Brands
KISNA strengthens finance muscle as retail expansion gathers pace
Mumbai: KISNA Diamond and Gold Jewellery has bolstered its leadership bench with the appointment of Rajeev Toshniwal as chief financial officer, sharpening its financial firepower as the brand scales its retail footprint across Bharat.
The appointment comes as KISNA, the flagship jewellery brand of the Hari Krishna Group, accelerates expansion through an asset-light model, deepening its presence in tier 2, tier 3 and emerging markets while strengthening its omnichannel play.
In his new role, Toshniwal will oversee finance, strategy, compliance and governance, working closely with the leadership team to drive disciplined growth, tighten operational efficiencies and reinforce financial systems as the brand expands nationally.
Toshniwal brings over two decades of experience across retail, FMCG and apparel, with senior finance leadership roles at Noble Group SA, Think9 Consumer, Raymond and the Future Group. A chartered accountant and company secretary, he has led finance functions across large, multi-location retail networks, focusing on profitability, governance and scale.
KISNA’s growth strategy has been anchored in rapid retail rollout through franchise and shop-in-shop formats, supported by a strengthening omnichannel framework that blends digital discovery with offline inventory and assisted commerce. Alongside expansion, the brand continues to invest in design-led innovation, accessible diamond jewellery and transparent customer policies aimed at building long-term trust.
Commenting on the appointment, Ghanshyam Dholakia, founder and managing director, Hari Krishna Group and KISNA Diamond and Gold Jewellery, said the move reflects the brand’s focus on building leadership depth as it scales nationwide.
Parag Shah, ceo, KISNA Diamond and Gold Jewellery, said the brand is at a key inflection point, with rising demand for design-led and accessible diamond jewellery across Bharat.
Toshniwal said KISNA’s strong foundation in trust and accessibility presents a compelling opportunity to strengthen financial systems and support profitable growth.
With scale accelerating and systems tightening, KISNA is polishing its balance sheet for the next leg of its retail sprint.
Brands
Google nears Nvidia in race for world’s most valuable company
Market cap gap narrows as Google hits $4.65 trillion, Nvidia at $4.86 trillion.
MUMBAI: In the AI gold rush, even the giants are sprinting and Google is suddenly gaining ground. Google is rapidly closing in on Nvidia in the race to become the world’s most valuable publicly listed company, with the gap between the two narrowing sharply amid diverging stock momentum. The tech giant’s market capitalisation has surged to around $4.65 trillion, following a more than 140 per cent rise in its share price over the past year.
That rally has added over $2.6 trillion in value in just 12 months, including nearly $900 billion since January alone. Its stock recently hovered at $381.80, slipping marginally by 0.04 per cent, but still reflecting strong upward momentum.
Nvidia, meanwhile, continues to hold the top spot with a valuation of approximately $4.86 trillion. The chipmaker crossed the $5 trillion milestone in October last year and peaked at $5.27 trillion on 27 April. However, its shares have largely plateaued over the past six months, rising just 0.2 per cent recently to $199.99.
The contrast in trajectories is striking. While Nvidia has seen relatively flat movement, Google has gained over 36 per cent in the same six-month period. Barron’s estimates suggest that if current trends hold, the valuation gap could shrink to as little as $190 million by the time Nvidia reports its first-quarter earnings on 20 May.
Daily momentum paints a similar picture. Nvidia recorded average daily gains of about 0.66 per cent last month, compared to Google’s stronger 1.42 per cent, an edge that could prove decisive in the short term.
Driving Google’s resurgence is its aggressive push into artificial intelligence across its ecosystem, from search and YouTube to cloud computing. The company has already invested $144 billion in capital expenditure over the past two years and plans to deploy a further $490 billion over the next two.
Its cloud division is also gathering pace. Google Cloud reported an order backlog of nearly $220 billion in the latest quarter, with total backlog touching a record $462 billion, around half of which is expected to be realised within two years. The company’s entry into chip sales is also beginning to factor into its growth narrative.
The last time Google briefly topped the S&P 500 by market value was in February 2016, when it edged past Apple for just two days. This time, the stakes and the numbers are far higher.
At the heart of the contest lies a single force: artificial intelligence. As both companies pour billions into infrastructure, chips and platforms, the leaderboard is no longer just about size, it is about who can scale the future faster.
