MSME Conclave 2025: Global Opportunities for MSMEs

Mr. R Srinivasan

Co-Chairperson – MSME Forum, Bombay Chamber, Director, AIRA Consulting Private Limited

R. Srinivasan is the Director of AIRA Consulting. He founded AIRA Consulting in the year 2007 to provide consulting services exclusively to SMEs. Having held senior roles in sales, marketing, HR and Business Head across wide range of sectors including FMCG, Pharma, Education, Internet and Technology businesses, Srinivasan brings in rich experience to the table.

At AIRA Consulting, Srinivasan straddles two worlds of business delivery and people processes seamlessly. He currently works with owner teams in clients across Trading, technology, consumer and engineering businesses bringing in clarity of purpose and linkage of business strategy to people systems.
Srinivasan leads the business development for AIRA Consulting.
Srinivasan is a B.Sc. (Chemistry) with MBA from NMIMS.

Mr. C. S. Arya

General Manager, IDBI Bank

MBA(Finance), MA (Economics). Started career with Allahabad Bank as PO in 1998 and then moved to IDBI Bank in 2006. Had worked in Branch Banking, Corporate, Retail Assets, Priority Sector Lending, Trade Finace and Audit. Presently GM (MSME) at Corporate Centre. Was Senior Regional Head in Bengalore, Ahmedabad. Worked in Branch, RO, ZO and HO of both the Bank.

Mr. Shirish Mathur

Head- SME Products & Digital Platforms, Aditya Birla Finance Ltd.

Shirish Mathur is the Head of SME Products & Digital Platforms at Aditya Birla Finance Ltd. and leads the Payments Business for Aditya Birla Capital. With a distinguished 19-year career, he has held diverse roles in digital B2B platforms, payments, and SME banking, cultivating a unique blend of expertise.

Shirish notable achievements include the launch of  Udyog Plus, a comprehensive digital B2B platform empowering MSMEs in India. He has also architected award-winning innovations like InstaBIZ, Connected Banking, and Eazypay, showcasing his prowess in pioneering payment solutions and transforming digital platforms. Through his endeavours, Shirish has significantly enhanced the digital transaction landscape and financial service interactions for MSMEs.

Mr. Dhrubashish Bhattacharya

Head MSME & Co-lending, Bank of Baroda

I have transited through various positions in the last 30 years of my career ranging from Branch Manager to Business Head. Handled Sales/Credit/Collections/HR/administrative roles in various capacities. Strength areas – Building Strategy and leading a large team to drive business with a profit centric approach. Currently heading MSME banking at Bank of Baroda and spearheading the Co-Lending program.

Driving the transformation of MSME lending in Bank of Baroda through various customer centric initiatives, launch contemporary product lines and seamless digital journeys. Was CCCO at Toyota Financial Services India Ltd heading the entire Credit , Operations and Collections for Retail & Wholesale business. Was in an advisory role at Bank of Baroda on new initiatives in Farm Equipment, Commercial vehicle and Construction Equipment Providing advisory inputs to Rating Agencies besides many Investors seeking inputs in the Retail , MSME and Co-lending space. Have been an official spokesperson for Magma Fincorp and BOB in media

Mr. Joe Yang

Principal Commercial Officer U.S. Consulate General in Mumbai, India

Joe Yang has been with the U.S. Foreign Commercial Service since January 2024. He has been the Principal Commercial Officer in Mumbai, India since April 8, 2024. Prior to the Commercial Service, Joe served as Deputy Chief Counsel for the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP). As Deputy Chief Counsel, he was responsible for CLDP’s management and operations and continued to design and implement commercial law technical assistance programs in the fields of technology transfer and subnational infrastructure and financing. Prior to joining the U.S. Department of Commerce, Joe worked in private practice in land use/eminent domain and commercial real estate. Joe was also a professional errors and omissions attorney for Travelers Insurance Company and started an agro- chemical sourcing company during a two-year post in Shanghai, China. Joe holds a BA in History from Northwestern University and a juris doctorate from William Mitchell College of Law. Joe likes to fish and is an avid runner, cyclist and golfer.

