New Delhi,29^th December 2017: Federal Bank partners with Lulu Exchange to make cross border remittances easier, quicker and safer. The two financial companies have launched and successfully tested the service on Blockchain Technology that is fast revolutionizing the financial and commercial world. The new technology, helps organizations share data in a much trusted, distributed and extensively automated way. This ‘Distributed Ledger Platform’, as it is popularly known among its practitioners, is touted to bring the commercial world closer by selective and secure sharing of data between distinctly different businesses thereby encouraging seamless transactions. It foresees transparent operational ease, with little or no human intervention and thereby little or no room for error!

Federal Bank facilitates a major portion of the entire inward remittances in to the country, associating with multiple exchange houses abroad. Lulu Exchange, one of the leading financial services company, has a long history of embracing innovative technology that gives rise to new products and services that enhances customer experience. The current enterprise will bring the best of technology to both the companies. The companies worked with Digiledge, a Bengaluru based fintech startup on this innovation.

“Federal Bank is proud and honored to partner with Lulu Exchange on the innovative use of technology in the world of remittances. Blockchain technology is expected to transform banking in a significant way, and we do believe that our customers and partners will benefit from this innovation in remittances.  Federal Bank’s motto is ‘Digital at the fore, human at the core’ and the launch of block chain technology is one more step in reinforcing this theme”, said Shalini Warrier, Chief Operating Officer, Federal Bank

“Blockchain technology is playing a transformative role in the financial services industry worldwide. Our organization has continuously reinvented itself, be it through our offerings, technology or services. We are excited to partner with Federal Bank for integrating this new technology as it will enable us to ease the industry processes and make transactions more effective for our customers,” said Adeeb Ahamed, Lulu Exchange.

About Federal Bank:

Federal Bank is a leading Private Sector Bank with a branch network of 1,252 branches and 1,680 ATMs spread across the country. The Bank’s total business mix (deposits + advances) stands at Rs 1.72 Lakh Crore as at June 30, 2017 and it has earned a net profit of Rs 210.15 Crore for Q1 FY18.  Bank’s Capital to Risk weighted Ratio (CRAR) stood at 15.28% at the end of June 30, 2017.  Federal Bank has its Representative Office at Dubai and Abu Dhabi that serves as a nerve centre for NRI customers in the UAE. The Bank also has an IFSC Banking Unit (IBU) in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City).Federal Bank is transforming itself, keeping its principles intact, into an organization that offers services beyond par. It has a well-defined vision for the future as a guidepost to its progress. During FY 17 the bank handled around 15 % of the total personal inward remittance to India.

About Lulu Exchange

LuLu Exchange is an ISO 9001:2015 certified global financial services enterprise that serves banking institutions, business houses, local and international corporations as well as individuals. Its services are designed to facilitate secure and instant financial transactions through digitized state-of-the-art systems that deliver flexibility, reliability, and transparency.

Established in 2008, LuLu Exchange Holdings has its global headquarters in Abu Dhabi and has more than 170 branches spread across several GCC countries such as Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain as well as India, Bangladesh, Philippines and Seychelles.

The post Federal Bank partners with Lulu Exchange to leverage Blockchain Technology in cross border remittances appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

• The World Economic Forum has released a new white paper, Collaboration in Cities: From Sharing to ‘Sharing Economy’, identifying and answering key questions for cities about the sharing economy
• What does the sharing economy mean for cities? Who are the actors of the sharing economy? What are the drivers of sharing? What is being shared in cities? How can cities share? What are the issues and challenges in the sharing economy? How should sharing be regulated?
• Case studies from cities around the world – including Seattle, London, New York, Melbourne, São Paulo, Kigali, Seoul, Amsterdam, Barcelona and Kamaishi – show how sharing is transforming citizens’ lives, boosting economies, social cohesion and the environment.
• The complete paper is available here

Geneva, 20 December 2017 – According to Google Trends, the popularity of the phrase “sharing economy” has increased sixteenfold since 2013. But what is it? Sharing economy is often confused with overlapping terms such as the “collaborative economy”, “on-demand economy”, “gig economy”, “freelance economy”, “peer economy”, “access economy”, “crowd economy”, “digital economy” and “platform economy” – distinctions explored in our blog.

