Archive: November 1, 2022

Equitas Small Finance Bank Financial Results

Chennai, Nov 1, 2022: The Board of Directors of Equitas Small Finance Bank Limited at its meeting held today, approved the unaudited financial results for the quarter that ended September 30, 2022

PAT for the quarter at Rs 116 Cr compared to Q2FY22 PAT of Rs 41 Crs

 Gross Advances^{^} as of Q2FY23 was at Rs. 22,779 Cr, a growth of 20% YoY

Q2FY23 disbursement at Rs. 3,845 Crs, growth of 22% YoY

RoA & RoE at 1.60% and 10.57%

CASA Deposit grew 28% YoY to Rs. 10,456 Crs. CASA Ratio stood at 48% as of Sept 2022

GNPA^{^} down to 3.82% from 3.95% in Q1FY23, PCR improves to 50.49% from 48.46% sequentially

Q2FY23 Highlights:

1. Key Highlights for Q2FY23:

• Advances^{^}:
• Q2FY23 disbursement at Rs. 3,845 Crs, growth of 22% YoY
• Advances^{^} as of Q2FY23 was at Rs. 22,779 Cr, growth of 20% YoY
• Yields stable at 17.10% on a sequential basis
• Liabilities:
• Cost of funds stable at 6.25%, on a YoY basis CoF improved by 56bps
• CASA deposit grew 28% YoY to Rs. 10,456 Crs. CASA ratio stood at 48% as of September 2022
• Term Deposits grew 14% YoY to Rs. 11,270 Crs
• Retail Term Deposits grew 13% YoY to Rs. 7,665 Crs. Retail Term Deposits contribute 68% of total term deposits
• Elite book consisting of Savings account plus Term Deposits crossed Rs. 10,000 Crs
• SA mobilized though digital channel crossed Rs. 900 Crs and it contributes to ~ 10% of SA Portfolio
• Key Ratios:
• Cost to Income at 66.58% in Q2FY23 as compared to 60.60% in Q1FY23 as compared and 66.27% in Q2FY22
• RoA and RoE for Q2FY23 at 1.60% and 10.57%
• Capital:
  • As of Sept 30, 2022 Total CRAR at 23.08% | Tier I at 22.55% and Tier II at 0.53%

• Treasury &Liquidity:
  • The Bank’s Certificate of Deposit (CD) program for Rs. 500 Crore has highest rating from at CRISIL A1+
  • The Bank maintains ‘surplus’ liquidity in the form of High-Quality Liquid Assets (HQLA). The liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) as on 30.09.2022 is 202%
  • Profit on sale of Investments for the quarter is Rs. 7.76 Crore and MTM depreciation on Investments for the quarter is Rs. 1.35 crore

2. Profit & Loss:

• Net Interest Income for Q2FY23 at Rs. 610 Cr as against Rs. 484 Cr in Q2FY22. NIM at 9.00%
• Pre Provisioning Operating Profit (PPoP) for Q2FY23 at Rs. 242 Cr as against Rs. 199 Cr in Q2FY22
• PAT for Q2FY23 at Rs. 116 cr as against Rs. 41 Cr in Q2FY22

3. Asset Quality&Provisions:

• Annualized Credit Cost at 1.62%, excluding onetime impact* at 1.35%
• Non-restructured 31-90 pool as of Sept’22 at comfortable levels of 3.49%
• GNPA^{^} at 3.82% in Q2FY23 as compared to 3.95% in Q1FY23 and 4.64% in Q2FY22
• NNPA^{^} at 1.93% in Q2FY23 as compared to 2.07% in Q1FY23 and 2.37% in Q2FY22
• Provision coverage ratio improves to 50.49% from 48.46% in Q1FY23

