of customers.

ACCESSIBLE FOR ALL

Hyundai N Line cars will be accessible for all driving enthusiasts to fulfil their aspirations and enjoy the thrill of sporty driving experiences. With unique and differentiated styles, N Line cars will hone in on the enthusiast’s dreams and desires of being distinguished while inspiring cool, fun and athletic exploits. 

EVERYDAY EXCITEMENT

Perfectly complimenting Gen MZ’s love for everyday excitement, N Line cars will turn up the heat with sporty experiences.  Exhilarating the senses, N Line customers will never witness a dull moment in life as they translate horsepower into everyday excitement and add dynamics of cool and fun instances to break the monotony. 

AU Bank Reports Resilient Performance – Asset Quality Remains Stable And NII Grows By 40% And PAT Growth Of 15% In Q1’FY22

The Board of Directors of AU Small Finance Bank Limited at its meeting approved the audited financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2021. 

Key Highlights for Q1’FY22: 

Net profit grows by 15% (excluding profit from sale of Aavas Financiers) to ₹ 203 Crore despite Bank prudently increasing contingency provisioning buffers by ₹ 120 Crore to strengthen the balance sheet 

Delivered RoE of 12.7% and RoA of 1.6% in Q1’FY22 

Cost of funds declined by 88bps YoY to reach 6.3%  

Deposits continue to scale with customer profile becoming more granular 

Total deposits grew by 38% YoY to ₹ 37,014 Crore driven largely by growth in Savings account balances which grew 166% YoY to ₹ 8,102 Crores 

CASA ratio improved to 26% versus 23% as on 31-Mar’21 and 14% as on 30-Jun’20 

Retail deposits mix at 59% 

Total Loan AUM rises 22% YoY to reach ₹ 36,635 Cr 

Disbursements were subdued in Q1FY22 due to the 2nd wave impact  

Asset quality remained stable with GNPA at 4.3% and Net NPA at 2.3% 

Collections saw sharp pullback as Covid wave-2 flattened; Collection efficiency of 114% in June’21 and 101% for Q1’FY22 

Bank prudently made contingency provisions of ₹ 120 Cr during the quarter to strengthen the balance sheet; The Bank now carries total contingency provision of ₹ 190 Cr which is 0.6% of loans 

Bank has done 658 Cr of standard restructuring in Q1 and as on 30th June’21 Bank had total of ₹ 1,265 Cr of Standard Restructured asset which is 3.60% of gross advances   

Muted business activity during the quarter resulted in higher liquidity with Bank maintaining daily average LCR of ~137% for Q1’FY22 (against regulatory requirement of 100%) 

Bank remains well capitalised with a strong Tier 1 capital ratio of 21.6% and total CRAR of 23.1% (sufficiently above minimum requirement of 7.5% and 15% respectively) 

Key Product Launched during the quarter: 

Launched AU 0101 - our digital bank, a comprehensive mobile and net banking platform with a simple and intuitive interface, best in class onboarding journeys with integrated Video KYC, and personalised pre-approved offers for customers 

AU 0101 offers: 

Comprehensive solutions around savings and fixed deposits, credit cards, loans, investments, insurance, bill payments, and other lifestyle solutions like cab and flight bookings, recharge, and tax payments. 

Multiple channels for customers to bank digitally, including Whatsapp Banking, Chatbot and Video Banking (with expanded use cases around transaction and servicing) 

Launched Credit Cards offering to customers with attractive product features including Industry’s first digital device protection plan, and end-to-end digital onboarding 

AU is the first and only Small Finance Bank to offer Credit Cards 

Partnership with global payment leaders VISA & FiServe for card issuance 

During the quarter, we also launched: 

AU Royale World, a savings account with industry leading features for NR customers 

AU Platinum, a Family Banking program with dedicated Relationship Manager 

AU Power Current Account to fulfil the needs of retail merchants / traders who are tech savvy and aim to provide digital payment solutions to their customers 

Commenting on the performance, Mr. Sanjay Agarwal, MD & CEO, AU Small Finance Bank said, 

“Q1’FY22 caught most of us by surprise with the onset of second wave. Amidst a challenging operating environment, our performance has been quite resilient and we remain thankful to the Government, regulators, customers and last but not the least our employees for their belief and support. Our deposits continue to become more granular, our digital journey is shaping up well, our GNPL was stable sequentially and we have strengthened our balance sheet by creating contingency buffers for any unforeseen risks to our business. We are quite excited about the recent launch of our Digital Banking app AU 0101, our newest asset product in Credit Cards and our Video Banking solutions.  We will shortly be going live with our Brand campaign as we continue in our efforts to bring Badlaav” 

About AU Small Finance Bank:  

AU Small Finance Bank Limited (AU Bank) is a scheduled commercial bank, a Fortune India 500 Company and the largest Small Finance Bank. Starting its journey from the hinterlands of Rajasthan, today AU Bank is the largest Small Finance Bank with a deep understanding of the rural and semi-urban markets that has enabled it build robust business model facilitating inclusive growth. With 25+ years legacy of being a retail focused and customer-centric institution, AU started its banking operations in April 2017 and as on 30th June 2021, it has established operations across 758 Banking Touchpoints while serving 20.2 Lakh customers in 15 States & 2 Union Territories with a employee base of 23,486 employees. The Bank has a net worth of ₹ 6,490 Cr, deposit base of ₹ 37,014 Cr and net advances of ₹ 33,957 Cr. AU Bank enjoys the trust of marquee investors and is listed at both the leading stock exchanges viz. NSE and BSE. It has consistently maintained a high external credit rating from all major rating agencies like CRISIL, ICRA, CARE and India Ratings. 

