Brands
Balram Bhagat joins The Wealth Company to lead pensions and products
MUMBAI: The Wealth Company, part of the Pantomath Group, has appointed Balram Bhagat as managing partner for products and pension, marking a bold step in its expansion plans.
A veteran of India’s pension and mutual fund industry, Bhagat brings over 30 years of experience in building financial institutions, promoting pension adoption, and advancing financial inclusion. He is set to strengthen the company’s leadership, enhance its product suite, and drive scalable growth across investment offerings and distribution channels.
Bhagat was the founding CEO of UTI Pension Fund, where he helped the organisation grow into India’s third-largest pension fund, managing over Rs 4,00,000 crore under the National Pension System. His leadership won the fund numerous national and international awards for innovation, governance, and excellence in pension management.
Prior to UTI Pension Fund, Bhagat held key positions at UTI Mutual Fund, including head of product sales, championing socially focused schemes and micro-pension initiatives. He also led state-level financial inclusion programmes, such as the Mukhyamantri Kanya Suraksha Yojna, broadening access to financial literacy and savings products in underserved communities.
The Wealth Company founder, MD, and CEO Madhu Lunawat said, “Balram Bhagat is a pioneering force in India’s pension ecosystem. His strategic vision, deep knowledge of product innovation, and track record in scaling institutions will be invaluable as we expand our footprint in the retirement space.”
Bhagat added, “I am thrilled to join The Wealth Company at this transformative stage. It is inspiring to see a young and dynamic founder institutionalising asset management with fresh ideas. My focus will be on creating scalable, purpose-driven solutions that advance financial inclusion and generate long-term value for stakeholders.”
Bhagat holds an M.A. in Economics, an MBA in Marketing, and is CAIIB-qualified. He currently serves as an independent director on the board of LIC Mutual Fund and has previously been a member of PFRDA’s Pension Advisory Committee.
Brands
Faber-Castell India appoints Sunaina Haldar as director – marketing
With stints at Tata, SleepyCat and ADF Foods under her belt, Haldar is primed to redraw Faber-Castell’s brand story
MUMBAI: Faber-Castell India has poached Sunaina Haldar from ADF Foods, appointing her director – marketing as the German stationery brand looks to muscle up in a category that is rapidly reinventing itself around creativity and self-expression.
Haldar hit the ground running. “My first couple of weeks have been incredibly energising, understanding consumers, visiting markets, engaging with retailers and immersing myself into the world of Faber-Castell Group,” she said.
She arrives with considerable firepower. At ADF Foods, Haldar ran marketing across India and international markets for a portfolio spanning Ashoka, Aeroplane, Camel and ADF Soul. Before that, she was vice-president – marketing at direct-to-consumer mattress brand SleepyCat, where she helmed brand, content and performance marketing. Her résumé also includes a stint leading marketing, new product development and CRM for Tata SmartFoodz at Tata Consumer Products, no small proving ground.
Between corporate roles, Haldar also operated as a fractional CMO for early-stage startups, building marketing strategy and operational structures from scratch, a signal that she knows how to move fast with limited resources.
With 18 years straddling FMCG, D2C and the startup world, Haldar now takes the reins at a brand that has long owned the classroom but is clearly hungry for the living room. In a stationery market where the pencil has become a lifestyle statement, Faber-Castell has picked someone who knows exactly how to sell that story.
