Renowned investor Steve Cohen, his venture capital arm Point72 Ventures, and Quantopian announced today an agreement for Quantopian to manage up to $250 million of investment capital provided by Mr. Cohen.

Quantopian offers a free platform where a vibrant online community of over 85,000 members from 180 countries can create institutional-quality investment algorithms. Investment algorithms created on Quantopian’s platform by members will be used to manage the funds from Mr. Cohen. Each author of a selected algorithm will receive a royalty based on the performance of his or her strategy.

“This is a watershed moment for the entire industry. Steve Cohen, one of the most storied and successful investors, will be supporting investment algorithms produced by Quantopian’s community,” said John “Fawce” Fawcett, CEO of Quantopian. “These funds will permit Quantopian to make larger allocations and therefore pay larger royalties to authors of profitable algorithms. I expect this major incentive to galvanize both existing and new members, and propel everyone to new levels of creativity.”

“The scarce resource in quantitative investing is talent,” said Matthew Granade, the leader of Point72 Ventures. “Quantopian has demonstrated an innovative approach to finding that talent.”

“This relationship demonstrates the unique advantages offered by partnering with Point72 Ventures,” Mr. Granade said. “In addition to receiving investment capital, Quantopian is getting strategic advice that it can’t get from any other investor and Point72 will benefit from an ocean of untapped talent.”

Mr. Cohen’s commitment, a portion of which is contingent on Quantopian meeting certain performance metrics, represents the first major commitment of funds for Quantopian to manage using its members’ algorithms.

Point72 Ventures will also be making an investment in Quantopian. Quantopian has previously received venture investments from leading venture firms, including Bessemer Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures and Spark Capital.

“This deal is exactly what we had in mind when we launched Point72 Ventures,” said Pete Casella, Co-Head of Point72 Ventures.

Quantopian’s portfolio of investment algorithms is selected from the more than 400,000 algorithms written by its community of over 85,000 members, including professors, finance professionals, research scientists, developers, and students. By offering an institutional quality platform online and for free, with access to extensive data, Quantopian gives anyone the ability to create and test investment algorithms -- and be rewarded for their work.

Quantopian evaluates the performance of each algorithm on its platform and makes allocations to selected algorithms based on factors including return, risk, style, capacity, and interaction effects. The authors of the selected algorithms receive a share of the profits generated from their investment strategies.

About Point72 Ventures

Point72 Ventures, LLC, an affiliate of Point72 Asset Management, L.P., provides early stage capital to startups in fields such as data mining, artificial intelligence, and machine learning.

For more information about Point72 Ventures, please visit: point72ventures.com.

About Quantopian

Quantopian inspires talented people from around the world to write investment algorithms. Quantopian provides capital, data, and infrastructure to algorithm authors (quants). Quantopian offers license agreements for algorithms that fit its investment strategy, and the licensing authors are paid based on their strategy’s individual performance. Quantopian provides everything a quant needs to create a strategy and profit from it.

Quantopian’s community has doubled year-over-year for the last three years and now numbers over 85,000 members. Quantopian’s members include finance professionals, scientists, developers, and students from 180 countries. The members collaborate online and in person at regional meetups, workshops, and Quantopian’s flagship annual event QuantCon. Quantopian provides its members a research and development platform, which includes US equity pricing and corporate fundamental data for free. Members may also access a fast-growing catalog of premium datasets. To date, more than 3.5 million simulations have been run on Quantopian’s platform. In September 2015, Quantopian began allocating proprietary capital to selected algorithms submitted by its members.

For more information about Quantopian, please visit: https://www.quantopian.com/.

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• Tata AIA Life Insurance Company Limited (IRDA of India Regn. No. 110)                                                  

• For complete details please contact our insurance advisor or visit the nearest branch office of Tata AIA Life or call 1-860-266-9966 (local charges would apply) or write to us at customercare@tataaia.com.
• Visit us at: www.tataaia.com or SMS 'LIFE’ to 58888

Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE), a provider of software products to Property/Casualty (P/C) insurers, announced that it has been positioned as the sole leader in Gartner, Inc.'s “Magic Quadrant for Property and Casualty Insurance Claims Management Modules¹.” This is the third year in a row that Guidewire has appeared in the Leaders Quadrant and the first that Guidewire appears as the sole leader. The report can be viewed here.

