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PEOPLE
 Rana
Talwar
A new CEO he is not. But he
will, certainly, have a brand-new company to head in this part of the
world. Rana Talwar, veteran banker and chief of Standard Chartered Bank (StanChart),
has just sewn up a mega-deal with the Australian & New Zealand (ANZ)
Banking Group for buying the latter's Grindlays unit in South-Asia and the
Middle East. The all-cash deal, worth $1.3 billion, will instantly
catapult StanChart to the position of numero uno among the foreign banks
in India, leaving its closest competitor, Citibank, trailing far behind.
The acquisition, apart from giving StanChart a huge network of 39 branches
spread across 15 cities in India, will also bring a retail customer-base
of 700,000 and a corporate client-base of 900. Earlier, StanChart had 19
branches in nine cities, and a retail customer-base of around 650,000.
Talwar's move also synergises perfectly with StanChart's strategic goal of
becoming the top bank in the emerging markets. Not surprisingly, Talwar,
51, has described the deal as ''the biggest deal StanChart has ever
done,'' adding that Grindlays is a good fit. This glocal banker, who spent
a number of years at Citibank before switching to StanChart, and is an
avid golfer to boot, has clearly struck gold...
Gautam Dalal
 It's
the season of new CEOs. KPMG India has one too: Gautam Dalal. Gautam, who
was a senior partner in the assurance practice of the company's UK
operations, returns to India after a gap of three years. He was part of
the firm's start-up team in India between 1993 and 1997. Subsequently, he
advised corporates on cross-border transactions and listings, including
IPOs. Here, he wants to create a platform for sustainable growth. Says
Gautam, 45: ''Compared to 1993, companies have shifted their emphasis from
the present to the future, and it is exciting to assist them in realising
their vision.'' But as an avid Indian-history buff, don't expect him to
ignore the past altogether...
 Piyush
Gupta
Another banker turns prospector. Piyush Gupta just kicked a long and
fruitful banking career-he was the CEO of Citibank's Indonesian
operations-to head go4i.com, a comprehensive India-specific family of
portals which is a Net venture between the US-based Chase Capital Partners
and media house, The Hindustan Times. go4i. com will have six vertical
portals-health, entertainment, careers, finance, education, and sports-and
a horizontal general interest portal. Piyush has also identified joint
venture partners, like HDFC for the finance vortal, for all six vortals.
Says the new CEO: ''I sincerely believe that the Net, like electricity,
will completely change our lives.'' It certainly has for this
40-year-old...
 Teruo
Ishii
It's been another sort of a move for Teruo Ishii, Sony India's new
head. From the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, where he studied
German, to Europe, Panama, and Chile, interspersed with brief stints at
home-where he also strategised in the Indian arm's set-up operations-he is
now leading from the front. Here since April, 2000, Ishii is counting on
his experience to steer Sony India through choppy waters. Predicts Ishii,
52: ''In five years, Sony India will be among the top three consumer
electronics companies.'' To achieve this, he will expand the company's
product-portfolio and sharpen its distribution and service networks. Will
Ishii have the time to indulge in his twin passions of golf and jazz then?
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