Sharing is an age-old concept. But the potential pool of people with whom to share is growing exponentially, as technology-enabled platforms connect and vouch for new members from around the globe. Cities can leverage the potential of the sharing economy in municipal goods, municipal spaces, civic assets, municipal services and skills and the talents of city residents.

“While sharing may often decrease the cost of access, it also has the potential to address long-term societal challenges such as making cities more inclusive and building social connections between groups that might otherwise never have interacted. In experimenting with sharing practices, however, cities will also have to be agile in addressing externalities and disruption to their planning processes, policy formulation and regulatory structures,” said Cheryl Martin, Head of Industries, World Economic Forum.

The paper, mandated by the World Economic Forum Future of Urban Development and Services Initiative Steering and Advisory Committee, explores opportunities and challenges of the sharing economy in cities by highlighting examples and solutions from cities around the world:

• Melbourne is a global leader in the food-sharing sector.
• Seattle has six “libraries of things” in lower- and mixed-income areas, where citizens can borrow tools.
• New York organization 596 Acres supports residents to reclaim and manage public land for communities.
• Barcelona is driving a time-bank project where people exchange their time for doing everyday tasks.
• London has a crowdfunding platform where citizens can propose project ideas and get City Hall’s support.
• Seoul now has 97 distinct sharing schemes, from public bicycles to parking spaces to children’s clothes.
• Kamaishi City is partnering with sharing platforms to prepare for hosting the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
• Kigali motorbike taxi app SafeMotos uses smartphone data to distinguish safe from unsafe drivers.
• Amsterdam is connecting senior citizens and low-income households to sharing platforms via CityPass.
• São Paulo has implemented road-use fees to encourage transport network companies (TNCs) to complement public transit, limiting excess supply during peak hour congestion and augmenting supply when less served.

The paper also explores sharing-economy ideas that span multiple cities:

• “Co-City” protocol is exploring forms of shared, collaborative and polycentric urban governance.
• Sharing Cities Alliance organizes summits, seminars and a knowledge base for cities to draw on.
• Trust Seal is the first Kitemark for sharing-economy companies, proving they adhere to good practice.

“The sharing economy is making cities redefine land-use strategies, minimize their costs, optimize public assets and collaborate with other actors (for-profits, non-profits, social enterprises, communities and other cities) in developing policies and frameworks that encourage continued innovation in this area. This paper focuses on the drivers of sharing in a city and how cities can embark on the sharing journey,” said Gregory Hodkinson, Chairman, Arup Ltd and Chair of the World Economic Forum System Future of Urban Development and Services Initiative.

The sharing economy has its challenges – from establishing trust and reputation to ensuring safety and security, and dealing with the uncertain effects on social equality and limited inclusivity. As Hazem Galal, PwC Global Cities and Government Leader, said: “Regulatory and tax structures need to be revisited to address these concerns as sharing platforms begin to scale across different sectors of the economy. At the same time, developing a culture of sharing within cities to improve services with accountability and transparency would go a long way in shaping the ‘sharing cities’ of the future.”

The paper explores potential solutions to these challenges. It makes the case that sharing in cities can have a transformative impact – boosting the economy and nurturing a sense of community by bringing people into contact with one another, facilitating neighbourliness, and improving the environment by making the most efficient use of resources. Cities have a potential role in facilitating/enabling and harnessing the sharing business models by fostering partnerships that shape a “sharing and collaborative” culture across all industry sectors.

The World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the international organization for Public-Private Cooperation.
The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. (www.weforum.org).

The post How Can Cities Leverage the Potential of the ‘Sharing Economy’?  appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

Oracle Marketing Cloud and WeChat integration enables marketers to generate global leads at scale, improve targeting and increase sales

REDWOOD SHORES, Calif., Sept. 27, 2017 /PRNewswire/ — To enable marketers to quickly and efficiently target and engage customers on one of the world’s fastest growing social media platforms, Oracle today announced a new direct integration between Oracle Eloqua, part of the Oracle Marketing Cloud, and WeChat. The new app-based integration enables marketers to deliver connected and personalized experiences in China and other countries across the globe by seamlessly extending the powerful campaign design, delivery and monitoring capabilities within Oracle Eloqua to WeChat.