The global report evaluated seven vendors that have qualified for inclusion in the claims management module market. Guidewire was positioned highest on the ability to execute axis and furthest on the completeness of vision axis in the report.

“Leaders offer the broadest range of product capabilities, LOB experience and operational capabilities,” wrote Jeff Haner, principal research analyst, Insurance, Gartner and author of the report. “They demonstrate unusual strength in terms of sales execution and consistent, best-in-class implementation results, while also maintaining a steady rate of new customer wins.”

“The Guidewire team is honored to be recognized as the sole leader by Gartner in the Claims Management Magic Quadrant,” said Brian Desmond, chief marketing officer, Guidewire Software. “We are very thankful for the insight provided by our engaged customer community, representing all regions of the world and all lines of business, which helps us to continually improve ClaimCenter. We also thank Gartner for this recognition which we believe is a validation of the success achieved through the collaborative effort of the Guidewire community and inspires us to continue to innovate and improve.”

Guidewire ClaimCenter® is an end-to-end claims management system, built from the ground up to meet the specific needs of today’s P/C insurers. ClaimCenter’s flexible business rules enable claims organizations to define, enforce and continually refine their preferred claim handling practices in order to optimize and monitor their claim processes. ClaimCenter is in use by insurers of all sizes across all product lines to improve speed and accuracy, reduce loss adjustment expense, and enable proactive management of claims. ClaimCenter is available as a standalone system or as part of Guidewire InsuranceSuite™, and can be integrated to an insurer’s legacy systems or third party applications.

The latest version of ClaimCenter was recently announced as part of our Guidewire Insurance Platform™ release.

About the Magic Quadrant

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner's research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

¹ Gartner Magic Quadrant for Property and Casualty Insurance Claims Management Modules, Jeff Haner, July 21, 2016

About Guidewire Software

Guidewire delivers the software that Property/Casualty (P/C) insurers need to adapt and succeed in a time of rapid industry change. We combine three elements – core operations, data and analytics, and digital engagement – into a technology platform that enhances insurers’ ability to engage and empower their customers and employees. More than 200 P/C insurers around the world have selected Guidewire. For more information, please visit www.guidewire.com. Follow us on twitter: @Guidewire_PandC.

NOTE: Guidewire, Guidewire Software, Guidewire ClaimCenter, Guidewire PolicyCenter, and Guidewire BillingCenter are registered trademarks of Guidewire Software, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.

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Interbrand has launched the inaugural Interbrand Breakthrough Brands report, in partnership with Facebook, Ready Set Rocket, and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The Interbrand Breakthrough Brands report, entitled “Future Growth,” is unique in that it examines emerging companies that are brand-led—organizations that have both unique business models and strong brands. The report complements Interbrand’s annual Best Global Brands report, now entering its 17^th year, by putting a spotlight on emerging brands—especially those that are affecting change and embodying growth.

“While it is certainly true that exciting startups abound, Interbrand and its partners have decided to put a spotlight on those organizations that have strong business models and strong brands,” noted Interbrand’s Global CEO, Jez Frampton. “From their earliest days, these Breakthrough Brands have been focused on managing their brands and delivering integrated experiences to their customers. We believe such efforts leave them well-poised to achieve significant growth in the months and years ahead.”

Approximately 200 brands were nominated by a global network of key influencers—individuals chosen by Interbrand, Facebook, NYSE and Ready Set Rocket because of their strong commitment to and interest in emerging brands.

Criteria & Methodology

When selecting the brands to be featured in this report, these criteria were held paramount:

• Age: Is the brand 10 years or younger?
• Change: Is the brand driving change by responding to a unique marketplace need, generating a new experience for consumers, disrupting an industry, adopting a new business model or developing a new technology?
• Growth: Is the brand demonstrating its ability to grow? Is it operating as a successful business? Is it stretching into new product or service categories—or new geographies? Is it attracting top talent?
• Buzz: Is the brand grabbing attention and gaining momentum?

“It's exciting to watch new patterns emerge through the Breakthrough Brands featured in this inaugural report,” noted Alex Lirtsman, Co-Founder & Chief Strategist at Ready Set Rocket. “Digital has forever transformed the traditional strategies, structures, and economics of marketing. Working with Interbrand, Facebook, and the NYSE to identify these trends—and the brands paving the way—has been an inspiring experience. We are all looking forward to watching these brands continue to grow.”

