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India’s exports contracted by 15.88 per cent to USD 32.25 billion in July this year from USD 38.34 billion in the same month last year, the government data showed on Monday. Imports during the month also declined by 17 per cent to USD 52.92 billion from USD 63.77 billion in July 2022.

During April-July this fiscal, the exports dipped by 14.5 per cent to USD 136.22 billion. Imports during the period also declined by 13.79 per cent to USD 213.2 billion. Commerce secretary Sunil Barthawal said that the global headwinds are still there. There is a decline in exports and imports from several countries.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced the development of a Public Tech Platform for Frictionless Credit. The Platform is being developed by Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH), a wholly owned subsidiary of RBI.

As per the RBI, the Public Tech Platform would enable delivery of frictionless credit by facilitating seamless flow of required digital information to lenders. The end-to-end digital platform will have an open architecture, open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and standards, to which all financial sector players can connect seamlessly in a ‘plug and play’ model.

The Platform is intended to be rolled out as a pilot project in a calibrated fashion, both in terms of access to information providers and use cases. The aim is to bring about efficiency in the lending process in terms of reduction of costs, quicker disbursement, and scalability.

During the pilot, the platform will focus on products such as Kisan Credit Card loans up to ₹1.6 lakh per borrower, Dairy Loans, MSME loans (without collateral), Personal loans and Home loans through participating banks. The platform will also enable linkage with services such as Aadhaar e-KYC, land records from onboarded State Governments (Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra), Satellite data, PAN Validation, Transliteration, Aadhaar e-signing, account aggregation by Account Aggregators (AAs), milk pouring data from select dairy co-operatives, house/property search data etc.

Based on the learnings, the scope and coverage would be expanded to include more products, information providers and lenders during the pilot.

July 18, 2023, Mumbai: Speaking at the 187th AGM of Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry yesterday, Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister for Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, said that Atmanirbhar Bharat is India’s goal, but that does not mean that the country is closing its doors to the world. “It does not mean we are living in a cocoon or a shell. We are in fact opening our doors wider. We want to have greater international trade and want to be a part of global supply value chains. We recognise that different countries/geographies have comparative or competitive advantages which we should leverage on, but at the same time we want to open the doors of other markets for products where we have skills, capabilities and the competitive edge. Therefore, a focus on FTAs or comprehensive economic partnerships with world leaders and developed economies has been the core of our commerce agenda. We have had record exports, but, currently, as recession sets in, discretionary spending is lukewarm. Products which are our strength areas are currently under stress. In this situation it is incumbent on all of us to work as a team and make the India story the compulsive story of the world.”

He further spoke about the three ‘D’s that make India a great opportunity. “Democracy, Demographic dividend (young population expected to remain young for the next 3 or 4 decades and the Demand that aspirational India generates – these three Ds drive our economy making it the fastest growing one in the world today,” he said.

Speaking about the business climate in the run up to the 2024 elections, Guest of Honour, Sanjay Pugulia, CEO and Editor-in-chief, AMG Media Network, opined that he expects no dramatic change in the political scene. “Policy making has got completely delinked from electoral outcomes. Even with a coalition government, the policy trajectory is not going to change. We are one of the fastest growing economies of the world and that is not going to change.”
However he cautioned, “What is important is, have we created the enabling systems for big money to flow in? We have to work on that.”

In his opening notes, Sandeep Khosla, Director General, Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry said that the Chamber with a long and illustrious history is keeping with the times by initiating several modern concepts like the recent DEI Awards, one of its kind by a Chamber in India.

In his Presidential address, Nilesh Shah, outgoing President, Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Group President & MD, Kotak Mahindra AMC, outlined the Chamber’s various path breaking initiatives and said, “The Chamber’s USP is its intellectual capital. Nearly 60 per cent of our membership comes from the MSME sector and we play a pivotal role in acting as a bridge between them and the regulatory bodies.” Commenting on India’s emerging role as an investment destination, he added that clearly global investors are seeing the three Gs – Growth, Governance and Green – in India, resulting in an appropriate advantage for the Indian economy.