WeChat is a dominant social media platform in China with over 963 million users, used by brands and businesses alike to better engage with their customers. The new integration enables global organizations and regional businesses to directly engage WeChat users to build their brand presence in the Chinese market and connect with buyers at scale. Marketers can leverage the integration to add WeChat as a delivery channel during campaign design and send relevant, personalized messages to target audiences straight from the campaign canvas within Oracle Eloqua. In addition, marketers are able to measure the success of campaigns on WeChat by leveraging built-in reporting and analytics within Oracle Eloqua. Furthermore, Oracle is also planning to deepen the integration with WeChat, including enterprise-facing solutions such as WeChat@Work, which complements Oracle’s strength in the SaaS arena. This relationship is expected to deliver significant value and innovation to customers so as to empower their efforts to accelerate the modern business.

“Oracle Marketing Cloud has had tremendous success in helping the Enterprise improve their interaction with their customers and bringing that customer relationship to a whole new level,” said Mr. Lu Qingwei, assistant general manager, Guangzhou Research & Development Department, WeChat, Tencent. “With the introduction of WeChat@Work, which is a communications and collaboration platform for the enterprise, we look forward to an even closer working relationship with Oracle Marketing Cloud to deliver more personalized engagements and enhance the customer experience for our users through WeChat and WeChat@Work.”

The direct, native integration between Oracle Marketing Cloud and WeChat enables marketers to:

• Engage Buyers at Scale: Enables global marketing teams to effectively engage buyers across the globe by sending messages to one or more WeChat official accounts, including subscription and service accounts.
• Derive Greater Insight into Buyer Profiles: By leveraging APIs provided by WeChat, marketers can enrich existing buyer profiles and improve targeting, personalization and scoring within Oracle Eloqua.
• Action WeChat Engagement Data: Marketers can leverage WeChat activity data to orchestrate buyer experiences as part of their cross-channel marketing campaigns within Oracle Eloqua.

“For global and regional businesses serving the Chinese market, WeChat is the key digital channel. This integration enables Oracle Eloqua customers to take full advantage of WeChat to build brand awareness and strengthen customer relationships,” said Steve Krause, group vice president, Product Management, Oracle Marketing Cloud.

Customers can visit the WeChat listing in the Oracle Cloud Marketplace to install the application and begin implementing WeChat in Oracle Marketing Cloud. For more information on the news, please visit the Oracle Marketing Cloud blog.

Oracle Marketing Cloud is part of Oracle CX Cloud Suite. Oracle CX Cloud Suite empowers organizations to take a smarter approach to customer experience management and business transformation initiatives. By providing a trusted business platform that connects data, experiences and outcomes, Oracle CX Cloud Suite helps customers reduce IT complexity, deliver innovative customer experiences and achieve predictable and tangible business results. The Oracle CX Cloud Suite includes Oracle Commerce Cloud, Oracle Marketing Cloud, Oracle Sales Cloud and Oracle Service Cloud.

About Oracle
The Oracle Cloud offers complete SaaS application suites for ERP, HCM and CX, plus best-in-class database Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) from data centers throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information about Oracle (NYSE:ORCL), please visit us at www.oracle.com.

About WeChat
Since 2011, WeChat has brought about a new way for people to communicate by integrating real-time communication, entertainment, social and everyday offline services into a single mobile application. For more information, please visit www.wechat.com/en.

About WeChat@Work
WeChat@Work is the communications and collaboration platform which aims to elevate the work efficiency for the Enterprise. For more information, please visit work.weixin.qq.com.

The post Oracle Empowers Marketers to Leverage World’s Fastest Growing SocialMedia Platform appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

Høvik, Norway, 25 September 2017 – DNV GL has transferred all its 90 000 certificates to a private blockchain, being the first in the certification industry to leverage on this technology. Every certificate is digitally tagged, traceable and stored in a private blockchain. The technology blocks counterfeit certificates, allowing companies to communicate their certification in a transparent and secure way.

“For 150 years, we in DNV GL have been in the business of building trust, but in the age of digital transformation, there is an increased need for transparency in a volatile business environment,” says Luca Crisciotti, CEO of DNV GL – Business Assurance.

