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India’s fastest-growing credit-on-UPI platform Kiwi appoints Sumeet Basrani as chief business officer
Fintech shifts from early adoption to mass distribution through bank and ecosystem partnerships
BENGALURU: Kiwi is gearing up for its next growth sprint, bringing in Sumeet Basrani as chief business officer to turn early traction into mass-market scale. The credit-on-UPI platform is now pivoting from product adoption to aggressive distribution, betting on deeper bank and ecosystem tie-ups to widen access.
Basrani arrives with over 15 years in cards and payments, with stints at CRED, OneCard, ICICI Bank and Visa. At CRED, he helped build and scale partnerships across credit cards, payments and lending with banks and financial institutions, experience Kiwi is now counting on as it looks to expand its footprint.
The mandate is clear: take credit on UPI from a promising innovation to a mass product. Kiwi is aiming to unlock access for millions, aligning its push with shifting consumer behaviour while moving from product strength to market scale.
“This is a natural next step for us. As we grow, it becomes important to have leadership that can translate market shifts into clear business and product decisions. Sumeet understands how banks, networks and consumer platforms intersect, which is exactly where Kiwi is building. His experience in scaling businesses will be critical as we take credit on UPI to a much larger audience,” Siddharth Mehta, co-founder, Kiwi, said.
Basrani sees a market on the cusp. “Credit on UPI is at an inflection point; early adoption is visible, but the real opportunity lies in embedding credit seamlessly into everyday payments, while expanding access to credit. Kiwi is well-positioned to lead this shift, and the next phase will be about scaling distribution and unlocking new use cases for credit,” he said.
Founded as Gokiwi Tech, the startup is positioning itself at the centre of India’s evolving payments stack. It was the first to offer credit on UPI via RuPay cards in partnership with banks, and has already issued over 2 lakh such cards in under two years. The ambition is blunt: become the leading issuer of RuPay credit cards by 2026.
With leadership muscle added and distribution in focus, Kiwi is no longer just testing the waters. It is diving headfirst into the race to own credit on UPI at scale.
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Havas reports solid Q1 2026 with 2.5 per cent organic net revenue growth
Advertising group maintains positive momentum and confirms full-year guidance.
MUMBAI: Havas has started 2026 on a strong note proving that even in uncertain times, its converged model continues to deliver. The global advertising and communications group reported net revenue of €638 million for the first quarter of 2026, representing organic growth of +2.5 per cent compared to the same period last year. This performance was driven particularly by a robust +7.4 per cent organic growth in the United States.
Total revenue for the quarter reached €667 million, with organic growth of +2.8 per cent. Recent acquisitions contributed a positive scope impact of +1.7 per cent, while foreign exchange movements had a negative impact of -5.8 per cent, mainly due to the US dollar and British pound.
Europe, which accounts for 50 per cent of net revenue, delivered +1.1 per cent organic growth, supported by a good performance in France. North America (36 per cent of net revenue) led the way with +7.4 per cent growth, thanks to strong contributions from both Havas Creative and Havas Media. APAC & Africa (8 per cent) saw a decline of -6.2 per cent, while Latin America (6 per cent) remained nearly stable at -0.6 per cent.
Havas chairman and CEO Yannick Bolloré said, “Havas has started 2026 on a solid footing, continuing its momentum and delivering organic growth in net revenue of +2.5 per cent. This performance, in line with our full-year 2026 guidance, was driven in particular by continued strength in the US.”
The group also continued its bolt-on acquisition strategy, acquiring majority stakes in four agencies during the quarter: Acento Public Affairs (Spain), Ctrl Digital (Sweden), Styleheads (Germany), and Eyesight (France).
Havas maintained its strong creative reputation, ranking as a top holding company in the WARC Creative 100 for the sixth consecutive year, with three agencies BETC, Havas Paris, and Havas India placing in the Top 50.
Looking ahead, Havas confirmed its 2026 guidance: organic net revenue growth between +2.0 per cent and +3.0 per cent, adjusted EBIT margin between 13.2 per cent and 13.5 per cent, and a dividend payout ratio of around 40 per cent. The group also reiterated its medium-term targets for 2028.
Despite ongoing macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, Havas enters the rest of the year with solid fundamentals and confidence in its ability to deliver sustainable, profitable growth.
In a challenging environment, Havas is proving that its integrated, client-centric model remains resilient delivering steady growth while continuing to invest in creativity and innovation. The first quarter results suggest the group is well-positioned to navigate the year ahead with confidence.
