Brands
Equirus finance adds Mukesh Malik to its board
MUMBAI: Equirus Group has moved quickly to shore up governance at its newly minted lending arm, appointing Mukesh Malik as independent director on the board of Equirus finance, its non-deposit-taking non-banking financial company. The hire brings heavyweight banking experience to an NBFC with big ambitions—and little time to waste.
Malik arrives with more than three decades in global banking and financial services, spanning senior roles at Bank of America, ABN AMRO Bank, Citibank and Aditya Birla Capital. His track record runs deep across retail and corporate banking, technology and digital transformation, risk management and regulatory compliance, both in India and overseas. In short, a steady hand for a business that wants to scale fast, but safely.
A chartered accountant by training, Malik is a graduate of Shri Ram College of Commerce, New Delhi. He is widely regarded for building and running large, complex financial-services operations, and for marrying technology with risk discipline—skills that NBFCs ignore at their peril.
“We are delighted to welcome Mukesh Malik to the board of Equirus finance,” said Ajit Deshmukh, managing director of Equirus. “His exceptional track record in building and scaling financial-services operations, coupled with his deep understanding of NBFC businesses, technology infrastructure and regulatory frameworks, makes him an invaluable addition to our board. His strategic counsel will be instrumental as we build Equirus finance into a leading wealth-focused NBFC with the highest standards of governance, risk management and client service.”
Malik, for his part, sounded equally bullish. “I am pleased to join the board of Equirus finance at an important phase of its strategic journey,” he said. “Equirus has built a strong reputation across investment banking, institutional equities and wealth, and the NBFC presents a natural extension of this platform. I look forward to working closely with the board and management to help build a scalable, well-governed lending franchise, anchored in prudent risk management, robust technology and a sharp focus on client outcomes.”
The opportunity is sizeable. Equirus finance plans to offer bespoke, secured lending products including loan against securities, ESOP financing, market-linked debentures, structured finance and other customised solutions aimed squarely at high-net-worth individuals, family offices and promoters. Management is targeting a high-quality loan book of Rs 3,000 crore over the next few years, underpinned by a tight compliance and risk framework.
The NBFC is also expected to dovetail closely with Equirus wealth, creating what the group calls a unified “One Equirus” experience—part advisory, part balance-sheet, all cross-sell.
Equirus Group, founded 18 years ago, operates across investment banking, institutional securities, wealth and asset management, HNI broking, NBFC and insurance. It has advised on more than 315 transactions across M&A, private equity, IPOs, QIPs, rights issues and structured finance, raising over $15bn in the process.
With Malik on board, Equirus finance is signalling intent: grow fast, govern hard—and play the long game.
Brands
Dabur buys minority stake in Ras Beauty for Rs 60 crore
Dabur Ventures deal backs fast-growing luxury skincare brand
MUMBAI: Dabur India Limited has dipped into the world of luxury skincare, signing a definitive agreement to acquire a minority stake in Ras Beauty Private Limited for Rs 60 crore. The investment marks the first bet from Dabur Ventures, the FMCG major’s Rs 500 crore platform set up in October 2025 to back high-potential, new-age direct-to-consumer brands.
Founded in Raipur by Shubhika Jain, her sister Suramya Jain and their mother Sangeeta Jain, Ras Beauty has grown from a family-led passion project into a fast-scaling “Farm-to-Face” skincare label. Its range of face elixirs, serums and moisturisers blends essential oils with nature-derived actives, striking a balance between botanical purity and laboratory precision.
The numbers tell their own story. Ras has clocked a three-year Cagr of around 75 per cent and an annual run rate of approximately Rs 100 crore, all while maintaining strong gross margins. That growth has been fuelled by a digital-first approach, in-house R&D and manufacturing, and a sharp focus on clean, sustainable sourcing.
Dabur India executive director and group head corporate strategy Abhinav Dhall, said the company was drawn to Ras’s distinct positioning at the intersection of nature, science and luxury. He added that the premium beauty segment is poised for robust expansion over the coming decade, and that Ras is well placed to capture that opportunity.
For Ras, the partnership is as much about scale as it is about shared philosophy. Co-founder and CEO Shubhika Jain said Dabur’s 141-year legacy of building trusted, purpose-led brands makes it a natural ally. The capital infusion, she noted, will help accelerate the brand’s omnichannel footprint, deepen research capabilities and invest in team and brand building, with an eye on establishing Ras as a leading Indian luxury skincare name both domestically and overseas.
With this move, Dabur is not just investing in a skincare label. It is placing an early wager on India’s growing appetite for premium, conscious beauty, and signalling that heritage FMCG players are ready to play in the new-age D2C arena.
