MAM
Ogilvy ranked No 1 ad agency; Mindshare leads media flock
MUMBAI: With recession creating roadblock across every economy and with consumer pockets going hollow, year 2009 was the most unfurnished testing ground for the Indian advertising industry, battling every step to survive just right. And thus, while few have dived into the submarines underwater, few did emerge as winners of their existence.
According to the Brand Equity Ad Agency Reckoner (BEAR) review for 2009, Ogilvy has emerged as the leader of the creative agency flock in the top ten survey that the country has best.
Following next is JWT, while Lowe and Mudra occupy the third and fourth spot respectively. Prasoon Joshi’s McCann Ericson stands tall at the fifth spot, while Rediffusion YR ranks sixth.
Meanwhile, as far as media agencies go, Mindshare has been crowned as first in the lot.
Lintas Media Group comes second while Sam Balsara’s Madison is ranked third.
BEAR claims that a total of 549 interviews were conducted, spread across six centres – Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. The maximum numbers were conducted in Mumbai (35 per cent), followed by Delhi (26 per cent) to account for the large population of media professionals in these cities.
Ad agencies:
Ogilvy
JWT
Lowe
Mudra
McCann Erickson
Rediffusion YR
Leo Burnett
Contract
RK Swamy BBDO
DraftFCB
Media agencies:
Mindshare
Lintas Media Group
Madison
Percept Media
Maxus
Mudra Max
Starcom
Lodestar Universal
ZenithOptimedia
Optimum Media Direction
MUMBAI: In India’s fast-moving payments race, Visa has just swiped in a new leader. The company has named Suresh Sethi as its India country head, marking a key leadership shift as it sharpens its focus on digital payments growth in the market. Sethi steps into the role following his recent exit from Protean eGov Technologies, where he served as chief executive officer. He succeeds Sandeep Ghosh, who has moved on after more than four years at Visa to pursue an external opportunity.
The appointment comes at a time when Visa is doubling down on its expansion strategy across India and the wider region, deepening partnerships and accelerating adoption in an increasingly competitive digital payments ecosystem.
Sethi brings with him a broad, cross-market perspective shaped by decades of experience across corporate banking, retail financial services, mobile money and large-scale government technology initiatives. He began his career at Citigroup, where he spent 14 years working across India, Africa, South America and the United States, focusing on transaction banking services within the corporate bank.
His appointment signals a blend of institutional experience and market familiarity qualities that could prove critical as Visa navigates a landscape where fintech innovation, regulatory evolution and consumer adoption are all accelerating at once.
As digital payments in India continue to scale rapidly, the leadership change underscores a simple reality, in a market where every tap, scan and swipe counts, who leads the charge can matter just as much as the technology itself.