In an increased effort to build digital trust, DNV GL in partnership with Deloitte EMEA Blockchain Lab have now delivered the first live blockchain solution in the certification industry.

“This is one of the first blockchain applications outside the finance industry, and it shows the limitless possibilities this technology provides. In not too long there will be concepts, prototypes and investments emerging in every major industry,” says Martin Bryn, Partner at Deloitte.

As a business assurance provider, DNV GL works in a variety of industries to certify companies’ processes, products, facilities and supply chains to national and international standards. When a certificate is issued, the data is digitized, sent to the blockchain and a digital identity is assigned to each certificate. All certificates are uniquely tagged and traceable and the original is stored in a network of computers instead of a central repository. In total, this makes it possible to uncover fraud and by scanning a QR code on the certificate anyone can through the blockchain verify that a company is certified.

“Putting our certificates in the blockchain is the first step towards building a new digital assurance concept. Our objective is to use blockchain and other disruptive technologies to provide new services and continue to create value for our customers,” says Renato Grottola, Global Digital Transformation Director, DNV GL – Business Assurance.

The post DNV GL and Deloitte first to leverage on blockchain technology to advance the certification industry appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

60% of the 660 professionals surveyed – research an organization before accepting their job offer. Further 35% of them rely on company review sites to do this research about the company, reveals JobBuzz.

April 25, 2017: Today’s professionals no longer look for jobs, they are looking for career development and long-term growth. With a host of information channels available to them, they carefully review any job opportunity by scanning company reviews to assess the reputation of the organization and the career growth offered.

Most professionals research companies online

In a recent study conducted by the recently revamped JobBuzz, (a company rating platform powered by TimesJobs) the clear majority of working professionals agreed that whether one is at the beginning of job search, preparing for an interview or contemplating a job offer, being armed with information about the prospective company is in one’s best interest. Among the 660 working professionals who participated in the study 60% of working admitted to checking up on the company before accepting a job offer.

Over 35% of professionals rely on company review platforms to check out and research a prospective company. About 30% them use web search and scan through articles, stories, media mentions and Wikipedia to gather insights about the organization they are looking to work with.

About 19% of the surveyed professionals rely on word-of-mouth to get an understanding about the work culture, leadership and other aspects of the organization and 16% scan the company website for relevant information.

“The quality of talent an organization is able to attract and retain is crucial to its success in today’s highly competitive environment. TimesJobs’ study clearly shows that companies that are active on employer review sites are able to engage with top talent and build their reputation as one of the best places to work – giving them the critical edge as an employer of choice,” says Nilanjan Roy, Head of Strategy, Times Business Solutions.

Company Reviews help assess organizations candidly

Emphasizing the importance of company review platforms 35% professionals say that they could assess the company comprehensively – across multiple parameters. Nearly 30% feel they are a big benefit when you are unsure of which company to select, since they give you a lot of information and provide suggestions. Another 15% say they do not rely on only on company reviews, but seek out other sources as well while making career decisions. Interestingly 20% professionals felt that most reviews on such websites were planted or fake.

However, the significance of having a good number of positive reviews on a company rating website must not be discounted. This is further supported by the fact that 25% of professionals use company rating websites every time they get a job offer. About 45% say they use it sometimes, when they are not very knowledgeable about the company, while 20% say they rarely use it and 10% say they access other sources for company information. Incidentally besides reading reviews about future employers nearly 70% professionals also say that they also post their own reviews about their current & previous organizations.

Company Culture is the most important factor

TimesJobs Study also revealed the checklist of parameters on which professionals use to assess a potential employer. Among the factors mentioned, company culture is the most crucial factor for almost 40% professionals, for 35% of them work-life balance is their focus while checking company reviews. Nearly 30% professionals say salary scales are of high importance for them. Rewards and recognition is a decisive factor for another 30% professionals and 25% look at the learning & development opportunities critically.

