MAM
Pepperfry names Ruchir Aswal as VP of product – business
Mumbai: Homegrown furniture and home products marketplace Pepperfry has named Ruchir Aswal as vice president of product (business).
In this role, Aswal will be responsible for driving products for channel expansion (franchisee and other programmes), merchant or seller network, pepcart logistics, distributor management systems and sales systems across the country, said the brand in a statement.
“At Pepperfry, our goal is to spark a feeling called home amongst consumers by democratising the furniture and home products category in the country. Even as we continue to scale up our existing business, provide a seamless experience to our stakeholders, we are also working hard to expand into adjacent categories,” said Pepperfry co-founder and COO Ashish Shah. “Technology will be a key differentiator and I am certain Ruchir with his vast experience and perspective will accelerate Pepperfry’s journey.”
A post-graduate diploma holder (MBA) in finance and marketing from the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, Aswal has over 13 years of experience in business and product management having worked for global brands like Jio, Intuit, Nium, Shaadi.com and Rediff.com. Prior to joining Pepperfry, he was associated as an angel investor/consultant for startups like Goodify, qonsept, ethnic, squeakee, etc.
“Today even when Pepperfry is already a household brand I feel we have just scratched the surface,” stated Ruchir Aswal. “I am super excited to be a part of this truly differentiated journey and look forward to taking some strategically bold initiatives & making a lasting impact in the hypergrowth future for the brand.”
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.
