MAM
Concept PR appoints Monish Ghatalia as head of digital strategy
Mumbai: Concept Communication Group-backed Concept Public Relations on Monday announced the appointment of Monish Ghatalia as head of digital strategy.
Ghatalia specialises in digital marketing, deep digital transformation and digital PR given his past experience and knowledge of communications, data analytics, technology and brands. He is part of the senior leadership team at Concept. Currently, he is working across all key clients of Concept Group to scale their presence using a synergistic approach between PR and digital communications.
“In the digital age, the convergence of public relations, traditional media and social media is causing lines to be crossed or at least blurred. Concept PR is working towards creating better outcomes for our clients by constantly adopting the best of digital practices,” said Concept PR director and CEO Ashish Jalan. “Ghatalia’s induction to the team and his domain knowledge adds to our resolve to help businesses drive the value that this convergence has to offer. His role will be critical in this growth story and we welcome him to be a part of this dynamic team.”
“Ghatalia has a stellar track record and his astute business acumen in identifying and converting digital marketing opportunities into unique creative solutions will help unlock value for our clients,” stated Concept Group chairman and MD Vivek Suchanti. “We are already seeing the results with his experience in driving actionable, measurable digital outcomes for many of our client mandates.”
“I have followed Concept’s growth since my first job at the age of 17 at Concept,” said Ghatalia. “All these years, I have been an entrepreneur and marketing expert, but now I am back to where I learned everything. Bringing digital transformation, building brands digitally and digital growth hacks that drive customer acquisition – are things that drive me. It is deeply satisfying and I am looking forward to it.”
Brands
Reserve Bank of India cancels Paytm Payments Bank licence
Central bank cites compliance failures; curbs tighten as wind-up looms
MUMBAI: India’s banking watchdog delivered its sharpest blow yet to Paytm Payments Bank, cancelling its licence and effectively ending its ability to operate as a bank under the law.
The Reserve Bank of India said the entity can no longer conduct banking business under the Banking Regulation Act, citing concerns that its affairs were not being run in the interest of depositors or the public and that it had failed to meet licence conditions.
The move escalates a crackdown that has been building for months. The bank had already been barred from onboarding new customers since March 11, 2022, and later faced restrictions on deposits, credit and wallet top-ups. In January 2024, the central bank ordered it to stop accepting fresh deposits, pointing to persistent non-compliance, including lapses in customer due diligence, use of funds and technology systems.
Operationally, the bank is now on a tight leash. It may process withdrawals of existing deposits and facilitate loan referrals through banking correspondents, but it cannot take fresh deposits.
The central bank said it would apply to the high court to wind up the bank.
Paytm sought to ringfence the fallout. In a regulatory filing, it said the licence cancellation applies to Paytm Payments Bank Limited, a separate entity, and should not be attributed to One 97 Communications. It added that there is no exposure or material business arrangement with the bank and that it operates independently, without Paytm’s board or management involvement.
“As informed earlier, Paytm (One 97 Communications Limited) and its services, which have been operating without interruption, will continue to operate uninterrupted. These include the Paytm app, Paytm UPI, Paytm Gold and all other services offered by its subsidiaries and associated companies,” the company said.
The distinction may reassure users of the app ecosystem, but the regulator’s verdict is unequivocal. After years of warnings, caps and curbs, the payments bank experiment at Paytm is being shut down—decisively, and with little room left to manoeuvre.
