MAM
Kellogg onboards Prashant Peres as MD, India & South Asia
Mumbai: Breakfast cereals manufacturer Kellogg India has announced the onboarding of Prashant Peres as managing director for the India and South Asia markets. In this role, Peres will be based in Mumbai and steer the business forward in its endeavour to serve consumers with its wide array of food offerings.
Mohit Anand, who joined Kellogg in 2017 and served as managing director, India & South Asia, has been elevated to the role of general manager, snacks portfolio for Kellogg AMEA (Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa), based in Singapore.
“We are pleased to appoint Prashant Peres to lead the Kellogg South Asia business. We believe that his strong experience will help build on our sustainable growth momentum in the market, develop our talent, and bring more food innovations to our consumers,” said Kellogg AMEA president Shumit Kapoor. “Mohit is an excellent leader with rich India and Asia experiences gathered over the years. I am excited to have him join us here in Singapore and unlock the potential of the snacks category across markets.”
Peres is an FMCG industry veteran, with nearly 25 years of experience in the foods, snacks, beverages and personal care categories across diverse markets in Asia, ANZ and Africa. He joins Kellogg from Mondelez International where he led the Indonesia business as president and MD. Prior to this, he led the chocolate business for Mondelez in India.
Prior to that, Peres was with Unilever as vice president for foods, South Asia. His earlier stints include several senior roles in sales and marketing at Unilever in the South Asia region, Turkey, Africa, Middle East, South East Asia, and China.
“The challenge of leading a business in India is always thrilling, but more so when it is a legacy brand such as Kellogg,” said Prashant Peres. “I am looking forward to step into this role and play a part in augmenting Kellogg’s commitment to serving its consumers and communities with its wide range of cereals and snacks. We are in an exciting place as a business with a fantastic opportunity for nutritious food offerings before us. I am looking forward to growing it further along with the passionate team at Kellogg South Asia.”
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.