“We’re excited to highlight these emerging brands which are setting their companies and brands apart by driving new ideas and growth,” said Tom Farley, President of NYSE Group. “The innovation they’ve demonstrated as young companies will contribute to their success as these companies cultivate their identity and connect with more customers.”

Of the 200 brands nominated, 60 are featured in the Interbrand Breakthrough Brands report. They are not ranked, but rather grouped against 10 insights, three sector-specific categories and two additional categories (“Innovation Incubators” & “Ones to Watch”).

Insights, Categories & Featured Brands

Growing together: Building businesses around people

Seenit
Glossier
VSCO
mymuesli

Growth in action: Living stories

Away
Casper
Shinola
Thinx

Growing potential: Performance-enhancing platforms

90 Seconds
FameBit
Percolate
WeWork

Growth for good: Purpose-bred brands

Rubicon Global
Sensorbox
Sweetgreen
Zady
M-Pesa

Growth through clarity: Two-way transparency

DuckDuckGo
Everlane
LOLA
Transferwise

Personal growth: A better me

Betterment
Headspace
One Medical
Blue Apron
Duolingo

Growth in data: Data for value

BeMyEye
iCarbon X

Growing mecosystems: Network conduits

LINE
Tuluntulu
Carousell
DePop

Virtual growth: Machine realities

Niantic
Within
Magic Leap
Civil Maps

Growing global: Breaking borders

Xiaomi
DJI Global
WeChat
Paytm

Health & Wellness

iCarbonX
LOLA
Omada Health
One Medical
Peloton

Finance

Nubank
Nutmeg
Faircent
Acorns

Food & Beverage

Deliveroo
Zomato
Blue Apron
do bem

Innovation Incubators

IBM Watson (IBM)
S’well (Starbucks)
Venmo (PayPal)
Oculus (Facebook)
AllState (Esurance)

Ones to Watch

Twist
Prizm
Maple
Project September
Orchard Mile
Sthaler/Fingopay

To learn more about these insights and the 60 brands highlighted within the inaugural Interbrand Breakthrough Brands report, please visit interbrandbreakthroughbrands.com. A downloadable report is available. You can also join the conversation on social media by using the hashtag #Breakthrough2016.

About Interbrand

With a network of 29 offices in 22 countries, Interbrand, a global brand agency, believes that growth is achieved when an organization has a clear strategy and delivers exceptional customer experiences. Interbrand’s combination of strategy, creativity, and technology makes it uniquely capable of driving the growth of its clients’ brands and businesses. Publisher of the highly influential annual Best Global Brands ranking and Webby Award-winning brandchannel, Interbrand is part of the Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE:OMC) network of agencies. For more information, please visit Interbrand.com or follow Interbrand on Twitter and Facebook.

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• The largest Bancassurance partnership in the country after open architecture.
• Service and support mechanism for the Bank’s customers through its branches.

Finalists for the 2016 BAI Global Banking Innovation Awards have been announced – showcasing this year’s top innovators within the financial services industry worldwide. The 15 finalists selected represent the most forward-thinking leaders transforming the industry. Finalists and winners will be celebrated at BAI’s new immersive conference, BAI Beacon, in Chicago, October 5-6, 2016.

BAI serves as a global hub for connecting forward-thinking organizations and leaders who are changing the face of the industry, and established the BAI Global Banking Innovation Awards to be a catalyst for innovation in the financial sector.

“BAI’s role within the financial services industry is to deliver actionable insights and new perspectives on innovation,” said Holly Hughes, Chief Marketing Officer for BAI. "This annual awards program brings the best and brightest innovative organizations to the forefront of our industry, so we can collectively – and globally – continue to build upon each other’s innovations and continuously evolve what financial organizations can deliver to customers.”

The awards categories, and finalists for each, are:

Visit BAIGlobalInnovations.com for more information about the Awards. To learn more about BAI Beacon, visit BAIBeacon.com.

