MAM
Saatchi & Saatchi Propagate ropes in Deepak Prakash as South Lead
New Delhi: Saatchi & Saatchi Propagate, the digital agency from L & K Saatchi & Saatchi has roped in Deepak Prakash as the South Lead for Saatchi & Saatchi Propagate. He has joined the agency as associate vice president and will be reporting to Sabah Iqbal, senior vice-president, head – Saatchi & Saatchi Propagate.
Prakash’s mandate will be to drive new business growth and creative output while also strategically supporting existing clients to achieve business goals. He will also manage relationships for brands including AbInbev, Practo, Scripbox, Bharti Axa, Wipro, Stovekraft, said the agency on Friday.
Welcoming Prakash to the agency, Sabah Iqbal said: “Deepak has high levels of strategic prowess and an unparalleled enthusiasm. His multi-vertical experience will help identify new innovative solutions for our clients. He is the perfect mix that we were looking for in this next stage of our growth journey.”
Prior to joining Saatchi & Saatchi Propagate, Deepak was with FoxyMoron Media Solutions as account director. He was involved in driving business growth and media activities for multiple brands, and ensuring timely delivery of services and products to clients. Some of the accounts he worked for included AO Smith, Amazon Prime, Fashion & Pantry, InMobi, Ampere Electric Vehicles, Sero, Skore Condoms, Ikea, Mercedes Benz Financial, Betway, Freshworks, Swiggy etc.
Apart from FoxyMoron, he has also had previous professional stints with Digitally Inspired Media – Chennai, DDB Mudra and Ogilvy. He played a central role in managing brands like Saint-Gobain India, Gold Winner oil, Green Trends, Fedora Olive oil, Cardia Life, Zee Tamil, Sun Pictures, Sun Life, Sun Nxt, Vroom, TTK Prestige & Aircel, IBM among others.
Talking about his new role, Prakash said: “An average consumer today is well connected, aware, and evolving faster, and it is a must for all brands to evolve with the consumers in tandem. This gives us an opportunity to be an enabler for brands through smart solutions and to stay relatable at every step of the user journey. Saatchi & Saatchi Propagate has been such an enabler for brands over the years by producing some great work in the digital spectrum and I am happy to be part of this journey.”
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.