Mr. Ratul Mukhopadhyay

Business Head, SEG Assets, Commercial Banking Group, Axis Bank Limited

Mr. Ratul Mukhopadhyay, Business Head, SEG Assets, Commercial Banking Group, Axis Bank Limited
Designation: Business Head, SEG Assets, Commercial Banking Group, Axis Bank
I have over 25 years of experience in Banking and Finance with diverse leadership experiences across Commercial and Branch Banking.
I am an MBA from IISWBM, Kolkata and a Commerce Graduate from St. Xavier College, Kolkata.

Mr. Vikas Kumar

Chief Manager, SBI, SME Sakinaka Branch

Currently posted as Chief Manager, SME Sakinaka, Mumbai Metro
Has worked as forex dealer in Global Money exchange, Muscat (Managed by SBI)
Worked in SBI rupee treasury and has worked as branch head & has total 15 years of operational
experience in SBI.

H.E. Mr. Adolfo Garcia Estrada

Consul General, Consulate of Mexico in Mumbai

Mr. García Estrada is a career diplomat with over two decades of experience in the Mexican Foreign Service. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Relations in 2000 and has held positions in Europe, Asia, and the United States, specializing in consular and bilateral affairs. His assignments include roles as Political Attaché in Finland, Deputy Chief of Mission in Ireland, Bangkok, and Kuala Lumpur, and Deputy Consul General in Houston, Texas. He has worked extensively on advancing Mexico’s relations with ASEAN and Pacific nations. Since January 2023, he serves as the first Consul General of Mexico in Mumbai, India.

H. E. Mr. Mustafa Kemalettin Eruygur

Consul General of the Republic of Türkiye

Consul General Mustafa Kemalettin Eruygur was born in Isparta in 1966. He graduated from the Marmara University Law Faculty in 1988, and completed his Master’s degree on Strategic Studies, at the School of Government, Victoria University of Wellington in 2009. At the headquarters, he served at the Culture, Multilateral Economic Affairs, Research, Europe, Bilateral Economic Affairs and Africa departments with various titles.

He has been posted to the Turkish missions in Malaysia, Romania, New Zealand, UNESCO, Belgium and Egypt with various titles. He has assumed his duty as the Consul General of the Republic of Türkiye in Mumbai as of 25 October 2024.

Ms. Eva Nilsson

Deputy Consul General , Consulate General of Finland in Mumbai

Eva Nilsson has started in the post of Deputy Council General in Mumbai at the start of August. Nilsson has joined the Finnish diplomatic corps in 2023. She has 10+ years of experience within development cooperation and policy from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, non-governmental organisations and as a consultant in different advisory and advocacy roles. In addition to Helsinki, she has worked in Tanzania and Brussels. She holds Master’s degrees in World and African Politics (University of Helsinki and SOAS, London) and a Doctorate degree in Economics and Business administration (Hanken School of Economics). In her previous career she specialized in issues relating to sustainable economy and business on which she has authored several academic and non-academic publications.

Mr. Viraj Kulkarni

Honorary Consul, Honorary Consulate of the Republic of Cyprus in Mumbai

He is a Fellow member of Institute of Company Secretaries of India and has over 34 years of in-depth and diverse exposure to emerging and advanced capital markets. Viraj Kulkarni is the Honorary Consulof Cyprusin Mumbai, forthe Maharashtra Jurisdiction He is founder of PIVOT Management Consulting Pvt Ltd. Asia’s largest Consulting Company in custody space. PIVOT in 2023 was recognized globally as a “Rising Star” Consulting Firm of the year in the Market and Infrastructure segment by Regulation Asia. May 2024 it was recognized as, ”The Innovative Consulting Company in Asia” by Global Custodian.