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Funds managed and/or advised by Partners Group AG or its affiliates (“Partners Group”) formed a joint venture with affiliates of Spear Street Capital LLC (“Spear Street”) to acquire approximately 2.2 million square feet of office properties located in select suburban markets in Dallas, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Austin and Boston (the “Whetstone Portfolio”). Formerly owned by certain funds managed by Spear Street, the Whetstone Portfolio comprises The Campus at Legacy, a 726,700-square foot Class A office campus located in Plano, Texas; Atrium Corporate Center, a 467,000-square foot Class A office building located in Rolling Meadows, Illinois; Trinity Centre, a four-building, Class A office park totaling 488,200 square feet located in Centreville, Virginia; Research Park Plaza I & II, a 272,000-square foot Class A office project located in the Northwest submarket of Austin, Texas; and Riverworks Innovation Center, a 201,000-square foot Class A “brick and beam” office campus located in Watertown, Massachusetts.

The transaction was led for Partners Group by its real estate secondaries investment team. Spear Street will continue to serve as the manager of the Whetstone Portfolio on behalf of the joint venture. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Accord Capital Partners LLC served as the exclusive financial advisor in connection with this transaction.

ABOUT PARTNERS GROUP

Partners Group is a global private markets investment management firm with over USD 55 billion in investment programs under management in private equity, private real estate, private infrastructure and private debt. The firm manages a broad range of customized portfolios for an international clientele of institutional investors. Partners Group is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland and has offices in San Francisco, Denver, Houston, New York, São Paulo, London, Guernsey, Paris, Luxembourg, Milan, Munich, Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore, Manila, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo and Sydney. The firm employs over 850 people and is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (symbol: PGHN) with a major ownership by its partners and employees. For further information on Partners Group, visit: www.partnersgroup.com

ABOUT ACCORD CAPITAL PARTNERS LLC

With headquarters in San Francisco and additional offices in Chicago and London, Accord Group Holdings LLC (“Accord”) harnesses a powerful combination of capital markets, investment management and principal investment capabilities for a wide variety of participants in the real estate private equity industry globally. Through Accord Capital Partners LLC, its broker/dealer affiliate in the United States, Accord provides advisory and capital raising services to its clients. For further information on Accord, visit: www.accord-group.net

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StepStone Group LP (“StepStone” or the “Firm”), a leading global private markets asset management and advisory firm, today announced that the expanded StepStone Infrastructure and Real Assets Group (“SIRA”) is now fully integrated into the firm and actively conducting business for StepStone clients. In May, StepStone announced that KPMG’s Infrastructure and Real Assets Investment Advisory Team would join StepStone. SIRA’s more than 20 professionals, led by James O’Leary (former Head of the KPMG team and Colonial First State’s infrastructure and real assets platform) operate out of Sydney, Perth, Toronto, London, La Jolla and New York.

Monte Brem, Chief Executive Officer of StepStone, commented, “We are pleased at how quickly and seamlessly the SIRA team has become integrated into the firm and our existing infrastructure and real assets team, and we thank KPMG for their ongoing support of that transition. Building an exceptional infrastructure and real assets investment platform with global coverage has been a top priority for StepStone, and the addition of James and his team allows us to provide the full scope of solutions, tailored to the specific needs of each institution, as our clients seek to balance their portfolios by investing in quality infrastructure and real assets opportunities.”

StepStone also announces the addition of two new senior executives to the SIRA team. Simon Beer will be joining as Head of Asset Management, responsible for the oversight of asset value creation initiatives for the SIRA platform, and Enrique Fuentes will become a Senior Advisor, responsible for supporting SIRA’s activities in Europe, with a particular focus on working with major industrial partners in the region.

Mr. O'Leary stated, "Our goal is to adhere to StepStone's philosophy of being trusted partners to institutional investors seeking customized global solutions throughout the investment life cycle. As a large global player, we are strategically placed to provide our infrastructure and real asset clients with the full spectrum of support, including primary and secondary fund advice, co-investments, tailored investment solutions, asset management and transaction advisory services. We are delighted to announce the addition of Simon and Enrique, whose significant experience on both the investment and industrial sides will further deepen our sector, technical and regional specialization, for the benefit of our investors globally.”

Mr. Beer has specialized in infrastructure asset management and value creation in a career spanning 15 years. Prior to joining StepStone, he was responsible for developing infrastructure asset management strategies as a senior member of the Value Creation team at Ontario Teachers Pension Plan. Before that, he was a partner in KPMG’s advisory practice, advising investors, operators, regulators and governments on infrastructure, energy and natural resources opportunities. Earlier, he worked for the major international energy company BP and a leading engineering firm, Kellogg Brown and Root, advising investors and working on projects across North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia. He recently assisted with the optimization and subsequent public offering of a US$1.5 billion transmission and distribution asset, helped a major pipeline operator identify and deliver operations performance improvements and has significant experience in major capital projects.

