One of the most anticipated events of the year – the Business Standard BFSI Insight Summit 2023 – kicks off on Monday in Mumbai, where India’s top decision-makers will brainstorm on the country’s future growth trajectory and maintain financial stability amid global headwind.
The summit kicks off with a fireside chat with KV Kamath, the veteran banker who pioneered credit card and EMI (equated to monthly installments) culture among India’s ambitious youth 20 years ago. He has worn many hats – from CEO of ICICI Bank and Chairman of Infosys to heading Brics Bank. He is now chairman of the National Bank for the Financing of Infrastructure and Development. He is also chairman of Jio Financial Services, the textile-to-tech giant Reliance Industry, which promises to disrupt the financial sector like never before.
As Kamath kicks off the summit, it will conclude with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das, the latest recipient of the prestigious Central Bank Governor of the Year award – a first since Raghuram Rajan was honored with it in 2016.
Das’ comments at the summit will be closely watched by all stakeholders in the Indian economy and business community. They will be dissected by the financial sector community in the coming days.
While India has integrated into the global economy since economic liberalization began in 1991, the country has not been shielded from global shocks. The waves from developed countries reached Indian shores at regular intervals. The RBI under Das maintained relative calm despite headwinds such as high inflation, resulting in higher interest rates in developed countries, especially in the United States, where government bond yields hit a 16-year high.
The RBI has stepped in to bring order and curb volatility in the financial markets through action and words.
And there are domestic challenges. The ultra-loose monetary policy during the Covid years, and a sharp revival in economic activities since then, coupled with erratic weather conditions mainly due to El Nino, keep the central bank on its toes in fulfilling its primary mandate of maintaining inflation under control. Consumer price index-based inflation, which is the RBI’s main benchmark for policymaking, often shoots above the 6 percent tolerance level. Das, once twice shy, is keeping Arjuna’s eye on inflation after losing the battle against 2022 price hike. He refuses to drop his guard against inflation, despite growing calls for interest rate cuts.
And then there’s the political hot potato called the exchange rate. After being battered in 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the rupee has shown remarkable resilience this year. The Indian currency is one of the most stable in 2023, despite the hardening of the dollar index. The RBI under Das never shied away from using the umbrella during the rainy season: the foreign exchange reserves of $600 billion.
While banking is in the spotlight among financial industry participants, insurance promises to make rapid progress under the leadership of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India Chairman Debasish Panda, who has set a target of to assure everyone, when the country marks the 100th year of independence. It is somewhat unprecedented that a financial sector regulator is pushing the sector towards growth with the aim of increasing insurance penetration, which is seen as the Jan Dhan moment for the sector.
Views of State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Dinesh Khara, who was recently given an extension to continue in his role till August next year, on how to maintain momentum at a time of healthy growth in the banking industry will be interesting. SBI under Khara posted a net profit of Rs 50,000 crore in FY23 – a first for the banking sector.
A host of marketing gurus like Ramdev Agarwal and Chris Wood, and Ananth Narayan, member of the Securities and Exchange Board of India, will share their views during the two-day event.
There will be a panel discussion between Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) and Chief Investment Officers of mutual funds.
Top executives from public sector, private sector and foreign banks will discuss issues ranging from growth to technology, and CEOs of small finance banks will give their views on the path forward for such lenders. There will be a panel discussion between CEOs of non-banking financial companies, payment systems players and on cybersecurity challenges.
CEOs from the two insurance sectors – life and general – will discuss the overhaul of the regulatory architecture and how they can achieve the regulator’s vision of insurance for all by 2047.
The two-day summit promises to provide a vision on how the Indian economy is preparing to deal with the global uncertainties and maintain the pole position among major economies.