In his mission statement, Ritesh Tiwari, incoming President, Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry and CFO, Hindustan Unilever Ltd and Unilever South Asia, said, “My mission statement is an attempt to marry the rich legacy of our Chamber with the opportunities we can unleash in this new global world by working together as India Inc. As stakeholders of our society and community, it is important that we acknowledge the role we must play in enabling growth and development of our country. It is equally important to understand that we are not in a perpetual race – this is not a zero-sum game. The more we come together as leaders of India Inc and work with the government and regulators, higher will be the value we can unlock for all of us. I call it ‘Collaborative Development ‘. There will be four critical aspects of this mission (1) Embracing Digitalisation (2) Bringing sustainability at the heart of business (3) Fostering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (4) Enhancing Ease of Doing Business.”
Hitendra Dave, Sr. Vice President Designate, Bombay Chamber and CEO, HSBC India, delivered the Vote of Thanks.

July 13, 2023, Mumbai: The winners of the inaugural Bombay Chamber DEI Awards were announced at a glittering ceremony at Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai last night. With Ernst & Young as thought partners, the Awards saw a whopping 83 nominations from 51 companies across 5 categories: Disability Confidence and Inclusion Award, LGBTQ+ Inclusion Award, Gender Equality Champion Award, DEI Award for Program and DEI Champion Award. To encourage Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in creating inclusive workplaces, the Chamber instituted a Special MSME Award. The Chamber received a total of 12 MSME nominations across categories.

In his Welcome address, Nilesh Shah, President, Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Group President and MD, Kotak Mahindra AMC said, “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion or DEI is important to company culture because it fosters creativity, fresh perspectives, and understanding. What’s more, Diverse and Inclusive workplaces allow employees to work together as equally valued contributors. In fact, workplaces that prioritise diversity and inclusion efforts have been statistically proven to be safer, happier and more productive work environments. From improving employee productivity and creativity to reducing turnover rates and boosting employee morale, strong DEI can be good for your bottomline. But it is prudent to remember here that the change must start with ourselves as people. When things change within you, things will change around you.”

While setting the theme for the Awards ceremony, Ritesh Tiwari, President Designate, Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry and CFO, Hindustan Unilever Ltd and Unilever South Asia said, “Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion are not just moral imperatives but essential drivers of business success. It is therefore important to understand and appreciate that driving DEI is not just an HR priority, it is a powerful business imperative. It is not a box to be checked or a token gesture; it is the very foundation on which our businesses are built. In essence for me, DEI is about two key elements – creating equal opportunities and secondly, an environment of psychology safety. As leaders of India Inc, it is important to recognise that it is really upon us to set the tone on this. The consumers we serve are diverse in gender, thoughts, ethnicity, abilities and so on and therefore our organisations catering to them cannot be any different.”

Moderating a panel discussion on Changing Dynamics of DEI in India Inc, Meenakshi Priyam, Chairperson of the Chamber’s D&I Committee and CHRO, Udaan said, “As a nation we have a rich tapestry of diversity in our heritage. The journey of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – a vast area that includes gender balance across genders but even more – is critical for the growth of our nation and industry. We still have a journey ahead as an industry in this space. These Awards brought to fore such inspiring and world leading work that companies are doing to further this agenda and we feel privileged to enable it. We hope that this continues to be a platform to engage, dialogue and celebrate DEI across large corporates and MSMEs as we move ahead.”

The panelists included Dr. Indu Shahani, Founding President & Chancellor, ATLASSkillTech University; Ravindra Kumar, CHRO, Tata Motors; Sushant aka Rani Ko-He-Nur, Performing Artiste-Singer/Actor and Equal Rights Champion and Sachin Rajan, MD, Russell Reynolds Associates.

The Winners of the Bombay Chamber DEI Awards 2023:

Category: Disability Confidence & Inclusion Award

Winner: Future Generali India Insurance Company Limited

1st Runner Up: LTIMindtree

2nd Runner Up: Deutsche Bank Group India

Category: LGBTQIA+ Inclusion Award

Winner: Godrej Properties Limited

1st Runner Up: Axis Bank

2nd Runner Up: LTIMindtree

Category: Gender Equality Champion Award

Winner: Godrej Consumer Products Limited

1st Runner Up: Thermo Fisher Scientific India Pvt. Ltd.

2nd Runner Up: Standard Chartered Bank, India

Category: DEI Award for Program

Winner: Tata Motors Limited

1st Runner Up: Zomato Limited

2nd Runner Up: Indian Hotels Company Limited

Category: Special Award for MSMEs

Winner: NICHEM SOLUTIONS

1st Runner Up: AIRA Consulting Pvt. Ltd.