Mr. Beer said, “I'm excited about joining StepStone and look forward to delivering a tailored client-focused approach toward infrastructure investment and asset management that focuses on maximizing value and reducing risk to clients. At such an important time in the evolution of the investment sector, it will be great to work with portfolio company management teams and the wider StepStone group to deliver real value over the investment life cycle.”

Mr. Fuentes has 25 years of experience in private infrastructure financing, development and strategy. Before joining SIRA, he worked in a range of investment and advisory roles in the sector. Mr. Fuentes was previously a Development Director at Ferrovial for over 13 years. He has significant experience on industrial projects, and has been a champion of innovative cooperation strategies between financial investors and developers. Specifically, he has worked on over 15 investments in transportation infrastructure assets with an aggregate enterprise value in excess of EUR 15 billion. He also played a leading role in the transformation of Ferrovial from a construction company mainly focused in the Spanish market into one of the world´s largest private transportation infrastructure developers.

Mr. Fuentes commented, “Having participated from the early years in the development of private infrastructure, and having observed how the market has evolved, I believe that investment by institutional investors and cooperation between investors and developers will be two key strategic trends in the future of this significant and fast-growing asset class. I am very pleased to join StepStone and hope to use my knowledge and experience to benefit StepStone’s investors around the world.”

About StepStone

StepStone is a global private markets firm overseeing over US$91 billion of private capital allocations, including approximately US$24 billion of assets under management. The Firm creates customized portfolios for the world’s most sophisticated investors using a highly disciplined research-focused approach that prudently integrates primaries, secondaries, and co-investments. StepStone offers bespoke private markets investment management and advisory services to institutional clients using industry leading analytics and research capabilities, with a focus on providing highly responsive and collaborative client service. The Firm covers the global private markets across multiple sectors and operates from offices in Beijing, Hong Kong, La Jolla, London, New York, Perth, San Francisco, São Paulo, Seoul, Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto.

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• Consolidated PBT: Rs. 139 Cr., grew 30%
• Max Life AUM as at 30^th June 2016: Rs. 37,701 Cr., grew  18%

• MHC Network Gross Revenues: Rs. 633 Cr., grew 28%
• MHC Network EBITDA: Rs. 61 Cr., grew 34%
• Max Bupa Gross Written Premium: Rs. 122 Cr., grew 21%

The Valence Group has advised Safripol Holdings Proprietary Limited (“Safripol”) on its sale to KAP Industrial Holdings Limited (“KAP”) for an enterprise value of ZAR4.1bn (c. US$310m). This successful intra-Africa sell-side transaction highlights the truly global nature of The Valence Group’s reach and capabilities.

Completion of the transaction is subject to customary regulatory approvals and conditions precedent.

About Safripol

Safripol is a South African producer of polypropylene and high-density polyethylene used for an extensive range of industrial and consumer products. Established in 1972 as a joint venture between Hoechst and Sentrachem, Safripol was purchased in 1999 by Dow Chemical and subsequently sold in 2006 to a consortium of private equity and other investors, including Rockwood, Thebe Investment Corporation (“Thebe”) and certain members of the management team. Safripol generated after tax profits of ZAR488m in 2015.

About Rockwood

Rockwood is a leading South African private equity fund manager which focuses on taking substantial equity positions in medium to large sized companies that have experienced management teams.

About Thebe

Founded in 1992 as a pioneering black-owned company, Thebe is one of South Africa’s leading investment companies, managing assets of over ZAR6bn spanning multiple sectors. It is a unique entrepreneurial company that does not exist only to make a profit, but is driven by a commitment to serve the broader interests of communities at large.

About KAP

KAP is a diversified industrial company listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange with a market capitalization of c. ZAR16bn. It is predominantly focused on industry-leading businesses operating in African markets.

KAP’s major shareholder is Steinhoff International Holdings NV (“Steinhoff”) which holds approximately 43% of KAP. Steinhoff is an integrated retailer that manufactures, sources and retails furniture, household goods and general merchandise, and is listed on both the Johannesburg and Frankfurt Stock Exchanges with a market capitalization of c. €22bn.

