| | DECEMBER 20238The board of Kotak Mahindra has formally approved Ashok Vaswani's tenure as MD & CEO, commencing on January 1, 2024, for a three-year term. The Reserve Bank of India granted its consent to this appointment in October. With an extensive career spanning more than three decades in banking, Vaswani formerly occupied the role of Chief Executive Officer at Barclays Bank in the United Kingdom. Subsequently, he led their global consumer, private, corporate, and payments sectors as CEO.Before his role at Barclays, Vaswani held the position of CEO at Citigroup Asia Pacific and was a member of both the Citigroup Global Operating & Management Committees. Vaswani's appointment comes after Uday Kotak's resignation as MD and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank in September. Kotak, who is also the bank's founder, led the institution for 21 years, concluding his tenure on December 31. Since the bank's inception in 2003, Uday Kotak has been the MD and CEO.In March, the board of the bank approved Kotak's appointment as a non-executive, non-independent director for a duration of five years. In his annual letter to shareholders, Kotak hinted at his plan to step down, stating, "Looking ahead, I envision my role as a non-executive board member focusing on governance and as a long-term strategic investor nurturing the growth of an exceptional institution". The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has injected $50 million (approximately Rs 417 crore) into Global Dental Services, supported by Investcorp, the parent company overseeing one of India's largest dental clinic chains, Clove Dental. Founder Amarinder Singh revealed this information during an exclusive interview. This marks the company's second fundraising effort within a year, following a $66 million investment in November the previous year, spearheaded by Investcorp based in Bahrain.Singh mentioned that the funds acquired from both the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and the previous funding round would facilitate the expansion of Global Dental Services dental clinic network. Additionally, it would support their entry into new segments within dental care, like dental beauty and the development of everyday dental care products. The company, established in 2011, operates as a tech-enabled provider of dental care services, serving diverse consumer and business-to-business sectors within the industry. Currently, it manages 422 company-owned dental clinics spread across 24 cities spanning 12 states.Singh expressed, "Our dental clinic operations exhibit growth and profitability. Our objective for the next three to four years involves scaling our clinic network to approximately 1,000 clinics". He added, "This fiscal year, we've expanded by 70 new clinics, aiming to reach a count of around 470-490 clinics by year-end. Subsequently, we plan to add 150-200 clinics annually over the next three to four years". The dental chain holds a robust presence in the Delhi-National Capital Region, boasting 130 clinics, along with a significant presence in cities such as Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Pune, and Chandigarh. KOTAK MAHINDRA BANK'S BOARD APPOINTS ASHOK VASWANI AS MD & CEOQATAR INVESTMENT AUTHORITY INVESTS $50M IN LABUAN CLOVE DENTAL PARENTIN FOCUSIN FOCUS
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