MAM
Mathangi Sri joins CredAvenue as chief data officer
Mumbai: CredAvenue, a debt product suite and marketplace has announced the appointment of Mathangi Sri as its chief data officer.
She joins CredAvenue from Gojek, an integrated technology group based in Southeast Asia, where she served as the head of data organisation for GoFood – Gojek’s food business. She has rich experience building high-impact, data science solutions and products at scale across large enterprises and high-velocity start-ups.
“Mathangi’s exceptional experience in data science will help us shape CredAvenue’s journey towards becoming a more futuristic company. We plan to invest significantly in our data platform and empower our customers to manage their transactions actively,” said CredAvenue founder and CEO Gaurav Kumar. “Data is at the core of every operation at CredAvenue, and with an agile data science team under Mathangi’s leadership, we will ensure a rapid expansion in our product portfolio through the intelligent, data-oriented decision making and building deeper integration among our multiple sub-platforms.”
As a data leader, Sri has generated substantial intellectual property by publishing 20 global patents in the area of data science and machine learning. She has headed data science functions of several reputed companies such as PhonePe, Citibank and 7.ai. As one of the top 50 AI leaders in the country, Sri has also been recognised as ‘The Phenomenal SHE’ by Indian National Bar Association in 2019 and as ‘AI Changemaker Leader’ by 3AI Association in 2022.
“I am very excited to be part of CredAvenue’s journey to transform the Indian fintech space,” stated Mathangi Sri. “Data science and AI will positively disrupt India’s lending and investment space while also helping the elimination of information asymmetry. I am particularly looking forward to working with an energetic and enthusiastic team at CredAvenue and being part of building the largest lending marketplace with such a fast-growing company.”
MAM
Paramount set to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in $81 billion deal
Shareholders back merger, combined entity could reshape streaming and studios.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… consolidation, Hollywood’s latest blockbuster might be happening off-screen. Shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery have voted in favour of selling the company to Paramount in a deal valued at $81 billion rising to nearly $111 billion including debt setting the stage for one of the biggest shake-ups in modern media. The proposed merger, still subject to regulatory approvals, would bring together a vast portfolio spanning HBO Max, CNN, and franchises such as Harry Potter under the same umbrella as Paramount’s own heavyweights, including Top Gun and CBS.
At the heart of the deal is streaming scale. Executives have indicated plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single platform, potentially creating a stronger challenger to giants like Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video. Current market data suggests HBO Max holds around 12 per cent of US on-demand subscriptions, compared to Paramount+’s 3 per cent, together still trailing Netflix’s 19 per cent and Disney’s combined 27 per cent via Disney+ and Hulu.
Paramount CEO David Ellison has signalled that while platforms may merge, HBO’s creative identity will remain intact, stating the brand should “stay HBO” even within a broader ecosystem.
Beyond streaming, the deal would redraw the map for film production. Combining two of Hollywood’s oldest studios Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros., the new entity aims to scale output to over 30 films annually, while maintaining a 45-day theatrical window. Warner Bros. currently commands around 21 per cent of the US box office, compared to Paramount’s 6 per cent, underscoring the strategic weight of the acquisition.
But scale comes with scrutiny. Critics warn that fewer players could mean reduced consumer choice, rising subscription costs, and potential job cuts as the combined company looks to streamline overlapping operations while managing billions in debt.
The news business, too, faces a reset. CNN would join forces at least structurally with Paramount-owned CBS, raising questions about editorial independence and positioning. The merger has already drawn political attention in the United States, particularly given perceived ties between the Ellison family and Donald Trump, though the company maintains that newsroom autonomy will be preserved.
If approved, the deal would mark another milestone in Hollywood’s consolidation wave shrinking the industry’s traditional “big six” studios to a “big four”, with Paramount joining Disney, Universal, and Sony at the top table.
In an industry built on storytelling, this merger may well become its most consequential plot twist yet.