About The Valence Group

The Valence Group is a specialist investment bank offering M&A advisory services exclusively to companies and investors in the chemicals, materials and related sectors. The Valence Group team includes a unique combination of professionals with backgrounds in investment banking and strategic consulting within the chemicals and materials industries, all focused exclusively on providing M&A advisory services to the chemicals and materials sector. The firm’s offices are located in New York and London.

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Starr Companies announced that A.M. Best has affirmed the A rating with a stable outlook for Starr International (Europe) Limited, which, along with Starr Underwriting Agents Limited, is a subsidiary of Starr International Company, Inc.

“The A.M. Best’s rating comes as we celebrate our 10^th year of operating in Europe, the United Kingdom and specifically our location in London.” said Steve Blakey, CEO, Starr Underwriting Agents Limited and Starr Managing Agents Limited. “This underscores our strength and commitment to the European marketplace as we continue building upon our portfolio of product offerings and relationships within the insurance community.”

Starr Companies (or Starr) is the worldwide marketing name for the operating insurance and travel assistance companies and subsidiaries of Starr International Company, Inc. and for the investment business of C.V. Starr & Co., Inc. and its subsidiaries. Starr is a leading insurance and investment organization with a presence on five continents; through its operating insurance companies, Starr provides property, casualty, and accident & health insurance products as well as a range of specialty coverages including aviation, marine, energy and excess casualty insurance. Starr’s insurance company subsidiaries domiciled in the U.S., Bermuda, Hong Kong and Singapore each have an A.M. Best rating of “A” (Excellent). Starr’s Lloyd’s syndicate has a Standard & Poor’s rating of “A+” (Strong). Starr’s insurance company subsidiary domiciled in China has an A.M. Best rating of “A-” (Excellent).

For more information visit us at www.starrcompanies.com

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• First of its kind loan product in the country for the urban low income segment
• ‘Nano Credit’ to offer unsecured loans of up to INR15,000 per individual, by way of a term loan or overdraft
• ‘Nano Credit’ can be availed by 35 million existing customers of Suvidhaa from any of the 22,000 Suvidhaa Axis Bank BC outlets
• Quick disbursal within 1-2 hours, easy access to loan amount through pre-paid card, withdrawal through any ATM / merchant payment through POS machines. 

Axis Bank, the third largest private sector bank in India and Suvidhaa Infoserve, a major player in domestic remittance and digital payments sector, today announced the roll out of ‘Nano Credit’ – pre-approved, instant and unsecured loans for the urban low-income segment.

 
The product offers credit of up to INR 15,000 which can be availed by all existing customers of Suvidhaa by simply walking into any of the 22,000 Suvidhaa outlets across India and following an instant check of their loan eligibility by the respective outlet agent.
 
A first of its kind product in the country, ‘Nano Credit’ is designed to benefit the unbanked and digitally excluded urban low income segment.
 
With flexible repayment options and instant transaction processing capability, the product helps overcome one of key challenges of this customer segment - the need for cash on a daily basis and related irregularities in cash flow.
 
Speaking on the occasion, Rajiv Anand, Executive Director, Axis Bank said “This new initiative with Suvidhaa will strengthen our presence in the Urban Microfinance space. The pre-approved Overdraft facility is amongst the first in the Indian market for low income households. Axis Bank is committed to catering to the financial needs of this traditionally excluded category by extending innovative products based on state of the art technology. This programme is being launched in Mumbai and shall thereafter be offered in Surat, Pune and Delhi in this financial year.”  
 
Elaborating on the product, Paresh Rajde, Founder of Suvidhaa Infoserve said, “This is a truly disruptive and revolutionary product which reaches to the under-served segment of customers who is most needy of such loan facility. Suvidhaa has a rich repository of transaction history for 35 million customers who have been engaged in various service transactions including remittances, payments of insurance premium, bill, ticketing etc. and mapped using Aadhar’s e-KYC. This enables us to exactly gauge the client’s loan repayment capacity, thus reducing risks for the bank. Suvidhaa’s robust analytics and technology helps Axis Bank reduce the time for disbursement making ‘Nano Credit’ an instant loan facility offered on a prepaid account – something that has never been done in this country.”
 
With the national rollout, Axis Bank & Suvidhaa will focus on Delhi-NCR, Surat and Pune in the coming months.  The loans under “Nano Credit” are Aadhaar e-KYC verified, pre-approved, collateral free, individual loans with a simple documentation process.
 
