ITV

Tag: Financial Services

  • ASCI fine-tunes rules for health and finance influencers

    ASCI fine-tunes rules for health and finance influencers

    MUMBAI: The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has given its influencer guidelines a much-needed shot in the arm — and a dose of financial clarity. In a fresh update to its Influencer Advertising Guidelines (Addendum 2), ASCI has introduced sharper distinctions for influencers operating in the health and finance sectors.

    Previously, anyone posting about commercial goods and services in BFSI (banking, financial services, and insurance) or health and nutrition needed proper qualifications and certifications to avoid leading consumers astray. Now, the rules add a pinch of nuance: qualifications are mandatory only if influencers are dishing out technical information or advice likely to be interpreted as expert opinion.

    If it’s just generic promotion — say, an insurance company urging annual health check-ups through a lifestyle blogger, or a food influencer whipping up excitement for a health meal service — formal qualifications need not clutter their bios.

    ASCI  chief exective & secretary general Manisha Kapoor commented, “Influencer marketing has matured beyond simple endorsements and now often involves strategic partnerships for various aspects of brand communication. The updated guidelines bring in the required nuance for influencers operating in the BFSI and health & nutrition space.”

    Influencers keen to stay out of regulatory hot water can dive into the full update here.

  • Madhur Bajaj, auto industry stalwart and Bajaj scion, dies at 73

    Madhur Bajaj, auto industry stalwart and Bajaj scion, dies at 73

    MUMBAI:  Madhur Bajaj, non-executive director of Bajaj Auto and a key figure in India’s automobile sector, passed away on Friday morning at Breach Candy Hospital, Mumbai. He was 73.

    Bajaj, who had been hospitalised due to health complications, suffered a stroke two days ago and succumbed to it around 5 am, company sources confirmed. Further details on the funeral arrangements are awaited.

    Born on 19 August 1952, Madhur Bajaj was a driving force behind Bajaj Auto’s growth and played a pivotal role in shaping the auto and finance industries in India. A graduate of Sydenham College, Mumbai, he later earned an MBA from IMD Lausanne, Switzerland.

    His career spanned across diverse sectors, from automobiles to consumer durables and financial services. He was the past president of Siam, India’s apex automobile manufacturers’ body, and also led the Mahratta Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA).

    Bajaj held senior positions within the Bajaj group, including non-executive vice chairman of Bajaj Auto and chairman of Maharashtra Scooters Ltd. He also served as a director on the boards of Bajaj Holdings, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Electricals, and Bajaj Finance. His contributions to Aurangabad’s industrial and social landscape, including the development of the Kamalnayan Bajaj Hospital and Nath Valley School, remain a lasting legacy.

    Beyond corporate boardrooms, Bajaj was a passionate philanthropist. A trustee of the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation, he was deeply involved in rural development and water conservation initiatives. He firmly believed that “the secret of living is giving,” dedicating much of his life to social causes.

    Bajaj’s passing marks the end of an era for both the auto industry and Indian business leadership. His vision, influence, and contributions will long be remembered.

  • Jaskaran Singh Kapany joins MobiKwik as chief marketing officer

    Jaskaran Singh Kapany joins MobiKwik as chief marketing officer

    Mumbai: MobiKwik proudly announces the appointment of Jaskaran Singh Kapany as its new chief marketing officer (CMO). In his new role, Kapany will spearhead strategic growth initiatives, collaborate with exceptional colleagues, and contribute to MobiKwik’s vision of revolutionising digital payments and financial services in India.

    With an impressive track record in marketing leadership roles, Kapany’s expertise will play a pivotal role in furthering MobiKwik’s commitment to transforming the digital finance landscape. His appointment underscores the company’s focus on innovation and customer-centric strategies to strengthen its position as a leader in digital payments. MobiKwik remains dedicated to enhancing financial inclusivity and delivering cutting-edge payment solutions that simplify lives across India.

  • CASHe unveils its Super App; repositions itself as ‘Bharat Ka Money App’

    CASHe unveils its Super App; repositions itself as ‘Bharat Ka Money App’

    Mumbai: CASHe, a credit-led AI-driven financial wellness platform, has unveiled its super app with the tagline – ‘Bharat Ka Money App.’ Strategic repositioning underscores the brand’s aspirations to establish itself as a premier credit-centric financial platform, meeting the diverse financial needs of young working millennials in urban hubs and tier 2+ cities across Bharat. The new tagline captures the company’s steadfast focus on providing comprehensive financial solutions, seamlessly integrating credit, investment, and insurance-all customised to conveniently address the diverse financial needs of users on one unified platform.