Viraj’s rich work experience spanned across 3of the top 5 Global Custodians for over 12 years as Country Head of Securities Services with Citi Bank (India and Switzerland), JP Morgan Chase and BNP Paribas. He also set up operations at Morgan Stanley Securities Services, India and was part of management team of Investor Services Division at Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). He Certified Independent Director from Indian Instituteof Corporate Affairs. In2013,was recognized by Global Custodian for leadership in India, through APAC industry nomination. In 2019,Global Custodian recognized him to be amongst the Global 30SecuritiesServices Experts. In 2022, Viraj was inducted as a GC Legend in the GC Hall of Fame. He isthe first India based Legend amongst the 351 worldwide, across 108 countries in the $281 Trillion Custody Industry.

In2022-23:Asian Development Bank appointed Virajto mentor Entrepreneurs in India, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand for its PROFIT Project In2024 he was recognized as Change Maker by Making India Employable. Viraj is a Director of PIVOT Consultants (Cyprus) Ltd. (www.pivotcyprus.com), an independent Director at Motilal Oswal Trust Company, as well as on Bharat Forge Investments Limited. He is the Chairman of International Trade & Commerce Committee of Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Viraj has been on Industry committees in India and Switzerland. He is Committee Member of the Private Equity, Venture Capital and Capital Markets of Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was on the IMC’s Alternative Funding (PE +Capital Market) committee. He is also a member of the Equity Markets working group of CII. He is on the Board of Studies(CM) at Guru Nanak College of Arts, Science & Commerce. He was instrumental in the successful signing of MOU between Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Cyprus Chamber and Commerce. His over 35 papers on Capital markets have been published Globally and Locally by leading publications and in some instances rated the most read Globally.

Mr. Rajan Raje

Chairperson – MSME Forum, Bombay Chamber & CEO,Nichem Solutions

He is a chemistry & management professional with rich industrial experience of 44 years. Before becoming an entrepreneur, he worked with a UK based company named Willet International as Country Head. His initial industry exposure consisted of diverse areas namely printing inks, coding systems, paints, rust preventives, agriculture, fisheries, water proofing systems etc.

He became an entrepreneur in 1995 by establishing a partnership firm – ADVANCED AGROTECH to work on post-harvest fresh produce preservation solutions. He grew the product portfolio with unique chemical solutions like drinking water purification media, polymer additives, pre- & post- harvest agriculture inputs, home & personal care ingredients & disinfectants. ADVANCED AGROTECH was renamed to NICHEM SOLUTIONS in 2014 & was lead by him along with his partners – Prof VC Malshe & Aniket Malshe.

NICHEM stands for niche chemicals. At NICHEM, he is bullish about creating eco-friendly, non- toxic & sustainable technologies which are beneficial & affordable by the end user or the common people. Today, NICHEM has 100+ products in its basket catering to diverse applications. He looks after the business development, strategy & expansion plans for the organization. Investment in Innovation, Application Development & People Management drives him. He is open to embrace new technologies/softwares to upgrade systems for professional working which is reflected in the culture of NICHEM.

Apart from heading NICHEM, he is on the Board of Directors of Bombay Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCCI). He heads the MSME Committee of BCCI & Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICC). He is also a part of the Agri Committee & Diversity & Inclusion (DNY) Committee of BCCI. As an MSME entrepreneur, he has seen the challenges faced by this sector. Thus, he is instrumental in leveraging the right platform through BCCI so that MSMEs can collaborate with credible service providers to help them progress & sustain in the long run. He does business for its love & satisfaction rather than only earning profits. He encourages his team to be methodical, thoughtful, practical & professional with financial discipline which is a must for the
success & sustainance of MSMEs today.

He is a go-getter & problem solver by nature. He nurtures good & long lasting relations with customers & stakeholders. He is conscious about social & environment obligation & believes in giving back. His hobbies include Music, Sports & Travel.