About Axis Bank

Axis Bank is the third largest private sector bank in India. Axis Bank offers the entire spectrum of services to customer segments covering Large and Mid-Corporates, SME, Agriculture and Retail Businesses.

With its 3,006 domestic branches (including extension counters) and 12,871 ATMs across the country, as on 30^th June 2016, the network of Axis Bank spreads across 1,855 centres, enabling the Bank to reach out to a large cross-section of customers with an array of products and services. The Bank also has nine overseas offices with branches at Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai (at the DIFC), Shanghai and Colombo; representative offices at Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Dhaka and an overseas subsidiary at London, UK. The Bank’s website www.axisbank.com offers comprehensive details about its products and services.
 
About Suvidhaa

Suvidhaa is a leading payments company that offers financial services such as remittances, interoperable open loop prepaid cards besides a large suite of value added services such as ticketing (Rail/Air/Bus), Utility bill payments, Mobile/DTH/Data recharges, Insurance premium payments, Corporate cash collection and mobile-based merchant acquiring services. These services are offered through Suvidhaa’s 90,000 retail touch points in over 9500 PIN Code locations across India.  Over 300 service providers ride on Suvidhaa’s robust S-Commerce platform to reach their last mile.  Suvidhaa has now forayed into micro credit with its unique & first-of-its-kind Nano Credit Program targeted towards its 35mn unique customers. Mr. Paresh Rajde promoted Suvidhaa in 2007 and was angel funded by Mr. Shapoorji Pallonji Mistry.

Photo Caption: Rajiv Anand, Executive Director, Axis Bank (left); Paresh Rajde, Founder of Suvidha infoserve (Right) with the recipient Sanjay Benbansi

• The greatest benefit C-Edge has realized from the XtremIO system is the ability to serve their customers as fast as possible, and with no downtime, for EoD batch processing and end-of-month report generation. An optimized copy data management approach using XtremIO has helped reduce EoD batch processing time by 50 percent
• The main benefit of XtremIO has been to super-accelerate EoD and EoM job. An optimized copy data management approach using XtremIO has helped C-Edge reduce EoD batch processing time by 50 percent
• With XtremIO, C-Edge gained the ability to achieve great ROI while improving the overall service it gives to its end customers

• Deploys nearly 40 percent of the overall NFC- enabled POS terminals in the country that accept contactless card payments
• Further plans to issue approximately 2 Lakh NFC-enabled cards in the next 1 year​
• Launches Contactless Secure+ Debit Card for regular savings account customers to empower larger customer base with contactless technology

TA Associates, a leading global growth private equity firm, today announced that it has invested in a US$140 million round for a minority stake in TCNS Clothing Company Pvt. Ltd., India’s leading branded women’s apparel platform.

This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160818005780/en/

Headquartered in New Delhi, TCNS Clothing designs, manufactures and sells contemporary ethnic wear, targeting women between the ages of 25 and 40. Through its three brands – W, Aurelia and Wishful – TCNS operates across the value chain from economy to premium segments. The brands are present in more than 1,600 points of sale across India, Mauritius, Sri Lanka and the Middle East, and in over 300 exclusive stores in more than 100 cities. In addition to the physical stores, the three brands have a strong presence across large multi-brand retailers and online portals.

“The women’s ethnic apparel market in India is largely unorganized and is undergoing a shift towards organized and branded. As the leader in branded women’s apparel, TCNS Clothing is driving this shift and providing the Indian consumer with a differentiated product and value proposition across its multiple apparel brands,” said Naresh Patwari, a Director at TA Associates’ Mumbai office who will join the TCNS Board of Directors. “We are very excited about partnering with Mr. O.S. Pasricha, Founder of TCNS Clothing. With Anant Daga as the CEO and a very strong management team, we believe that TCNS is well prepared to capture this large, long-term growth opportunity.”

“TCNS has enjoyed great success over the last five years and we are proud to have become India’s leading women’s apparel company,” said Mr. O.S. Pasricha, Founder and Chairman, TCNS Clothing Company Pvt. Ltd. “We are pleased to have TA Associates as our partner for the next phase of our growth, and are delighted to welcome TA to our company and to our Board. We look forward to a close, long-term collaboration.”