    Simultaneously, CASHe has launched a revamped website (www.cashe.co.in) along with the launch of its mobile application, designed to expand its financial offerings to a broader audience and reinforce its national presence. The updated website visually embodies CASHe’s focus on innovation, further enriching the user experience. The refreshed mobile application, which was in beta mode for four months, is now accessible to all users and provides a distinctive experience for digitally savvy customers seeking a superlative digital encounter. CASHe’s super app encompasses various features in its credit suite, including personal loans, short and medium-term credit lines, TNPL (Travel Now, Pay Later), QR-led payments at merchant establishments, and educational loans. The Investment suite, powered by its wealth and InsureTech platform, Sqrrl, gives users access to a digitally enabled, mobile-first, bite-sized investment and insurance platform, enabling them to commence their investment journey with as little as Rs 100. The newly refreshed app aims to usher in a revolutionary new way to make finance easier, safer, and more engaging than traditional fintech apps.

    The strategic repositioning of the brand, coupled with the unveiling of the new website and app, comes in the wake of CASHe’s significant milestone of exceeding Rs 9,500 cr. in disbursements and achieving 50 million app downloads, fostering a monthly active user base surpassing 3.5 million. The company’s growth trajectory, combined with providing a range of financial solutions and the expanding reach of its user base across the country, had propelled this decisive move to position the platform as a symbol of its success and strengthen its commitment to staying at the forefront of global fintech innovation.

    CASHe CEO Yashoraj Tyagi said, “We are pleased to announce the launch of our new tagline, ‘Bharat Ka Money App,’ as a pivotal milestone in the evolution of CASHe. This strategic repositioning underscores our unwavering commitment to serving as a premier credit-centric financial platform for the young working millennials in urban hubs and tier 2+ cities throughout Bharat. The launch of our revamped website and mobile application signifies our focus on redefining the financial services landscape, providing a comprehensive and tailored financial solution to meet the diverse needs of our users. CASHe is not merely an application; it represents our commitment to delivering accessible, innovative, and empowering financial solutions to all.”

    Significantly, 75 per cent of CASHe’s user base originates from tier 2, tier 3, and small towns across India. The company has expanded its presence nationwide, covering over 18,000 pin codes. Furthermore, CASHe’s mission to provide financial inclusion extends to attracting new-to-credit customers and integrating them into the formal credit system, fostering greater accessibility and opportunities for previously underserved individuals, thereby enabling Bharat’s digital citizens to fulfil their financial aspirations.

     

  • Havas Worldwide India creates brand film for Stashfin

    Havas Worldwide India creates brand film for Stashfin

    Mumbai: Stashfin, the fintech platform, has launched a new campaign to drive awareness about its unique offering. Stashfin provides instant access to funds in a seamless and efficient manner with a flexible mode of repayment, making it one of the most convenient digital lending platforms.

    Created by Havas Worldwide India, the campaign promotes an innovative product that allows customers to get instant funds for a variety of needs, providing them with the ideal financial boost in the easiest and most hassle-free manner.

    Stashfin has been dedicatedly working towards the financial inclusion of various customer segments who find it difficult to be accepted by traditional banking systems, with a brand promise of “Nobody in India should be credit-starved.”

    The company also assists the under-represented in developing their credit footprint, allowing them to improve their quality of life. Stashfin provides flexible tenures ranging from three to 36 months; quick processes and easy application; instant funds; and the unique proposition of only paying interest on the amount used.

    With a quirky approach in the two-film campaign, a witty superhero fumbles and appears to be an antihero, unable to use his superpowers to help those around him. However, the only good he does is introduce others to the all-new Stashfin credit line app, which becomes their superpower as well.

    Speaking about the campaign, Stashfin co-founder Shruti Aggarwal said, “Stashfin has always strived to provide a positive customer experience, which is why we focused on every detail of making our product simple to use. With the goal of making Stashfin’s offering available to everyone who needs credit, it is critical that credit be made available to the majority in an effortless way. As Stashfin plays a critical role in fulfilling people’s needs, it is evidently a superhero. With our latest films, we want to show how Stashfin, as a superpower, can help anyone in need.”

