MAM
Nippo Batteries signs up Yuvraj Singh as brand ambassador
CHENNAI: Battery and torch maker Nippo is all set to increase its market share. In a strategic decision to enhance its brand image and challenge the ‘numero uno’ position, the company has signed up swashbuckling batsman Yuvraj Singh.
The company through its advertising agency Hakuhodo Percept, Chennai, has produced three commercials to be telecast extensively in the coming cricket season. All these commercials focus on drawing a parallel between the Young n’ Energetic Yuvraj Singh and the Nippo brand. Speaking on the occasion Indo National’s C Sreenivas said, “There could not have been a better choice than Yuvraj Singh. Considering his ‘power packed shots & fielding prowess’, he is but a natural extension of our “Jabardast Power” positioning. In other words the perfect brand fit.”
An official release informs that the new commercials use the energy and enthusiasm of the star cricketer Yuvraj Singh to symbolise what Nippo stands for. While in one film, he gets charged after a brief moment of lull, by using Nippo and then bounces back to action, the other films show how he helps one of his fans take his pictures – giving her the “Jabardast Power” of Nippo.
These two films are specifically targeted towards the urban consumers using AA size cells. In the third film targeted towards the rural consumers using D size cells, he shows the goons in the mela that he really is a ‘Jabardast’ player by stealing the thunder from them. Yuvraj Singh reinforces the brand positioning of “Jabardast Power”.
The company claims to have a 32 per cent market share and a turnover of Rs. 3.20 billion market share in the Rs.10 billion multi-range battery market.
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.