MYn App Launched In India To Disrupt The Future Of Social Networking

* Redefines the consumer experience by ensuring no ads on the app

* Crafts an interesting Direct to consumer experience by empowering the creator community with the freedom to choose their content formats at no extra commissions  

Bangalore-based Multi-Verse Technologies Pvt Ltd., has launched MYn, an indigenous application that is geared to reimagine the current/ contemporary social media landscape. MYn is a committed endeavour to elevate a consumers’ social media experience. Consumers can now discover, create, connect and communicate on a secure end-to-end encrypted system. Further, the app commits to create a no advertisement environment reinvigorating the social media experience with irrelevant interruption. The app has been founded with the philosophy of enabling decentralized one to one conversations/ communication sans the share of vital personal information thereby ensuring/ establishing personal privacy remains at the heart of the development. Promising digital safety, the company has also put into action a 24x7 content & application monitoring and incident response team, one which has already effectively and efficiently protected many organizations in India.

The contemporary social media milieu offers a singular/ undifferentiated social networking experience. It fails to recognize that each consumer conversation/ interactions are unique to the social environment they operate in.  Eg: Conversations in the personal & professional space need to be addressed on differentiated systems. MYn app thus enables multiple segregated personas in one social media application. The application enables alliances of like-minded users across various select personas created to ensure complete user control over information shared, managed from one primary account. 

The ‘Persona’ feature (patent pending) is unique to MYn app as it helps citizens to create multiple profiles under one authenticated user. Each persona allows consumers to create as well as personalize content and communication relevant to these specific groups, like a Public persona for general use, multiple Personal personas for friends and family, Work persona for professional peers. The Live-Local feature, a geo-local profile aspires to engage and collaborate with local businesses and stores. The savvy UI is easy to use and supports seamless, secure data sharing within personas with in-app integrations of multi-media support that include video and voice data. 

To further strengthen the social media experience in the country, MYn endeavours to empower the social content creating community. MYn will engage and enable the content creating community by providing them with a no commission system allowing them to post their content as per the format of their choice. The app aspires to provide a direct to consumer approach benefitting the content creator by enabling them to own their content in its entirety and also the commercials/ revenue attached to the content.

Speaking on its launch, Mr. A.S. Rajgopal, Founder & Managing Director Multi-Verse Technologies said, “The social media environment of the country has dampened over the time due to various significant vectors like irrelevant information, barrage of advertisements and unappealing content which has limited appeal. With MYn, we present to the country a refreshing opportunity to socialize and network in a cohesive manner while maintaining complete data privacy.  We look forward to an encouraging consumer response by promising, creating and providing a non -intrusive space for social interactions & content creation, online.”

MYn App is available for download on App Store and Google Play and also offers a secure, internal communication and collaboration system for enterprises and businesses. 

About Multi -Verse Technologies:

Multi-Verse technologies is founded with a vision focused on solving use cases centered at the intersection of citizens, enterprises and governments using cutting edge technologies. Multi-Verse is the launchpad for the revolutionary system, MYn app, that helps citizens and enterprises discover, interact and transact with each other leading to immense possibilities.

With A Network Of 2 Crore Merchants And 33 Crore Users, Paytm Has Become An Integral Part Of Indian Family Life

 

India's leading financial services platform Paytm today announced that it has created a vast “digital financial payments” infrastructure in the country and empowered over 2 crore merchants as well as 33 crore users. The company has over the years enabled millions of households with digital payments. Paytm has been instrumental in ushering in the digital payments revolution for millions of street hawkers, small shopkeepers, tuck shop owners with the widest range of payment products & services including Paytm All-in-One QR, Paytm All-in-One POS, Paytm Soundbox among others. Its services have helped build trust in digital payments among the masses and push the government's 'Atmanirbhar Digital Bharat' initiative further.

It has created robust technology infrastructure across the country. The company has been the driving force behind building and expanding digital villages & has trained merchants there, helping in the proliferation of online transactions.

Paytm All-in-One QR enables merchants to accept unlimited payments at zero percent fees directly into their bank account. It is the only QR that lets merchants seamlessly accept payments from Paytm Wallet, Rupay Cards, Paytm UPI, and all other UPI apps providing the convenience of having just one QR code for all payments reducing clutter on the sales counter.

Paytm All-in-One POS has gained popularity among MSMEs as well as large retailers as it comes equipped with Paytm All-in-QR, Paytm for Business App, debit & credit card swiping facility, touch screen, printer, SIM card among other features. Merchants can also generate GST-compliant bills and manage their daily transactions, as well as in-store inventory.

Paytm Spokesperson said, "Merchants are the backbone of the nation and we are on a mission to empower them with the best payments and digital services technology. We continue with our efforts to expand our services across the length and breadth of the country empowering more small towns, villages and making them 100 percent digitally enabled."