2nd Runner Up: HTMC Group

Category: DEI Champion Award

Winner: Tech Mahindra Limited

1st Runner Up: LTIMindtree

2nd Runner Up: Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited

Mumbai, 07 July, 2023: The Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry, in collaboration with Depository Partner, CDSL, organised the first PE&VC Conclave on the theme “Creating a Vibrant Private Market.” The event, held under the aegis of the PE&VC Committee, aimed to address the challenges and opportunities in India’s private market landscape. The conclave shed light on the challenges facing the private market, including the need for a clear regulatory framework, tax parity for international private capital investing, and onshoring of offshore investments. It also emphasised the responsibility of industry players to exercise better corporate governance and collaborate with policymakers and regulators to create a more vibrant and attractive segment that powers India’s growth.

Welcoming the audience, Sandeep Khosla, Director General, Bombay Chamber, highlighted the Chamber’s commitment to facilitating effective communication between regulatory bodies, corporates, and society, as well as its dedication to fostering a conducive environment for trade and industry in Mumbai and India.

Anjali Bansal, Past President, Bombay Chamber and Founding Partner, Avaana Capital, set the theme for the event with her insightful remarks. She highlighted India’s vibrant startup ecosystem, rapid growth in the AIF regime, and the country’s aspiration to become a 20 trillion-dollar economy. Bansal acknowledged the instrumental role played by the government in promoting entrepreneurship through policies such as Startup India and Digital India, which have contributed to the remarkable growth of the startup ecosystem.

Addressing the audience, Nehal Vora, Managing Director & CEO of CDSL, spoke about the key building blocks for the growth of PE&VC investments and startups in the Indian market. He emphasised the importance of corporate governance and building trust to create valuation for both investors and companies. Vora highlighted the transformative reforms in the Indian capital markets, such as the shift to online trading, dematerialisation, and the establishment of robust market infrastructure institutions. He commended SEBI’s vision in creating a digital platform that fosters trust and enables widespread participation in the capital markets.

In his keynote address, Shri. Ananth Narayan Gopalkrishnan, Whole-time Member, SEBI shed light on the private equity space and SEBI’s outlook towards Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs). Shri. Gopalkrishnan highlighted the impressive growth of the private equity sector over the past few years. He mentioned that AIF investment commitments reached 8.3 Lakh crores as of March 2023, showing a compounded annual growth rate of 38%. Actual money invested in AIFs demonstrated a compounded annual growth rate of 40% over the last five years, totaling 3.4 Lakh crores.

Addressing the funding landscape, Shri. Gopalkrishnan noted that commitment in the AIF space has been rising by 2 lakh crores over the past two years, with 60% of the commitment coming from domestic participants and 40% from foreign investors. The number of AIFs has also increased to 1100, showcasing a 50% annual compounded growth rate and reflecting a thriving ecosystem. He emphasised that this early-stage capital contributes to wealth creation, investments, job creation, and GDP growth.

Shri. Gopalkrishnan underscored the three pillars of SEBI’s mandate: investor protection, market development, and market regulation. He emphasised that trust forms the foundation of the entire system, and SEBI’s role is to minimise errors and build trust within the capital formation process. He highlighted the substantial growth in equity investments made by regional funds, which rose from less than 4 lakh crores to over 24.5 Lakh crores. Shri. Gopalkrishnan also emphasised three key areas on SEBI’s radar: valuation, potential regulatory arbitrage, and misselling. He reassured companies that SEBI is open to receiving details of any wrongdoing in the market and encouraged them to build trust and credibility in the ecosystem. He acknowledged India’s immense potential for growth, highlighting its entrepreneurial spirit and strong work culture.

The conclave featured two insightful panels addressing crucial aspects of the private market. The first panel of the day, moderated by Nimesh Kampani, Founding Partner, 108 Capital saw Madhu Lunawat, – CIO, India Inflection Opportunities Fund, Satyam Kumar, CEO & Co-Founder, LoanTap Financial Technologies, Ashish Fafadia, Partner, Blume Venture Advisors, and Ritwick Ghoshal, Managing Partner & CEO, Bay Capital Investment Advisors give their insight into the topic Business Opportunities, Challenges & the Future: Driving Private Investments. The panel explored the current situation of the private market in India amidst the funding winter, examined the available exit options for companies, assessed the challenges and opportunities in raising debt or equity swiftly, discussed cost of equity vs cost of debt and envisioned ways to create a systematic platform for private markets. 