    “The ever-changing fintech space allows us to tell very interesting stories, and collaborating with a brave brand like Stashfin has been great fun. We are always eager to take on the challenge of portraying the dynamic fintech space as not only exciting but also relatable and aspirational. A bumbling superhero who makes mistakes is a novel concept that communicates the brand’s core concept of quick and easy access to funds. I’m confident that, like our previous collaboration, this one will bear fruit too, with people choosing the brand Stashfin,” added Havas Group India chairman & chief creative officer Bobby Pawar.

  • R K Swamy launches Amrit Mahotsav Campaign for finance ministry

    R K Swamy launches Amrit Mahotsav Campaign for finance ministry

    Mumbai: The ministry of finance has released a special music video called “Thank You” as part of the “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav” celebrations, which mark the 75th anniversary of India’s independence. 

    The song was composed by the duet Salim-Sulaiman and has a star cast of singers in several languages. It was written and conceptualised by R K SWAMY. This music video stands out since it was created as originals in 11 languages and was originally rendered in each language.

    The video is intended to recognise the contributions of everyone involved in the ministry as well as the workers in the banks, insurance, and other financial services sectors to nation-building and the fight against the Covid pandemic.

    R K SWAMY executive creative director Sangeetha N said, “We wanted to break the clutter for these special people who never shut down their service even during Covid, so that the country could cope. We cast for talent in every language, and we have a lineup of the best of them. Remarkably, there was so much enthusiasm for this project from everyone. It shows in the genuine expression of gratitude we could capture both in the song and in the video.”

    Music composer Salim Merchant commented, “This was a super special project for us. It was a privilege and an honour to be able to execute this on behalf of the ministry of finance. It was a special thought. It needed a magical expression. We were fortunate to get such good talent to participate. Hats off to Team R K SWAMY for their conception and management of this project.”

  • Meta onboards Dilpreeta Vasudeva as head of marketing – business messaging

    Meta onboards Dilpreeta Vasudeva as head of marketing – business messaging

    Mumbai: Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp parent-company Meta has appointed Dilpreeta Vasudeva as the marketing lead for business messaging (WhatsApp, Instagram & Messenger).

    Prior to joining Meta, she worked as the founder of CMO Access. Previously, Vasudeva headed marketing at Jio Studios, before helming marketing transformation and financial services at Bharti Enterprises.

    An ISB Alumna, Vasudeva has worked alongside senior leadership teams of MNCs & Indian conglomerates garnering experience across more than seven categories & functional disciplines of marketing. She held a stint as head of digital marketing at Tata Play previously. Vasudeva has also worked with conglomerates Microsoft, Times Internet, Tech Mahindra and Radisson.

    Vasudeva took to LinkedIn to make the announcement, with the caption, “Meta Metamates Me.” She wrote: Stoked to join as the Marketing Lead for Business Messaging at Meta – WhatsApp, Instagram & Messenger.

     

     

     

  • Ashika Group brings in Vishesh Sharma as CMO

    Ashika Group brings in Vishesh Sharma as CMO

    Mumbai: Finacial services provider Ashika Group has appointed Vishesh Sharma as chief marketing officer (CMO). He will be based in Mumbai and report directly to Ashika Group CEO Chirag Jain.

    The bolstering of the company’s leadership ranks is in line with its vision of fortifying the personal finance ecosystem and transforming how New India manages its savings and investments with the newly-launched My Dhanush app, said the statement.

    At Ashika Group, Sharma will be responsible for brand building, content marketing, social media, and corporate communications for the retail business, which is stacked under the company’s master brand, My Dhanush, it added.

    “We are excited to welcome Vishesh, a passionate brand-builder, and are confident he will play a vital role in building a truly world-class FinTech brand,” said Chirag Jain. “I believe under his able leadership and in-depth understanding of customer communication, we will strengthen Ashika further and drive growth across our portfolio.”

    A communications veteran, Sharma joins Ashika Group with 13 years of extensive and diverse work experience across fields, including brand communication, content marketing, corporate communications, reputation management, internal communications, public affairs, and financial education. In his previous stint, he was with Angel One as head of content marketing, corporate communications, and strategic alliances, where he successfully transformed the company’s image from a traditional broker to a fintech. He also led the retail communication for Angel One’s IPO.

    Earlier, Sharma also served as the chief content strategist for Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, where he helped set up the digital assets department. He has worked with some prominent brands like Dalal Street Investment Journal, Progressive Media Group among others.

    In the last couple of years, he has been conferred with multiple marketing awards, including Corporate Communications Person of The Year, Marketing Leader of the Year (BFSI), and Content Marketing Professional of the Year.