Commenting on the quarterly performance, Mr. P N Vasudevan, Managing Director and CEO of Equitas Small Finance Bank said: “Demand for credit continues to remain strong, especially in the informal sector.  The 20% year-on-year growth in advances for the first half is expected to improve further in the seasonally active second half. Quality of portfolio remains a comfort with reducing credit cost. Deposit growth has been satisfactory and we have been able to retain the cost of funds with only a marginal increase. Our CASA continues to remain in comfort zone and the digital initiatives of the Bank are beginning to yield significant benefits. Overall, the effect of Covid is receding and we expect to be back to our pre-covid levels of growth and profitability going forward”

Global Creator Network wins AJIO’s social and content mandate

India-wide release, 1st November 2022: India’s leading online fashion e-retailer- Ajio has recently given its social and content mandate to OML Entertainment’s branded content arm – Global Creator Network (GCN) This new collaboration will infuse a spunk, verve, bold and fresh perspective to Ajio’s digital communication.

In line with brand philosophy – celebrating fearlessness and uniqueness, Ajio is constantly looking to bring a fresh, current and accessible perspective to personal style. GCN with its industry expertise and talent network will look after end-to-end executions of campaigns and content that will help Ajio stay ahead of the competition.

GCN will work to design and craft innovative, engaging and effective content for Ajio in tune with the current trends and tastes. AJIO, a fashion and lifestyle brand, is Reliance Retail’s digital commerce initiative and is the ultimate fashion destination for styles that are handpicked, on-trend and at prices that are the best you’ll find anywhere.

As a part of the mandate, GCN will build a robust brand strategy, creative first social campaigns with IPs, creator activations and enable the brand to build a community of like-minded people across various social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram. The digital marketing communication will be designed to elevate the brand’s presence in the minds of the consumer using effective branded content strategies.

Commenting on the win, Devarshi Shah, Sr. Vice President – branded content,GCN, said, “As a team, we are excited to be associated with a popular and loved brand like Ajio. It would be interesting to build a fresh line of digital communication strategies that is futuristic yet relevant in today’s time. Our focus will be to create meaningful, innovative and fresh content strategies. The aim is to keep the brand ahead of the competition with campaigns that click.”

IIM Shillonghostsemerge– the Annual Entrepreneurship Summit 2022

1 November 2022, Shillong: IIM Shillong’s Students hosted the annual Flagship entrepreneurship summit – EmergE 2022, on October 29 and 30 (Saturday and Sunday), 2022.
This year’s event, themed on ‘Harnessing E-Dreams’, was held entirely offline, after a gap of two years. The event included speaker sessions, workshops and business case competitions in the fields of Marketing, Finance, Analytics and more.

Harnessing the Entrepreneurial spirit was the theme of the event. The chief guest of the event was Mr. ShivanshAwasthi – IAS Officer in charge of PRIME Meghalaya. The Diya lighting ceremony inaugurated the 2-day event. At the inauguration ceremony, Professor Sanjoy Mukherjee gave a brief inaugural speech on the 7 mantras every budding entrepreneur should follow to be successful. Professor Rohit Dwivedi focused on thinking about start-ups in a new way in his inaugural speech.

The panel discussion was then started by the founder of ALSiSAR Impact, Anuj Sharma, co-founder of BrightBlu, Santosh Ram Somasundaram, program head of PRIME Meghalaya, Flo Oberhofer, and managing director of Kolkata Ventures, Avelo Roy who talked about the need for long-term social projects in the Indian economy was highlighted during a panel discussion on “Channeling Entrepreneurship”. They all spoke about their own entrepreneurial experiences. They talked about starting a business, identifying interests, what goods could be marketed, what difficulties the idea could solve, how to put together a team of investors and co-founders, and other issues. Discussions around topics like privilege v/s intelligence, equality and equity, and the social duties of budding entrepreneurs also took place.

Theco-founder of Ninjacart,Mr. Sharath Loganathan, and Mr. Avelo Roy, managing director of Kolkata Ventures, serial tech entrepreneur, investor, and TV host, discussed how having an idea is not enough but the logistics and technicalities are also important. Every beginning presents a chance for learning. The two-day conference not only helped students by sharing their knowledge, but also provided businesses, investors, and entrepreneurship enthusiasts with a forum to connect and advance the overall objective of advancing the start-up culture in India. Initiatives should be started to promote entrepreneurship and impart entrepreneurial skills in order to support aspiring student entrepreneurs.