The second panel, on Creating a Conducive Tax and Regulatory Environment, moderated by Rahul Shah, Executive Vice President, Indian Venture Capital Association (IVCA) saw panelists Dr Archana Hingorani, Managing Partner, Siana Capital, Tejas Desai, Partner, Ernst & Young LLP (EY India), Vatsal Gaur, Partner, King Stubb & Kasiva, Advocates & Attorneys and Manish Kumar, Co-founder GREX & RealX share their expertise on the subject. The panel covered aspects including AIF regulations, the GIFT city and the need for enabling infrastructure,  onshoring of offshore fund structures, Angel Tax and the global competitiveness of the Indian PE&VC ecosystem. 

The Conclave concluded with a vote of thanks delivered by Ashith Kampani, Chair, PE&VC Committee, and Chairman, CosmicMandala15 Securities.

June 6, 2023, Mumbai: Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry recently organised a Governance Conclave with the theme, Building a Resilient Board, supported by Ernst & Young LLP, and DTDC.

In his opening remarks, Nilesh Shah, President, Bombay Chamber & Group President and Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra AMC said that a lot needs to be done in governance mechanisms. “Today’s discussion is about how to give feedback to regulators, promoters, the corporate world and shareholders,” he said. Suhas Tuljapurkar, Co-Chairperson, Governance Committee, Bombay Chamber & Founder Director, Legasis introduced the Keynote speaker – Dr Raghunath Mashelkar, former Director General, Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) who spoke on Future Proofing in the VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity) World.

While citing examples of the Patalganga manufacturing plant food disaster where resilience was missing, Mashelkar said, “Covid was a time when resilience was tested. The Covid vaccine which was developed in a record 12 months is an excellent example of resilience. We are facing big challenges – Asymmetry, Disruption, Age, Polarisation and Trust. Emerging technology is disrupting every industry. We have to keep our institutions strong so that we can be prepared for the future. Natural calamities, the climate crisis, pandemic, all have shown that corporate resilience is most important. Organisations should be purpose driven. For example, Reliance (Reliance New Energy Council) is preparing and gearing up for a Green future.”

There were three panel discussions. The first panel discussed the Future of a Resilient & Atmanirbhar Board which was moderated by Suhas Tuljapurkar, Co-Chairperson, Governance Committee, Bombay Chamber & Founder Director, Legasis. The panelists included Nilesh Shah; Zarir Langrana, Executive Director & President Global Chemicals Business, Tata Chemicals; M S Unnikrishnan, Head & CEO, IITB-Monash Research Academy and Manish Choksi, Vice Chairman, Asian Paints. While agreeing that Indian corporates have shown great financial resilience in recent years, the panelists observed that a company Board should be like Krishna to Arjuna in the Mahabharata: Give directions to the company, provide the Governance and support needed. Three things to keep in mind- Guidance, Vision and Governance.

The second panel, on Risk Management and Cyber Security, was moderated by Savithri Parekh, Chairperson, Governance Committee, Bombay Chamber & Company Secretary and Compliance Officer, Reliance Industries. The panel members included Ritesh Tiwari, Sr. Vice President, Bombay Chamber & CFO, Hindustan Unilever & Unilever South Asia; Nandkumar Saravade, Advisor on Security, Technology, Entrepreneurship and Governance; U Shekhar, Managing Director, Galaxy Surfactants and Mini Gupta, Senior Cybersecurity and Privacy partner, Ernst & Young LLP. They advised that cyber security and resilience can be analysed in a way that can help the organisation in its growth. Investments have to go into digital transformation. Future proofing the environment is the need of the hour.

The third panel on Governance beyond Numbers: From Rule book to Value Based Compliance, supported by Excel Industries, the digital sponsor, was moderated by Bharat Vasani, Chairperson, Legal & IPR committee, Bombay Chamber, & Partner, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. The panelists were Ashok Barat, Founder, MERX Business Advisors LLP and Ranjit Shahani, former Vice Chairman & Managing Director, Novartis India. The panel opined that while India has most detail oriented corporate governance, she still has a long way to go on how effective our boards will be because different DNA s are operating in these boards.

