BFSI Summit highlights: India's growth must align with job creation needs, says Sonal Varma

BFSI Summit Day 1 highlights: The summit, scheduled from October 29 to 31, will bring together top policymakers, CEOs, and industry experts for a series of keynote addresses, fireside chats

7:56 PM

Technology, CIBIL scores making Indian borrowers more disciplined: Inderjit Camotra, MD & CEO, Unity SFB

India’s borrowers are becoming more mature, says Inderjit Camotra, MD & CEO, Unity Small Finance Bank. With every individual now having a CIBIL score, a single loan default can put one’s entire credit history at risk. “No one wants to default anymore. Technology has ensured that borrowers make every effort to stay disciplined,” he said.

7:29 PM

We may be seeing inflation undershooting in India: Sonal Verma

Sonal Varma, chief economist at Nomura, said India’s nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 8–9 per cent has significant implications for tax collections. “We may be seeing inflation undershooting now in India. The Flexible Inflation Targeting framework is influencing households’ inflation expectations,” she added.

 

7:24 PM

India must sustain 8–10% growth for a decade to create jobs: Nomura's Sonal Varma

Sonal Varma, chief economist at Nomura, said India needs to sustain annual growth of 8–10 per cent for over a decade to generate adequate employment. “This was the growth tempo achieved by several Asian economies, including China,” she added.

7:19 PM

India’s 6.1% growth over past decade strong, but below aspiration: Aditi Nayar

India’s average growth rate over the past decade has been around 6.1 per cent, Aditi Nayar, chief economist at ICRA, said . “Covid-19 notwithstanding, 6.1 per cent was still very good in the global context. But yes, it’s not that aspirational 8 to 10 per cent that we want or think we are entitled to,” she said.

 

7:09 PM

Suryoday aims to evolve into a full fledged bank, says Baskar Babu

Small finance banks were established to serve customers who already had bank accounts but often felt underserved or unwelcome at larger institutions — and that mission has largely succeeded. However, the “small finance” label has become limiting, said Baskar Babu, MD & CEO, Suryoday Small Finance Bank. “We’ve made representations to the regulator to address this, as evolving into a universal bank would help us grow further while staying true to our original purpose. Ultimately, we want to be recognised simply as Surya Bank, not Surya Small Finance Bank,” he added.

7:04 PM

NBFCs will continue to focus on high-pricing, high-credit-cost segments: Raul Rebello

6:55 PM

Credit drives growth; banks, NBFCs play complementary roles: Sabharwal

India is a vast market where credit serves as the key driver of economic growth. Both banks and NBFCs are playing complementary roles in expanding financial access. However, we are still some distance away from ensuring credit availability for all who need it. Diversification of liabilities remains critical, as banks increasingly seek to broaden their funding sources, says Rajiv Sabharwal, MD & CEO, Tata Capital.

 

6:44 PM

NBFCs hold edge with customised offerings to meet customer needs: Umesh Revankar

6:38 PM

MNCs have gained scale, increasingly listing their subsidiaries in India, says Amitabh Malhotra

MNCs are increasingly considering listing their subsidiary in India as these companies have gained scale and also because the Indian equity market has matured, says Amitabh Malhotra, vice-chairman, capital markets and advisory, HSBC India.

6:35 PM

NBFCs more profitable than banks, but not dominant in lending: Jairam Sridharan

The lending market in India has seen little structural change over the past 30 years. While non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) have been significant participants, they have not emerged as dominant players, Jairam Sridharan of Primal Finance said.

6:17 PM

We lack driving force for consolidation in the private sector: Yes Bank's Prashant Kumar

6:07 PM

AI must be used responsibly in banking: Arvind Vohra

As bankers and global citizens, we must acknowledge how deeply artificial intelligence has become embedded in our daily lives -- from the invisible machine-learning infrastructure that shapes the content we consume to the subtle ways it influences our thoughts. The key question for banks is where to draw the line, says Arvind Vohra, group head, retail assets, HDFC Bank. AI, he added, must be deployed ethically and responsibly.

5:45 PM

Banks need agility to meet varied customer needs, says Prashant Kumar

Banks are fully aware of the opportunities available. They will have to be nimble enough and prepare to care of different segments of customer. Reinvention is a continuous process, which banks are adopting very well. There has been a demand growth in Q2 on corporate credit. Today, banks are in a much better position to take care of those customers, says Prashant Kumar, MD & CEO, Yes Bank.

5:40 PM

AI to play vital role in managing customer trust: Bank of Baroda’s Sanjay Mudaliar

“Customer trust is built over time through how banks use technology to serve clients, efficiently address grievances, manage interactions, and ensure a positive experience. With the vast amount of data available to banks, technologies such as AI will play a crucial role in managing and strengthening that trust,” said Sanjay Mudaliar, executive director, Bank of Baroda.