On the second day of EmergE, participants from top B-Schools got the chance to put themselves in the shoes of Entrepreneurs and investors, and understand the sense of entrepreneurial decisions and the challenges. Jitender Sharma, Founder & CEO of HairOriginals, Jash Shah, Co-founder& CEO of Get-a-whey, Ravi Kabra, Co-founder, and CEO of SkippiIcepops were on the judgment panel.

Overall, the event saw the enthusiastic participation of students and aspiring budding entrepreneurs who helped make it a success and benefited from the chance to present their ideas to investors and learn from the experience of industry leaders. Tyngkai Cultural and Welfare Organization organized a major cultural event where about 25 artists performed various folk forms of India’s North Eastern region.

Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India Inaugurates BigWing in Rajkot

Rajkot, November 01, 2022: Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) today elevated the #GoRidin spirit with the inauguration of premium big bike business vertical – Honda BigWing in Rajkot. [Gondal Road, Near Rajkamal Petrol Pump, Kothariya, Rajkot 360004]
Speaking on the inauguration of BigWing in Rajkot, Mr. Atsushi Ogata, Managing Director, President & CEO, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India said “Our focus is on expansion of Honda BigWing (Honda’s exclusive premium motorcycle network) to deliver a truly differentiated immersive experience closer to customer. Today, we are delighted to inaugurate BigWing in Rajkot. Through this new premium outlet, we aim to take Honda’s fun motorcycles closer to customers in Rajkot and bring to experience our mid-size range of premium motorcycles.”

Further strengthening its penetration across the country, customers can now experience the differentiated Silver Wings at over 100 operational touchpoints.

Diverse Product Portfolio

Honda’s premium motorcycle retail format is led by the BigWing Topline in top metros and BigWing in other demand centers. While the marquee Honda BigWing Topline houses Honda’s complete premium motorcycle range starting from the newly launched CB300F, CB300R, H’ness-CB350 and its Anniversary Edition, CB350RS, CB500X, CBR650R, CB650R, CBR1000RR-R Fireblade, CBR1000RR-R Fireblade
SP, adventure tourer Africa Twin Adventure Sports and flagship model Gold Wing Tour, the BigWing delights mid-size motorcycle fans of Honda.

Premium Experience

Adorned with the black & white monochromatic theme, BigWing showcases the displayed vehicles in their full glory. Resolving customer’s product related queries or accessories are the well-trained knowledgeable professionals at BigWing. Easing the journey from search to purchase, the dedicated website (www.HondaBigWing.in) is available for all detailed information. The online booking option in the website
ensures a quick, seamless and transparent booking experience for customers at their fingertips. Capturing real time customer feedback, Honda BigWing is also actively available across all social media platforms.

Ensuring safety and convenience of customers, Honda BigWing brings Immersive Digital Experience. The virtual platform allows customers to experience the complete fun motorcycle line-up, riding gear and accessories in granular detail while sitting in the comforts of their home.

Reach us at:

Honda BigWing Rajkot South Showroom & Workshop – Gondal Road, Near Rajkamal Petrol Pump, Kothariya, Rajkot 360004

Envision – India’s First Energy festival driving Industry- Academia led technology transformation towards Net Zero Emissions in India

Chennai, November 1st, 2022: In an endeavor to set the vision for Industry-Academia led technology transformation aimed at taking India towards Net-Zero by 2047, IIT Madras Research Park along with India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA) is organizing ENVISION – India’s First Energy Festival at IITMRP between 3^rd-5^th November 2022.

The event will be inaugurated by Dr. N Kalaiselvi (Director General, CSIR – Central Electro Chemical Research Institute (CSIR-CECRI), Dr. Ajay Mathur ( Director General, International Solar Alliance) and Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala (President – IITM Research Park, IITM Incubation Cell & RTBI).