The Conclave ended with closing remarks delivered by Manoj Sonawala, Principal Consultant, Manoyog GRC Advisors, where he summed up what the speakers discussed, and the vote of thanks by Ritesh Tiwari, wherein he thanked all the speakers, sponsors and participants for making the event a grand success.

Nitin Gadkari, Union minister for Road Transport and Highways listed four Es that are crucial to streamline the ports, shipping and logistics industry in India. Speaking at the 11th Biennial International Conference on Ports, Shipping and Logistics organised by Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai recently, Gadkari said, “I would list four Es necessary to streamline the sector: Ethics, Economy, Ecology and Environment. Environment is of the highest priority. It is time to encourage public transport and the use of Green fuels like ethanol, methanol and green hydrogen. Logistics cost can be reduced to nearly 9% with express highways, the use of EVs and other substitute fuels. Waterways are the most cost efficient mode of transport and we must leverage it. It is also important to use technology to drive a sustainable lifestyle for the economically deprived sections of society.”

He informed that most of the work of the Delhi Mumbai expressway will be completed by December. He also shared that about 7 to 8 logistics parks will be set up in Maharashtra alongwith dry ports in Pune, Nashik, Mumbai and Nagpur. “We are also planning to develop Busports on the lines of airports. Besides, 40 river ports are also planned including Varanasi and Sahibganj,” he stated. In his welcome address, Nilesh Shah, President of the Chamber and MD, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Co Ltd, highlighted the Chamber’s role in being an effective vehicle between corporates and government bodies.

In his address at the conference, Shripad Naik, Minister of state for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Government of India emphasised the importance of PPP in the shipping industry. “India’s geographic location makes it an important transit hub for the global shipping industry. Public Private Partnership (PPP) will play an important role in the growth of the maritime sector in India and an important source of investment as well,” he said.

Speaking at the conference, Anil Radhakrishnan, Director, Accex Supply Chain said, “The National Logistics policy, digital and technological advances have proved good for Industry. Sagaramala has boosted the infrastructural development in our waterways. We need to now focus on continued infra development at the right places; leverage on technological advances, skill development and Sustainable opportunities.”

Rajiv Jalota, IAS, Chairman, Mumbai Port Authority and Additional Charge, DG, Directorate General of Shipping was also present at the event. He informed that the National Logistics Portal Marine has achieved the objective of offering a platform encompassing complete end-to-end logistics solutions to help exporters, importers, and service providers exchange documents seamlessly and transact business.

Other dignitaries who were present at the event were Vivek Johri, IRS, Chairman, Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs and Special Secretary to the Government of India and Padmashri Prof.Ganapati Dadasaheb Yadav, Ex-vice Chancellor, ICT.

The day also saw several insightful knowledge sessions. The CXO Roundtable on Changing Business Models and Innovation in Logistics and Maritime Sector was moderated by Capt. Nikunj Parashar, Founder, Sagar Defence Engineering and Oceanos BV Netherland. The panel members were Gaurav Gupta, Managing Director, DSV Solutions Pvt Ltd; Pratik Shah, Director, EY; Dharmendra Gangrade, Head-Logistics Management Centre, L&T Group and Ashish Agarwal, MD, Freightos.

Another panel discussion was on Investment Avenues for Infrastructure led growth opportunities in Shipping, Ports & Logistics. The session moderator was Prasad Gadkari, Executive Director & Chief Strategy Officer, National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF). Panel members included Lars Sorensen, MD, Hapag Llyod India Pvt. Ltd; Kenichi Kono, Senior Representative Japan, International Cooperation Agency (JICA), India; Vivek Kele, Director, Teamglobal Logistics Pvt Ltd; Parag Thally , SVP & Head Real Economy Group, Axis Bank and Deepal Shah, Deputy Group Chief Financial Officer, Allcargo Logistics Ltd.

There was also a CXO Roundtable on Sustainable Logistics and Green Initiatives. The session was chaired by Amitabh Kumar, IRS, Former DG, Directorate General of Shipping. The panel included Senator Dr. PKC Bose, Vice Chairman and MD, Enercon Wind Energy Pvt. Ltd; Atit Mahajan, MD ,CMA-CGM India; R Mukundan, MD and CEO, Tata Chemicals; Kavita Jain, VP-Supply Chain, South Asia, Hindustan Unilever Ltd & Unilever South Asia and Pavithran M Kallada, Managing Director – India, PSA BDP.

