MAM
Welspun Living Ltd appoints Sunil Duggal as independent director
Mumbai: Welspun Living Ltd, a leading player in home textiles, flooring solutions, and advanced textiles, announces the appointment of Sunil Duggal as an independent director, effective from 31 January 2024.
Duggal will serve his first term as an independent director for four years, ending on 30 January 2028. Duggal is an accomplished leader, with a Bachelor of Technology Hons (Electrical Engineering) from BITS, Pilani, and a postgraduate diploma in Business Management (marketing) from the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta.
His extensive experience, spanning decades, includes a remarkable 17-year tenure as CEO of Dabur India Ltd. He has also chaired and cochaired significant committees, such as Indo-Turkish JBC and FICCI Committee on Food Processing. Duggal has been recognized as FMCG CEO of the year thrice and was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award by the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta in 2019. His expertise will be invaluable to Welspun Living Ltd.
Welspun Living CEO & MD Dipali Goenka, on the appointment of Sunil Duggal said, “I am delighted to welcome Sunil Duggal to Welspun’s Board of Directors. His extensive experience, particularly in steering Dabur’s success, aligns seamlessly with our commitment to elevating Welspun’s B2C journey. As we embark on this transformative phase, his consumer-centric perspective and experience in building strong consumer connections resonates perfectly with Welspun’s vision. His insights into consumer behavior and market dynamics will be instrumental as we continue to innovate and cater to the evolving needs of our audience. Together, we are poised to strengthen Welspun’s position in the market, combining our passion for quality with Sunil’s wealth of experience. I look forward to working with him.”
Joining as an independent director with Welspun Living, Duggal added, “As an independent director, I am truly excited to contribute my experience and knowledge to Welspun Living’s diversified brand portfolio, fostering growth and ensuring success. The company’s unwavering commitment to innovation and sustainability is truly inspiring, aligning seamlessly with my values. I am eager to embark on this exciting journey, working collaboratively to further elevate Welspun Living’s impact in the industry.”
Brands
Reserve Bank of India cancels Paytm Payments Bank licence
Central bank cites compliance failures; curbs tighten as wind-up looms
MUMBAI: India’s banking watchdog delivered its sharpest blow yet to Paytm Payments Bank, cancelling its licence and effectively ending its ability to operate as a bank under the law.
The Reserve Bank of India said the entity can no longer conduct banking business under the Banking Regulation Act, citing concerns that its affairs were not being run in the interest of depositors or the public and that it had failed to meet licence conditions.
The move escalates a crackdown that has been building for months. The bank had already been barred from onboarding new customers since March 11, 2022, and later faced restrictions on deposits, credit and wallet top-ups. In January 2024, the central bank ordered it to stop accepting fresh deposits, pointing to persistent non-compliance, including lapses in customer due diligence, use of funds and technology systems.
Operationally, the bank is now on a tight leash. It may process withdrawals of existing deposits and facilitate loan referrals through banking correspondents, but it cannot take fresh deposits.
The central bank said it would apply to the high court to wind up the bank.
Paytm sought to ringfence the fallout. In a regulatory filing, it said the licence cancellation applies to Paytm Payments Bank Limited, a separate entity, and should not be attributed to One 97 Communications. It added that there is no exposure or material business arrangement with the bank and that it operates independently, without Paytm’s board or management involvement.
“As informed earlier, Paytm (One 97 Communications Limited) and its services, which have been operating without interruption, will continue to operate uninterrupted. These include the Paytm app, Paytm UPI, Paytm Gold and all other services offered by its subsidiaries and associated companies,” the company said.
The distinction may reassure users of the app ecosystem, but the regulator’s verdict is unequivocal. After years of warnings, caps and curbs, the payments bank experiment at Paytm is being shut down—decisively, and with little room left to manoeuvre.