The conference will be witnessed by CXOs, Industry members, government dignitaries, and institutional bodies and features seminars, panel discussions, student-led project demonstrations, and activities surrounding the discourse “Towards Net-Zero”. Prominent industrial giants, Tata Steel, Lucas TVS, Toyota Connected India, Cambridge Mobile Telematics, and CrossBow Labs have come onboard as key partners for the event.

The 3-day conference explores 10+ thematic areas over the course of the conference following the larger theme of techno-economic readiness of Renewable Energy technologies and their estimated commercialization timelines. Day one of the conference will focus on technologies immediately available to commercialize, the second day is for technologies which can be scaled in 5 to 10 years and the third day will be on technologies, which require major R&D today so that they can scale in 10 to 15 years.

EnVision will be a one-stop summit to discuss various burning issues to craft the future of cleantech in India through 15+ expert talks and 6+ panel discussions. As a participant, one will witness thought-provoking dialogue and discourse ranging across topics from Renewable energy generation: Technology and economics, short-duration grid storage: Batteries, thermal storage systems to Enhancing energy efficiency: Heating and Cooling, Electric Vehicles, Green Hydrogen generation, and more.  

EnVision will feature expert talks by over 25+ top energy voices from industry & academia including; Milind Kulkarni (President – PV Manufacturing, Reliance New Energy Solar); Mr. Sujoy Ghosh (Vice President & Country Managing Director India, First Solar); Dr. R. Gopalan (Reg Director, ARCI), Ravi Chandran Purushothaman (President, Danfoss India); Mr. Akshay Singhal (Chief of Climate Action, Log9), Mr. Randheer Singh (NITI), Mr. Shaji John (Sr. VP, Ohmium); Mrs. Anuradda Ganesh (Chief Technical Advisor, Cummins), Dr. Sanik Nag (TATA Steel), Dr. A.K. Naik (Principle Scientist, BARC), Mr. Alexander Hogeveen Rutter (Private Sector Specialist, ISA) and more.

The event also promises a showcase of 10+ student-led innovations & project demonstrations, a screening of thought-provoking documentaries on sustainability, climate change & renewable energy, and a novel Electric Vehicle (EV) Parade where miscellaneous EV fabrications take to the road in a rally through the IITM campus till IITMRP.

Speaking about the event, Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala, President, of IIT Madras Research Park & IITM Incubation Cell says “India ranks third in the world in total greenhouse gas emissions – the result of having the second-largest population and being the third largest in energy consumption. This clearly indicates that the time to act on this is now. By jointly initiating a platform like EnVision, we are bringing together the best across industry, academia, startups, and students to work collaboratively on innovative solutions that can help us achieve net zero by 2047.

“This will accelerate our sustainable energy transition and enable us to deploy clean energy technologies at scale. We also hope to greatly accelerate India’s move towards achieving 100% Renewable Energy by 2047, one of the ambitious goals we have challenged ourselves to achieve for India as part of our 10X initiative,” he added.  

Debi Prasad Dash, Executive Director, India Energy Storage Alliance expresses, “We are happy to partner with IITMRP for driving industry-academia partnership. Envision is India’s first energy festival that is bringing together industry experts, eminent professors, energy start-ups, students, and research scholars on one platform to share best practices and solutions Toward Net Zero. The participants will have an exciting and unique opportunity to learn from the best. This is one of the kinds of event which cannot be missed.” 

Saietta VNA Ramps Up Its eDrive ‘make in India’ Strategy

Oxfordshire, UK, / Haryana, India, 1 November 2022 – Saietta VNA, the joint venture between Saietta Group plc (Saietta) and Padmini VNA, is delivering on its ‘Make in India’ strategy which will see it begin eDrive (electric drive) volume production in the country in 2023. 