The special guests included Dr Sanjeev Ranjan, IAS, Chairman, National Shipping Board; Unmesh Sharad Wagh, IRS, Deputy Chairman, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority and Animesh Gupta, President, JSPL.

The Indian pharmaceutical industry is renowned for its competitiveness in both cost efficiency and research and development. According to the Economic Survey 2022-23, the industry has maintained its growth momentum even after the pandemic, and it is projected that the domestic pharmaceutical market will reach USD 130 billion by 2030. In FY21, the country’s pharmaceutical exports grew by a healthy 24%, driven by the demand for critical drugs and supplies due to COVID-19, which were sent to over 150 countries. However, the sector faces challenges such as shortages of key medications, quality and regulatory issues, and fluctuating drug pricing due to a lack of policy stability.

Against this backdrop, the Bombay Chamber, under the auspices of the BFSI Committee, organised the 7th Pharma Workshop in association with Title Sponsor, Howden Insurance, Co-sponsor, Go Digit and Knowledge Partner, PwC. The workshop’s theme was Managing Risks and Liabilities in Pharma. Mr Praveen Vashisht, Chairman, Howden India, Howden Insurance Brokers India, welcomed the audience and set the tone for the workshop by discussing three risks affecting the Pharma sector: competitive environment rationale, operational and financial risks, and reputational risks. Mr Vashisht also discussed how Covid-19 exposed weaknesses in the Insurance and Pharma Industries and the impact of reduced demand, cyber threats, and supply chain disruption on these industries. He further elaborated on the three different risk management areas for organisations: measuring the risk, managing the risk, and monitoring the risk.

In his keynote address, Mr Srinivas Lanka, Mentor, ElixGlobal, highlighted the importance of each and every risk in the pharma industry. He also discussed how earlier, there used to be 70% API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients) imports from China, but the scenario has changed now. In terms of value, currently there is only $3bn API Imports from China compared to $23bn earlier. Mr Lanka spoke about the numerous risks in the pharma industry due to supply chain disruptions, resulting in businessmen losing opportunities and hampering the industry’s growth. He stated that this is now the era of exporting Indian pharmaceutical products in international markets, and every country is facing issues due to forums and their correspondences. He further noted that it is becoming increasingly difficult to develop a large molecule due to supply chain interruptions for manufacturers.

The first session of the day was an interactive fireside conversation on the topic Post-Pandemic Recovery and Current State of the Indian Pharma Sector: Issues & Challenges between Ms Smriti Mishra, Partner, PwC, and Mr Ramesh Swaminathan, CFO, Lupin, which highlighted the operational risk in supply chain management. Mr Swaminathan emphasised the growing importance of the ECLGS scheme and the effect of Govt’s PLI schemes on imports, calling it a strategic move by the government. He highlighted how, moving ahead, cost dynamics are not going to be easy, and the cost of manufacturing is going to increase. In terms of understanding Good Manufacturing Processes (GMPs), India is the best in the world and has a good skill set. However, there is a need for Industry and Government academia collaboration.

The panel discussion on the topic: Regulatory Environment for Indian Pharma Business had Mr Ankur Jain, Partner, Risk Assurance, PwC, as the moderator, and Mr Lanka, Mr Amit Pandey, EVP & General Counsel, GSK Pharmaceuticals, and Dr Milind Antani, Lead – Pharma, Healthcare, Medical Device and Digital Health Practice, Nishith Desai Associates, as the panellists. They deliberated on the Pharma Competition Act, various archaic laws criminalising the pharma industry that are still active today, the need to have an intermediary for small pharma companies that don’t have their labs to ensure quality, and the need to increase awareness of the various laws that govern the pharma sector.

The final panel discussion of the day on the topic: Emerging Risks, Trends and Risk Transfer Solutions in the Indian Pharma Sector, featured Mr Amit Solanki President, Howden India as the Moderator and Mr Martin Hawkins, Head of Liability, Newline Syndicate; Mr Richard Kelly, Head of Life science, Clinical Trials Insurance Services and Ms Anisha Udeshi, Director Global Insurance and Risk, Cipla as the panellists discussed the need to impart risk training to employees with a qualified risk manager, among other pertinent issues.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently presented the last full budget of the second term of the Modi-led BJP government, before the General Elections in 2024. Labeled the first during the ‘Amrit Kaal’ or the period of 25 years leading to the 100th year of India’s independence, the budget has gained varied, mostly positive, reactions from the industry experts who have termed the budget as a growth-oriented one, with particular focus on green growth.

