MAM
Havas group rebrands; Euro RSCG now known as Havas Worldwide
MUMBAI: France based communications network Havas has implemented a new business model with an integrated structure with the aim of placing digital at the core of all its activities and agencies, unifying creative and media assets and strengthening the visibility of its global brand by renaming its largest network.
Effective from today all Euro RSCG agencies have been renamed Havas Worldwide (316 offices in 75 countries, including the Euro RSCG, Euro RSCG Life, Euro RSCG 4D and Euro RSCG WW PR brands). This does not translate into any change in leadership.
Euro RSCG was formed in 1991 by the merger of two French agencies Eurocom and RSCG, both formed in the mid-1970s.
Under the new brand structure, the Havas group consists of two main brands – Havas Media and Havas Creative. The former entity will include all of the group‘s media agencies while Havas Creative will include Havas Worldwide (previously known as Euro RSCG) and Arnold Worldwide (16 agencies in 15 countries across five continents) along with other communications agencies.
The rebranding also involves the creation of a new brand Havas Digital Group which will be an umbrella brand operating across media and creative. It will not be a new network pr operational division, but purely a brand. The move comes as a step towards proving the group‘s commitment towards digital.
Havas CEO David Jones said, “A decade ago, we set ourselves apart by being the first major communication holding company to place digital at the core of all our agencies around the world. Our industry doesn‘t make it easy for clients. They are the ones who have to do the hard job of sifting through big bureaucratic holding companies to try to get a variety of different companies, cultures and P&L‘s to work together; to try to get creative, media and digital to collaborate. With this name change and with the moving together of our creative and media companies in Paris and New York, we‘re aiming to reinforce a key competitive advantage of Havas – that we‘re the most integrated of all of the communications groups with the simplest structure that can offer our clients a powerful combination of creative excellence, digital expertise, scale, agility and innovation.”
Jones added, “Today with the rebranding we‘re making a small change, but it‘s one we want to use as a catalyst for driving big change through Havas and the broader industry.”
The Havas Media brand, as well as its network names (MPG, Arena Media Communications, Havas Digital and Havas Sports & Entertainment) remains unchanged. Havas Media will reveal a new visual identity at the beginning of 2013.
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.