Saietta VNA has developed a new eMotor targeted specifically at the Indian market and is on a plan with the construction of a high-tech eDrive manufacturing facility in Delhi. In addition, it has appointed a new managing director to lead the next phase in the joint venture’s commercial and technical operations and appointed a new non-executive director with extensive Indian market experience.

Saietta Group Plc is a specialist in providing flexible eDrive solutions for electric vehicles with a portfolio of technologies designed for rapid integration into a wide range of vehicles and marine craft. The UK headquartered company is working with a range of customers to decarbonize mobility with the aim of helping to clean up the air in the world’s biggest cities.

With state-of-the-art manufacturing and R&D facilities in India, Padmini VNA has placed ‘Made in India’ auto components on the global roadmap, becoming renowned for its technological capabilities and quality manufacturing around the world. Its customers include most major automotive brands that are manufactured in India.

Expanding portfolio of eDrive solutions developed for India, made in India

Saietta VNA is uniquely positioned to offer vehicle manufacturers in India a range of turnkey light-duty eDrive solutions to help them meet the rapidly growing demand for clean and sustainable mobility in large cities.

A new Radial Flux Technology (RFT) eMotor has been developed for lightweight two and three-wheel applications. Specifically with Indian market applications in mind, the RFT85-65 was designed by Saietta’s Light Duty eDrive (LDE) team in conjunction with Saietta VNA. The compact air-cooled unit produces 4 kW of continuous power at 48V, is lightweight and efficient, and can be fully integrated with Saietta’s power electronics and transmission.

The RFT85-65 is anticipated to be produced in India alongside Saietta’s AFT140, an Axial Flux Technology (AFT) eMotor ideal for premium motorbikes and lightweight three and four-wheel applications between one and two a half tonnes, such as last-mile delivery vehicles.

The construction of Saietta VNA’s new high-tech manufacturing facility in Delhi is on track, with volume production slated to start in 2023. Groundworks for the 30,000 sqft factory started in Q1 2022 and the outer shell is complete. Fit-out will begin in Q1 2023.

Leadership boost

Saietta VNA has appointed Prad (Pradumna) Walimbe (43) as its managing director, and he takes on the responsibility for leading the company’s Indian operations. Walimbe holds an MBA from the University of Edinburgh Business School, an Executive Programme in Business Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, and a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Pune University. Since joining Saietta, Walimbe has developed an enviable expertise in the global lightweight mobility sector, which has proved crucial to the company’s strategic approach to new, fast-growth markets. Previously, Walimbe founded a social enterprise in Oxford, UK and has extensive entrepreneurial experience with a proven track record of delivering results and transforming businesses for sustainable growth.

Mr. Walimbe said: “India is one of the largest and most strategic auto and electrification markets in the world, and we have high ambitions for it. Our focus will be on strengthening the strategic partnership with Padmini VNA to secure market share and valuable contracts and help our customers and partners transition to electric mobility faster by enhancing access to our ground-breaking technology and engineering expertise.”

“We are very excited to bring our engineering and manufacturing capabilities to the Indian market. With the Saietta AFT and RFT eDrives, we intend to develop an affordable and scalable ecosystem that will accelerate the adoption of electric mobility. Saietta VNA is uniquely positioned to be a leader in the country’s electrification revolution.”

Wicher (Vic) Kist, CEO of Saietta Group, said: “We were among the first eMobility technology developers to recognise the importance and potential of the rapidly evolving Indian transport landscape. Through our joint venture with Padmini VNA, we are delivering a portfolio of turnkey eDrive solutions that are ideally suited to the market, and – crucially – they will be produced in India, for India. We are currently working with a number of OEMs and Tier 1 partners in the L-Category segment and will release more information on this over the coming months.”

“In appointing Prad to managing director of Saietta VNA, we now also have a hugely experienced automotive leader with extensive commercial and technical expertise spearheading our activities in India.”

Kabir Bhandari, managing director of Padmini VNA, said: “We are excited to be at the vanguard of clean eMobility technology with Saietta. Through Saietta VNA, we are giving Indian vehicle producers access to industry-leading eDrives, and are investing in high-quality manufacturing capability and processes in India.”

