MAM
Prasanth Kumar re-elected as president of AAAI
Mumbai: GroupM Media (India) CEO – South Asia Prasanth Kumar was re-elected as the President of Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) for the year 2024-25 at its Annual General Body Meeting held in Mumbai.
Havas India, South East & North Asia (Japan & South Korea) group CEO Rana Barua was unanimously elected Vice-President of the Association.
Other elected members of the Board in alphabetical order are:
Madison Communications Pvt Ltd Sam Balsara Madison
Everest Brand Solutions Pvt Ltd Tanya Goyal
BEI Confluence Communication Ltd Tapas Gupta
Matrix Publicities and Media India Pvt Ltd Vishandas Hardasani
Havas Media India Pvt Ltd Mohit Joshi
Innocean Worldwide Communications Pvt Ltd Santosh Kumar
Crayons Advertising Pvt Ltd Kunal Lalani
Kinnect Pvt Ltd Rohan Mehta
Advertising Works Pvt Ltd, Cochin Chandramouli Muthu Maitri
Platinum Advertising Pvt Ltd Vikram Sakhuja
Standard Publicity Pvt Ltd Kalyan Sarkar
Advertising Pvt Ltd, Hyderabad, K Srinivas Sloka
Immediate past president, Anupriya Acharya will be the ex-officio member of the AAAI Board for 2024-25.
On this occasion, Kumar said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust AAAI members have placed in me for another term as President of this distinguished institution. Our commitment to championing innovation, upholding the highest standards of planning and creativity, and building on the momentum we have achieved remains unwavering. Our goal is to provide steadfast support to the entire ecosystem, helping the industry navigate challenges and seize new opportunities. With the exceptional team of AAAI members and the broader ecosystem, I am confident we will continue to shape the future of our industry to greater heights.”
Prasanth Kumar is a GroupM veteran having worked in the organisation in various capacities for over 20 years in his overall experience of over two decades in advertising. He has also worked at Pepsi, The Hindu, The Media Edge & McCann Erickson prior to joining GroupM. He has also been Vice President of AAAI during 2020-22.
On his appointment as vice president, Barua said “Being appointed Vice President of AAAI for the third time is both an honor and a testament to the trust the industry places in me. I look forward to continuing our efforts in driving innovation and excellence in advertising while supporting the growth of this dynamic industry.”
Some experienced persons will be inducted on the Board of AAAI and more positions filled up later on to make the Board broad-based.
Brands
Jio Financial Services posts Rs 1,560 crore FY26 profit
Revenue rises to Rs 3,513 crore as investments and lending scale up.
MUMBAI: If money makes the world go round, Jio Financial Services Limited is quietly spinning a much bigger wheel. The Reliance-backed financial arm reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 1,560.9 crore for FY26, slightly lower than Rs 1,612.6 crore in FY25, even as revenue growth gathered pace.
Total revenue from operations rose sharply to Rs 3,513.3 crore in FY26 from Rs 2,042.9 crore a year earlier, driven largely by a surge in interest income, which more than doubled to Rs 1,901.9 crore from Rs 852.5 crore. Fee and commission income also saw a significant jump to Rs 597 crore, compared to Rs 155.2 crore in FY25, reflecting expanding financial services activity.
For the March quarter, profit stood at Rs 272.2 crore, broadly flat compared to Rs 269 crore in the same period last year. Quarterly revenue from operations climbed to Rs 1,018.5 crore, up from Rs 493.2 crore year-on-year, signalling steady momentum in core income streams.
Expenses, however, moved in tandem with growth. Total costs nearly quadrupled to Rs 1,982.9 crore in FY26 from Rs 524.8 crore in FY25, with finance costs alone rising to Rs 745.1 crore from just Rs 7.7 crore a year earlier, reflecting increased borrowing and scale of operations. Employee expenses also grew to Rs 387.3 crore, while other expenses expanded to Rs 755 crore.
Profit before tax stood at Rs 1,911.7 crore for the year, slightly below Rs 1,946.9 crore in FY25. After accounting for a total tax outgo of Rs 350.8 crore, the company reported its final net profit figure.
Beyond the income statement, the balance sheet tells a story of rapid expansion. Total assets surged to Rs 1,63,497 crore as of March 31, 2026, up from Rs 1,33,510 crore a year earlier. Investments alone stood at Rs 1,33,088.7 crore, underscoring the company’s strong focus on treasury and financial asset growth.
However, the year also saw sharp volatility in other comprehensive income, which swung to a loss of Rs 16,028.3 crore, largely driven by fair value changes in equity instruments. This dragged total comprehensive income for FY26 to a negative Rs 15,756.1 crore, compared to a positive Rs 14,870 crore in FY25.
On the capital front, the company’s paid-up equity share capital remained steady at Rs 6,353.1 crore, with other equity rising to Rs 1,27,500.5 crore.
The numbers reflect a business in transition scaling rapidly across lending, investments and fee-based services, but also navigating the volatility that comes with mark-to-market movements in financial assets. In other words, while the top line is accelerating, the fine print still carries a few swings.
