Tag: Avendus

  • Bubz debuts in India: Monk fruit–infused soda with just 18 calories

    Bubz debuts in India: Monk fruit–infused soda with just 18 calories

    MUMBAI: India’s soft drink market has a refreshing new entrant with the launch of *Bubz*, a next-generation soda crafted for health-conscious yet uncompromising consumers. Each 250 ml can is naturally sweetened with monk fruit, contains zero added sugar, packs six grams of prebiotic fiber, and delivers just 18 calories, all without artificial sweeteners, caffeine, or preservatives.

    Positioned as “soda, rewritten,” Bubz promises to deliver the familiar fizz and flavour of soda while stripping away unnecessary calories. Available in four flavours: Cola, lemon lime, citrus, and strawberry, it is 100 per cent vegan, functional, and indulgent, catering to young professionals, fitness enthusiasts, party hosts, and trendsetters who want their refreshment guilt-free, Instagrammable, and versatile enough to double as a post-gym drink or cocktail mixer.

    The brand is the brainchild of entrepreneurs Adai Mehra and Krish Bajaj, who set out to create a soda that matches the aspirations and lifestyles of India’s new-age urban consumer. For Mehra, the project has personal roots. After stints in finance at Avendus and luxury real estate at Isprava, he experimented with ventures ranging from artisanal chocolate to interior design, all while dealing with persistent gut health issues. Yet his love for soda never faded. “I’ve dealt with gut issues for years, and giving up soda always felt like a compromise. With Bubz, I wanted to prove you can still have the fizz and flavour you crave, but in a way that actually works for your body,” he explained.

    The arrival of Bubz signals more than the launch of a new beverage; it represents a cultural shift in how India’s youth approach consumption: indulgence without compromise, transparency without trade-offs, and wellness seamlessly built into everyday rituals. As Mehra put it, “Bubz isn’t trying to be a health drink. It’s soda, rewritten. The fizz, the flavour, the nostalgia but smarter, lighter, and designed for the way we live now.”

  • Business Today Banking & Economy Summit and BT Best Banks Awards celebrates the theme, Indian Banking: Bigger. Bolder. Boundless

    Business Today Banking & Economy Summit and BT Best Banks Awards celebrates the theme, Indian Banking: Bigger. Bolder. Boundless

    Mumbai: The prestigious annual Business Today Banking & Economy Summit and BT Best Banks Awards will be held in Gandhinagar’s GIFT City on Friday, 22 March 2024. The theme for the event this year is ‘Indian Banking: Bigger. Bolder. Boundless,’ and it will feature an impressive line-up of influential figures, thought leaders, and experts from the financial industry who will deliberate on pressing issues such as the state of the Indian economy, the modern financial lending landscape, and a blueprint for a global financial hotspot, among others.

    Union minister for road transport & highways Nitin Gadkari is the chief guest at the event, while chief minister of Gujarat Bhupendra Patel is the guest of honour. Industry stalwarts such as HDFC Bank MD & CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan will also attend. The line-up for the summit includes names such as the 16th Finance Commission of India chairman  Dr Arvind Panagariya; NSE MD & CEO – Ashishkumar Chauhan; J P Morgan senior country officer India and vice chairman Asia Pacific Kaustubh Kulkarni; Ujjivan Small Finance Bank MD & CEO Ittira Davis; The Karur Vysya Bank, MD & CEO – B. Ramesh Babu; Tata Capital digital head Shallu Kaushik; Lendingkart co-founder & CEO Harshvardhan Lunia; Perfios Software Solutions CEO Sabyasachi Goswami; Bank of Maharashtra ED Asheesh Pandey; KPMG in India, partner and head – financial services advisory – Sanjay Doshi; International Financial Services Centres Authority, chairperson Kalyanaraman Rajaraman GMDC, MD – Roopwant Singh; author, speaker, and influencer – Chetan Bhagat.

    A special issue of Business Today on India’s Best Banks will be released at the event, followed by the highly anticipated presentation ceremony of the BT Best Banks Awards. The 28th edition of the BT-KPMG Best Banks and NBFCs Survey identified those institutions that weathered all storms in 2022-23, innovated both in products and services, nurtured talent and leveraged the strengths of fintech or technology partners to prepare for the future. There are 16 award categories across banking, NBFCs, and the fintech space. While six of them are quantitative awards based on a rigorous evaluation of the financial performance of banks and NBFCs for FY23, the other 10 categories were decided by a high-profile jury headed by Anand Kumar Sinha, former deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India. The other members of the jury were NSE, MD & CEO – Ashishkumar Chauhan; Avendus co-founder & executive vice chairman Ranu Vohra; Arcil MD & CEO Pallav Mohapatra; ICICI Bank former ED N.S. Kannan; and CMS Info Systems executive vice chairman & CEO Rajiv Kaul.

    Amidst global economic challenges marked by high volatility in the financial markets, disruptions in supply chains, and inflationary pressures, the Indian economy stands resilient, albeit not immune. The Business Today Banking & Economy Summit aims to address the key trends and issues shaping the banking and financial sector, providing a platform for policymakers, regulators, industry executives, and innovators to exchange ideas and chart the course forward.