    “I am excited to join such a fast-growing organization and play a part in building one of India’s very first personal finance super app My Dhanush. Ashika has an excellent track record of helping its clients grow their wealth by helping them invest wisely,” said Vishesh Sharma. “With a strong vision to build solutions that revolutionize the way new India invests, I look forward to helping Ashika strengthen its national leadership to be both a force for growth and a force for good.”

  • ZebPay elevates Raj Karkara to chief operating officer

    ZebPay elevates Raj Karkara to chief operating officer

    Mumbai: Bitcoin and crypto asset exchange platform ZebPay has elevated Raj Karkara to the role of chief operating officer (COO). He will work closely with ZebPay’s co-CEO Avinash Shekhar, in setting and driving organisational vision, operational strategy, performance management and hiring needs.

    Karkara’s primary responsibility will be to develop actionable business strategies and plans that align with the company’s short-term and long-term objectives. Additionally, he will work towards translating the strategy into executable goals for performance and further growth of ZebPay,  said the company in a statement on Wednesday.

    “Raj has strengthened ZebPay’s presence and business in the crypto ecosystem since he joined us over a year ago. With his extensive expertise, ZebPay will see rapid growth and global expansion to achieve our vision of becoming become the #1 cryptocurrency exchange in India and the world,” stated Shekhar. “We are building ZebPay as an all-encompassing crypto company that offers innovative solutions and products to a diverse set of investors, from retail to institutional.”  

    He joined ZebPay as chief business officer in September 2020 and more recently, had been promoted to the role of chief marketing officer. With this role change, in addition to marketing, Karkara will now directly oversee product management, trade, OTC, global growth and operations (customer service and excellence).

    Karkara comes with over 15 years of experience in the financial services, fintech and e-commerce industries. Previously, he was associated with KansoStrategy as co-founder, a boutique strategy and consulting firm that works with crypto, e-commerce, payments and fintech clients globally. Prior to Kanso, he held various positions such as senior vice president of product, CRO and COO at tZERO, the global leader in digital securities. He also held the role of vice president of product management for financial services, loyalty and new business development at Overstock. Prior to Overstock, he held the role of director, global product and solutions at MasterCard, where his responsibilities included prepaid strategy and mobile money.

    “ZebPay has been innovating and launching new and industry-first products to address the needs of a diverse set of customers ever since its inception in 2014 and I am excited to lead ZebPay as it gears up for further expansion,” said Karkara, on his new role. “Crypto is booming in India with vast untapped potential for solutions that will make us a global leader. ZebPay is well-positioned to play an integral part and I am looking forward to driving strategies and building on our foundation of product and customer excellence to be the leading crypto exchange in India and globally.”

  • BharatPe onboards Parth Joshi as chief marketing officer

    MUMBAI: Financial services company BharatPe on Monday announced the appointment of Parth Joshi as the chief marketing officer. Joshi will work closely with BharatPe’s group president, Suhail Sameer.

    Prior to joining BharatPe, he was the head of Marketing– Global Expansion Markets, Reckitt based out of Singapore. He has also held various marketing roles in GSK & L’Oréal. Parth is an alumnus of MDI, Gurgaon.

    This is the fourth key leadership appointment by BharatPe this year. The company has earlier appointed Gautam Kaushik (PAYBACK’s former MD & CEO) who leads the payments business, Sumeet Singh (Amarchand Mangaldas’ former partner) as general counsel and head of Corporate Strategy and Amit Jain as the chief risk officer.

    “Joshi will bring his in-depth understanding of brands, product development and marketing to fuel BharatPe’s continued growth. In the past, Joshi has played a key role in building many brands across geographies in multi-national companies,” it said on Monday.

    BharatPe co-founder and CEO Ashneer Grover said, “I am confident that Parth’s experience with FMCG giants will be instrumental as we aspire to build BharatPe as a preferred financial services and credit partner for tens of millions of merchants. Also, his in-depth understanding of consumer aspirations and behaviour would be key as we build products like BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) for the end customers and scale PAYBACK in India in the times to come.” 

    On his new role Parth said, “BharatPe has seen stupendous growth over the last couple of years. It is phenomenal how India has accepted digital payments and BharatPe has been at the forefront of this transformation. I am looking forward to building BharatPe as the preferred brand for our customers. We also have big plans for the consumer side and I am excited to lead and build this business with the team.”