5:32 PM

AI a double-edged sword, must be used wisely, says Federal Bank’s Diwanji

“The world of tomorrow will be very different. As bankers, we are good with numbers, and AI helps us identify patterns. However, AI is a double-edged sword -- if used properly, it can deliver immense efficiency, but if not, it can introduce biases,” said Virat Diwanji, national head - consumer banking, Federal Bank.

 

5:09 PM

Indian economy performing better than feared two months ago: CEA Nageswaran

Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) V Anantha Nageswaran said the government expects real GDP growth between 6.7 and 6.8 per cent for FY25 -- a performance he described as encouraging amid rising external challenges. Read here for more details.

5:01 PM

Bond market in India driven by domestic institutional investors, says Aditya Bagree

“Bond market in India is largely driven by domestic institutional investors, like mutual funds, insurance, banks etc. Demand came off in this area also because of regulatory and tax reasons. So, the question is how we get that demand back in. On the equity side, or FPI, we have seen around $15-16 billion outflows this year,"  says Aditya Bagree, MD & head-markets, India & South Asia, Citi. 

4:55 PM

India’s long-term growth outlook positive for next 20 years: K Balasubramanian

4:37 PM

Bank issuance strong last year, supply to stay muted: ICICI’s Jhingan

“Last year, bank issuances were very strong. This year began well but has been more tactical. The main reason, in my view, is that the loan market has been cheaper. We expect supply to remain subdued,” said Shailendra Jhingan, head–treasury, ICICI Bank.

4:23 PM

Strong competition hindered growth of international banks, says Hitendra Dave, CEO, HSBC India

“The strong competitive intensity created by local private banks and some of the better-performing public sector banks pushed international banks — already dealing with distractions following the global financial crisis -- somewhat out of the market,” said Hitendra Dave, CEO, HSBC India.

4:17 PM

US growth not broad-based, rate cut likely today: Citi’s Aditya Bagree

Aditya Bagree, managing director and head–markets, India and South Asia, Citi, said three key themes are shaping the US economy. “Unemployment remains relatively high, and there are inflation concerns arising from Trump’s tariffs. Thirdly, while there has been growth, it has not been broad-based. I believe there will be a rate cut today,” he said.

4:08 PM

Indian economy’s formalisation a major success, says CEA Nageswaran

“The formalisation of the Indian economy has been one of the major success stories of the past five years. It is therefore crucial for financial institutions to understand the kind of global environment we are likely to face over the next 25 years -- one that will be very different from the last 40 years. We all need to do our part,” CEA Anantha Nageswaran stated today.

3:58 PM

'Private sector must make manufacturing aspirational': CEA Nageswaran

3:42 PM

India should be aiming for strategic invulnerability: Anantha Nageswaran

3:33 PM

Fiscal numbers are on track to achieve the 4% gross fiscal deficit ratio: CEA Nageswaran

“I expect the Indian economy -- and the rupee in particular -- to remain stable and even strengthen in the coming years, compared to the average depreciation trend seen against the US dollar over the past 30 years,” said CEA Anantha Nageswaran.

3:28 PM

GST simplification will give a boost to investment too: CEA Nageswaran

More recently, there has been a considerable revision of the rates in GST simplification, elimination of slabs, process, simplification, etc, and all of which are beginning to pay off in terms of a boost to consumption, says CEA Anantha Nageswaran. Most of us see this as a boost to consumption only, which is true at the as a first cut effort, but it is a boost to investment also, because most industrialists want demand visibility before they come back, Nageswaran added.

3:22 PM

India can go beyond 6.8% growth rate this financial year: CEA Anantha Nageswaran

We feel that this financial year, we will be somewhere to the north of our range of 6.8 to even above 6.8% in terms of GDP growth rate, says Chief Economic Advisor Anantha Nageswaran.

2:11 PM

Govt to decide on inflation framework after RBI input, says Gupta

“A healthy majority has suggested that we maintain the current framework, with the CPI headline serving as the appropriate price inflation target. We have also been reminded that a revised CPI series is expected and, hopefully, future revisions will not take as long as this one did. From what I understand, the process involves sharing these recommendations with the government, which will then take a call on the framework,” said Poonam Gupta.

2:02 PM

India’s growth potential higher than 6.8%, says RBI Deputy Governor Poonam Gupta

“We are growing well at 6.5 per cent, and our forecast for this year is 6.8 per cent. But that is not India’s destination, nor its potential or aspiration. There is still room for growth, as we have indicated in our monetary policy statement. When and by how much remains to be seen,” said Poonam Gupta, deputy governor, Reserve Bank of India.

1:52 PM

India needs bigger, more global-scale banks for 2047 goal: Banking leaders