Here are reactions from leading industry experts and Bombay Chamber members on the budget:

India’s banking sector has always been at the forefront of driving digitisation and adopting Artificial Intelligence. The recent Covid-19 pandemic has further accelerated the process with both the industry and the Government pushing for further digitisation in the BFSI sector. As per news reports, in the upcoming Budget, the government is likely to scale up its flagship financial inclusion schemes while focusing on digitisation. This would include setting up more digital banking units (DBUs) and bringing about a digital interface for greater integration between Jan Dhan accounts, Jeevan Jyoti and Suraksha Bima Yojana.

It is with this background that the Bombay Chamber, under the aegis of the BFSI Committee, organised its Conclave on the highly relevant topic, ‘Digitisation in the Indian Banking Sector.’ The Conclave, which was held in a hybrid mode, saw knowledge-driven sessions featuring expert minds discussing the topic and the way forward.

Welcoming the audience, Mr Nilesh Shah, President, Bombay Chamber & Group President & MD, Kotak Mahindra AMC, spoke about Bombay Chamber’s role in developing trade and commerce in Mumbai and the country and how technology and digitisation will fuel our next trillion-dollar economy. Emphasising that capturing this digitisation in the BFSI industry is highly critical, Mr Shah cautioned that companies that evolve and adopt technology will benefit from it, while those that fail, face the threat of extinction.

Laying the grounds of the discussion, the Chief Guest of the event, Shri Ajay Kumar Choudhary, Executive Director, Reserve Bank of India, spoke about the evolution of digitisation in the Indian banking sector, the enactment of the Information Technology Act, which provided impetus towards electronic transaction and e-commerce and served as a platform for further digitisation, the introduction of further conduits of the digitisation drive of the banking sector, and how Covid-19 drove faster adoption of technology. However, with the digitisation process comes risks that may affect public trust in the financial system. Shri Chaudhary advised banks to upgrade their core systems, focus on customer relationships, and address the risks and concerns that come with the digitisation of finance while ensuring that innovations are responsible and meet the principles of governance and customer- centricity.

The first panel discussion, moderated by Mr Rajiv Anand, Deputy Managing Director, Axis Bank had Mr Anand Mihir, Partner, Risk Consulting, EY India, Mr Sajish Pillai, Managing Director & Head – Assets and Strategic Alliances, Consumer Banking Group, DBS Bank, India and Mr Arpit Ratan, CBO & Co-Founder, SignZy deliberating on the topic of Ecosystem Banking and Neo-banking in the Transformative Stage.

The panel discussion was followed by an interesting presentation on neobanking by Mr Pratik Shah, Partner and Leader, Financial Service Consulting, EY India, who spoke about how the next generation will drive digitisation trends in the banking sector and how banks will need to cash in on this market.

The second panel discussion focused on the pertinent topic of Digitisation in Rural India and of taking technology to the farmers. The panel was moderated by Mr Harshvardhan Bisht, Partner, Financial Service Consulting, EY India, and had Mr Ashok Dhamankar, Chief Financial Officer – Financial Services, UPL, Mr Prateep Basu, CEO, SatSure and Mr Sridhar Easwaran, Founding Member, Samunnati Financial Intermediation & Services, who joined in virtually, as the speakers.

With digitisation becoming ever-pervasive in the BFSI sector, cybersecurity takes on paramount importance. The final panel discussion of the Conclave saw Moderator, Mr Dilip Panjwani, Global Head – Cybersecurity Practice & CoE, LTIMindtree, along with our panelists Mr Anu Tiwari, Partner, (Cohead) Fintech, Mr Kartik Shinde, Partner, Cyber Security and Data Privacy, EY India, and Mr Rajesh Thapar, CISO, Axis Bank, discuss the topic of Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence.

Delivering his Vote of Thanks, Mr. Abizer Diwanji, Head Financial Services, EY, gave a round-up of the event and spoke about how today, data is the new oil, which is gushing out and how it is the duty of the security industry and banking to control the data so that there is a more reformed banking system.