MAM
AAAI to Celebrate Platinum Jubilee in 2020
MUMBAI: Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) is proud to celebrate its Platinum Jubilee year during 2020.
The premier national organisation for advertising agencies in India was set up in Calcutta in 1945. Four agencies from Calcutta – D J Keymer, General Advertising Agency, J Walter Thomson Co. and Press Syndicate along with three agencies from Bombay – Adarts, Lintas and National Advertising Service were the founder members of the AAAI.
Over the years, AAAI has stood the test of time and strengthened relations with the government and various industry bodies viz Indian Newspaper Society (INS), Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF), Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA), Indian Outdoor Advertising Association (IOAA), Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), Association of Radio Operators in India (AROI) et al.
Initially only Full-Service Agencies were members of AAAI and in 2008 AAAI opened its doors to Media and Creative Agencies as well. Recently it has opened its membership to Digital agencies and very soon it will open its membership to PR, Events and Outdoor agencies too.
Elaborating on this AAAI President, Ashish Bhasin said “AAAI was formed to promote advertising as a professional activity. From its humble beginnings with a mere seven agencies, AAAI has grown manifold to its present strength of more than 100 Advertising Agencies, who contribute more than 80% of the total ad budget of the country. Initially the total size of the advertising industry was Rs 5 crore, the advertising industry stands at over Rs. 70,000 crores in 2019 and is expected to grow up to Rs 1 trillion in the next few years. I am delighted to announce that the Executive Committee of AAAI has unanimously chosen Sam Balsara as Chairman of the Platinum Jubilee Celebrations Committee.”
In this connection Sam Balsara commented, “We hope to mount Celebrations in keeping with this momentous occasion. I look forward to the cooperation of my Colleagues in the Industry to make this a memorable occasion.”
The Platinum Jubilee Celebrations Committee will soon announce more details to celebrate AAAI’s 75th Anniversary during 2020.
The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) is the official, national organization of advertising agencies, formed in 1945, to promote their interests. The Association promotes professionalism, through its founding principles, which uphold sound business practices between advertisers and advertising agencies and the various media. The AAAI today is truly representative, with a very large number of small, medium and large-sized agencies as its members, who together account for almost 80% of the advertising business placed in the country. It is thus recognized as the apex body of and the spokesperson for the advertising industry at all forums – advertisers and media owners and their associations and Government.
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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.
