MAM
OMD Mudramax launches AI-backed media buying tool Bingo
Mumbai: OMD Mudramax, part of the DDB Mudra Group, has launched Bingo, India’s first outcome-based, AI-backed media buying tool focused on emerging brands and enterprise clients. According to a statement, Bingo took approximately 18 months from conceptualisation to launch and two patents have been filed in India and under the PCT which are currently under examination.
Bingo helps marketers achieve their brand and sales goals by identifying platforms and optimising media spends in a transparent and open manner without human intervention, said the company in a statement on Friday. “Bingo is an Agency Trading Desk (ATD) that integrates all downstream channels including but not limited to media buying platforms such as Google Ads, Facebook, Yahoo and other DSPs,” it added.
“The ability to buy media in an optimised and agnostic manner by setting clear objectives is what this product intends to achieve,” commented DDB Mudra Group country head and managing partner-integrated media Rammohan Sundaram. “As an advertising agency, we are also looking at acting as technology enablers and partners for our clients. Media optimization and transparency aren’t as esoteric as they sound but require technological intervention. We want to provide those capabilities to clients and marketers in the simplest manner.”
Like the conductor of an orchestra, Bingo acts as a single control layer that keeps all other buying platforms in sync to deliver media goals. The buying platforms are connected by ready-made marketing APIs through which audience and campaign data flow in. Over a period of time, this historical data is used to optimise campaigns, maximise performance, identify problems and suggest changes to keep the campaign on track for objective delivery.
The greatest advantage that Bingo offers marketers is a transparent big picture that delivers the best ROI for a business’ media budget. With this tool, marketers have complete transparency over the buying process with no hidden fees and markups, said the statement.
It offers agnostic buying through a unified platform, solving the problem of having silos for a multichannel approach. Its unbiased KPI-based buying funnels the budget towards a platform solely based on performance data. Campaign optimisation recommendations can be implemented from a single dashboard to achieve the desired outcome, it further said.
“Merely talking about transparency in the Ad Tech ecosystem is not enough. The entire demand-supply chain is lopsided towards closed ecosystems, which aren’t exactly built in a manner to facilitate transparency, be that pricing or audience data,” said DDB Mudra Group partner – digital and lead programmatic Abhishek Sharma. “It’s time to wrest control and place it exactly where it belongs, with the Advertiser, in a ubiquitous manner. This product is a sincere step in the direction of demand-side innovation and transparency.”
Brands
YES Bank hands the keys to SBI veteran Vinay Tonse as it bets on a new era
Former SBI managing director appointed as YES Bank’s new MD and CEO
MUMBAI: YES Bank is done rebuilding. Now it wants to grow. The private sector lender has appointed Vinay Muralidhar Tonse as managing director and chief executive officer-designate, with RBI approval secured and a start date of April 6, 2026 confirmed. The three-year term signals the bank’s intent to shift gears from crisis recovery to full-throttle expansion.
Tonse, 60, is no stranger to scale. Most recently managing director at State Bank of India, he oversaw a retail book of roughly $800bn in deposits and advances, one of the largest in the country. Before that, he ran SBI Mutual Fund from August 2020 to December 2022, a stint that saw assets under management surge from Rs 4.32 lakh crore to Rs 7.32 lakh crore across market cycles. Add stints in Singapore and four years leading SBI’s overseas operations in Osaka, and the incoming chief arrives with a genuinely global CV.
His academic grounding is equally solid: a commerce degree from St Joseph’s College of Commerce, Bengaluru, and a master’s in commerce from Bangalore University.
The appointment follows an extensive search and evaluation process by the bank’s Nomination and Remuneration Committee. NRC chairperson Nandita Gurjar said the committee unanimously backed Tonse, citing his leadership track record, governance credentials and ability to drive the bank’s next phase of transformation.
Non-executive chairman Rama Subramaniam Gandhi was unequivocal. “I am certain that Vinay Tonse, with his vast experience as a senior banker, will propel YES Bank to its next phase of growth,” Gandhi said, adding that the bank remains focused on strengthening its retail and corporate banking franchises and expanding its branch network.
Rajeev Kannan, non-executive director and senior executive at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, the bank’s largest shareholder, said Tonse’s experience across retail, corporate banking, global markets and asset management positioned him well to lead the lender. SMBC said it looks forward to working with Tonse and the board as YES Bank pursues its ambition of becoming a top-tier private sector lender anchored in strong governance and sustainable growth.
Tonse succeeds Prashant Kumar, who took the helm in March 2020 when YES Bank was in freefall following a severe financial crisis, and spent six years painstakingly stabilising the institution, rebuilding governance and restoring operational scale. Gandhi was generous: “The bank remains indebted to Prashant Kumar, who is responsible for much of what a strong financial powerhouse YES Bank is today.”
Tonse, for his part, struck a purposeful note. “Together with the board and my colleagues, I remain deeply committed to creating long-term value for all our stakeholders,” he said, pledging to build on Kumar’s foundation guided by his personal motto: Make A Difference.
Beyond the balance sheet, Tonse played cricket at college and club level and represented Karnataka in archery at the national championships — sports he credits with teaching him teamwork, situational leadership, discipline and focus. In quieter moments, he reaches for retro Kannada music, classic Hindi songs, and the crooning of Engelbert Humperdinck, Mukesh and Kishore Kumar.
YES Bank has its steady-handed rebuilder in Kumar to thank for survival. Now it has a scale-obsessed growth banker at the wheel. The next chapter starts April 6.