Bhandari continues: “Should India achieve its EV ambitions and targets, the market opportunity for the decade to 2030 is estimated to be worth around $206 billion by 2030, and the Government has a clear commitment to electrify the auto sector. Saietta VNA believes that the time has come to democratize zero-emission mobility in India, beginning with the most popular forms of mobility, such as motorcycles, scooters, and lightweight commercial vehicles. The tipping point is nearing, and we are determined to be a key enabler to fast-track lightweight vehicles to electric propulsion and contribute to cleaning up the chronic air pollution in India.”

In addition, a non-executive director joined the board at Saietta Group in 2021. A respected and established automotive industry leader, Seshu Bhagavathula joined Saietta after a highly successful career helping to progress and advance the Indian automotive sector. Bhagavathula has previously held senior executive positions at Ashok Leyland Group, Great Wall Motor Company, Daimler Trucks, and Daimler Chrysler AG.

“It is an honor to be part of Saietta Group at such a pivotal moment,” said Bhagavathula. “The pioneering RFT and AFT eDrives are the right technology at the right time for the Indian automotive scene. With Saietta VNA, we are well placed to meet local market requirements in the country and work closely with major Indian OEMs as they look to electrify their product line-ups, meeting tough upcoming legislation and, most importantly, providing clean mobility to customers.”

e-Ashwa Automotive Founder launches Sampoorn EV

New Delhi, November 1st, 2022: Vikas Gupta, Founder, and ex-CEO of Ghaziabad-based electric vehicle company e-Ashwa Automotive Pvt Ltd has announced the launch of another EV venture under the name Sampoorn EV Pvt Ltd.

Sampoorn EV will provide a complete (sampoorn) and holistic EV ecosystem platform to small local EV players who have good products but do not have the required infrastructure, mainly a retail network to market and sell their products beyond their local region. The company will assist small local EV companies to set up, create and build brands and products and all activities thereafter including purchase, sales, services, repair, maintenance, and support which will be part of the offerings by Sampoorn EV.

As part of creating a complete EV ecosystem, Sampoorn EV will set up multi-brand EV retail stores in different parts of the country in a phase manner to house EV products and accessories by different EV brands. Currently, the company does not plan to have its own Brand and Products. The tagline of Sampoorn EV is “A Brand Agnostic EV Ecosystem”.

Speaking on the launch of his new EV venture, Vikas Gupta, Founder, Sampoorn EV Pvt Ltd, said,  “With favourable government policies and faster adoption of Electric Vehicles by the Auto sector, EV is certainly going to be the future of mobility. However, due to lack of better infrastructure, promising local level EV players having good & affordable products are unable to reach the large pool of customers in the country thereby restricting their growth. The idea behind launching Sampoorn EV is to bridge this very gap.”

Speaking further on this new initiative, Mr. Gupta said, “It is an effort towards keeping all the small local players in the EV segment alive as they are contributing silently towards economic development by generating huge employment as well as cleansing of the environment which otherwise gets polluted with fossil fuel based vehicles.”

It is estimated that more than 95% of the total EV players are in the category which is building on sales and distribution networks as compared to 5% players who are in the category of building technology, new design, and product engineering. Currently, the EV industry is in a growing phase with over 500 small local players. This scenario is going to change in the future with only 7-10 players remaining in the market post-consolidation. In order to address this and also provide a level playing field to EV companies having sound business models, Sampoorn EV plans to create a common ecosystem for small local players in the sales and distribution network category.  This ecosystem support will be available to EV companies at a nominal fee that suits their budget so that equal opportunity for growth is available to all such small local EV players in the country.

Before setting up Sampoorn EV, Vikas Gupta founded e-Ashwa Automotive about 5 years ago and today it has become one of the fastest-growing affordable electric vehicle players in electric 2-Wheelers and 3-Wheleers segments.