“There has been a notable shift in the Indian womenswear segment and, over the next five years, we expect to see the rise of large and dominant Indian womenswear brands in the country,” said Anant Daga, CEO, TCNS Clothing Company Pvt. Ltd. “We are in an exciting phase of our journey, and despite TCNS being the leading branded womenswear player in India, we believe there are a plethora of opportunities ahead. Apart from organic growth, we see significant avenues for continued expansion through the introduction of additional womenswear brands and other complementary offerings, as well as expansion into additional international markets. With TA’s experience in consumer sector and fashion, we believe this partnership will add immense value to the strategic and operational direction of TCNS.”

The Indian women’s apparel market is predicted to reach approximately $20 billion in 2020, up from $13 billion in 2015, a compound annual growth rate of 10%, according to Avendus Capital. The branded portion of this market, approximately 17% in 2015, is expected to surpass 38% over the next 10 years.

“TCNS has become a true leader in women’s apparel in India,” said Naveen Wadhera, a Managing Director at TA Associates and Co-Head of Asia who will also join the TCNS Board of Directors. “We believe the TCNS management team has done an exemplary job in expanding the business and diversifying across brands, channels and geographies.”

TCNS achieved consumer sales of more than US$120 million in fiscal year 2016, resulting in 70% year-over-year growth. The Company added almost 100 stores last year and made its international foray with exclusive stores in Sri Lanka and Mauritius.

Avendus Capital served as the exclusive financial advisor to TCNS Clothing. BMR Legal served as legal counsel to TCNS Clothing. AZB & Partners and Goodwin acted as legal counsel to TA Associates. TA Associates Advisory Pvt. Ltd. provided advisory services on the investment.

About TCNS Clothing Pvt. Ltd.

TCNS Clothing Company Pvt. Ltd. (TCNS) is the name behind the evolution of the fashionable contemporary wear brand for women – W. The company is a pioneer in scientific sizing with seven sizes, the introduction of iconic knit churidar and smaller width stoles, making functional fashion available for the everyday woman. The three TCNS Clothing brands – W, Aurelia and Wishful – offer a variety of fashion choices, ranging from ethnic to contemporary. W is the first Indian women's brand to have over 200 stores and Aurelia is available through more than 100 stores. The brands are also available through 1,600 points of sale across 100 cities in India, Mauritius, Sri Lanka and the Middle East.

www.wforwoman.com

About TA Associates

TA Associates is one of the largest and most experienced global growth private equity firms. The firm has invested in more than 460 companies around the world and has raised $24 billion in capital. With offices in Boston, Menlo Park, London, Mumbai and Hong Kong, TA Associates leads buyouts and minority recapitalizations of profitable growth companies in the consumer, business services, financial services, healthcare and technology industries. More information about TA Associates can be found at www.ta.com.

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OT (Oberthur Technologies), a leading global provider of embedded security software products and services, today announced that its dual EMV payment cards are certified by Discover with its latest specifications, D-Payment Application Specification (D-PAS) version 1.1. These cards can be used worldwide across the Discover Global Network, which includes Discover Network, Diners Club International, PULSE and affiliated networks.

OT’s Discover-certified EMV dual interface payment cards can be used to make payments simply by tapping them in front of a contactless terminal. It further strengthens OT’s wide EMV certified cards portfolio. Other functionalities, such as transport, micropayment or access control, can accompany Discover’s payment functionalities. These cutting-edge payments cards meet international security standards in order help decrease fraud and improve cardholders’ protection.

“Led by our R&D team, we are delighted to embrace the latest Discover D-PAS specifications for a dual payment card. Cardholders can now enjoy the user-friendliness of the contactless technology across the Discover Global Network” said Eric Duforest, Managing Director of the Financial Services Institutions activity at OT.

Software and I.T. developments are at the heart of OT’s R&D strategy. Globally, almost 700 employees work to produce new encryption algorithms, software and security applications embedded in all types of devices.

ABOUT OBERTHUR TECHNOLOGIES

OT is a world leader in embedded digital security that protects you when you connect, authenticate or pay.

OT is strategically positioned in high growth markets and offers embedded security software solutions for “end-point” devices as well as associated remote management solutions to a huge portfolio of international clients, including banks and financial institutions, mobile operators, authorities and governments, as well as manufacturers of connected objects and equipment.

OT employs over 6 500 employees worldwide, including almost 700 R&D people. With a global footprint of 4 regional secure manufacturing hubs and 39 secure service centers, OT’s international network serves clients in 140 countries. For more information: www.oberthur.com

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View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160823005557/en/