Reviews impact Employee Perceptions

The impact of company reviews on a professional’s decision can be gauged by the fact that 90% of the surveyed professionals’ perceptions had been altered after reading a company review. For 50% professionals, it had positively impacted their decision to take up the job at a specific company, implying the review has created good impression about the company. For 40% professionals, it has negatively impacted their decision and created a bad impression about the company. Another 10% professionals said their career decisions were not impacted by reading reviews.

This JobBuzz study clearly reiterates that the days of indiscriminately applying to jobs through newspapers, or depending on friends and family for recommendations are passֳ©. In today’s highly competitive business environment online and social media are the new modes of recruitment, the critical aspect is how effectively companies can engage and respond to past, present and future employees on these platforms.

JobBuzz itself was recently revamped with a slew of new features that significantly enhance engagement and the insights it provides into companies. A brief description of the newly launched features:

• Top 5 reasons to work: Surveyed feedback from employees working in that company. It highlights what the employees feel positively about their company.
• Top 5 reasons to leave: This is also a survey result of the employees. It tells the parameters employee does not like or enjoy in their company.
• Average job tenure: Job tenure in a company speaks a lot regarding the work culture, career growth, salary standards, etc. This is a unique feature available only on JobBuzz. Here candidates can find a comparative analysis with respect to industry standards.
• Employee strength by Education: It speaks of the mix of employees with respect to various educational qualifications. Candidates can compare the company with the respective industry standard.
• Employee’s Feedback for New Joinees: Feedback from the employees for new joinees. Includes suggestions, advice and tips for them to settle into the organization.
• Employee’s Feedback for company/management: Feedback, advice or suggestions from the employees for improvement/betterment in certain areas of the management/company.
• Rating Trends: Rating trends across the year provides very important insights about the company. Candidates can find how the company is perceived among its employees in terms of Career Growth, Work Culture, Salary Hikes and Work-Life Balance over a period.
• Insights from employees: Provides insider information regarding the company. Includes candid experiences regarding certain sensitive information like salary hike, frequency of promotions, etc.
• Compare with competitors: Provides a comparison between two companies with respect to different HR policy parameters.
• Interview Tips: With the widest range of potential interview questions, TimesJobs further helps professionals understand different employer’s interview methods and help them prepare to ace their interviews.

Visit http://jobbuzz.timesjobs.com/ to discover more about the company of your interest.

About TimesJobs.com:

TimesJobs.com, a flagship business of Times Business Solutions (TBS), is a platform to help competent professionals make smarter career decisions. With over 25 million registered jobseekers across the board and more than 60 million page views every month, it is fast becoming the most preferred career portal among the candidates.

TimesJobs is leading in the recruitment and employment space with its pioneering and dynamic divisions because it successfully meets all the needs of the jobseekers. Its major platforms include:

• TechGig: India’s biggest dais for tech professionals to help them Learn, Showcase & Compete in the IT industry.
• JobBuzz: A well-known portal that provides information & insights about different companies, job profiles and interview processes.
• StepAhead: StepAhead offers Professional Resume writing and distribution services, career astrology, resume improvement to help jobseekers accelerate their career.

Also, TimesJobs has the largest collection of jobs in the market, which ensures that whenever and wherever there is a great opportunity, jobseekers will discover it on the platform.

In the recruitment market as well, being the biggest platform for competent professionals who think of their careers first, TimesJobs has become the destination of choice for recruiters who seek to engage with the right talent.

The post Companies that leverage Review Platforms attract Top Talent: JobBuzz Study appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

8th July, 2016, Global financial services consultancy and capital market specialist Hatstand, a Synechron company, announces it has established a strategic partnership with Sqreem, a pattern detection and predictive analysis software firm, to jointly provide solutions for use with financial crime. Financial firms will benefit from a next generation surveillance platform that uses statistical (machine) learning and big data mining to help protect assets, client accounts and data from financial crime.

Sqreem’s technology allows firms to protect against financial crime through algorithms that can detect anomalies in patterns that can identify illicit behaviour and even predict future behaviour. Firms can then react in real or near-real time to the threat and proactively put defences in place. The solution offers instant scaling across multiple hardware resource environments (cloud), and can connect data from any source. The solution can be used to detect a wide variety of financial crimes including: cyber fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, rogue trading, bribery, corruption and market abuse.

Hatstand is a leading consultancy that works closely with capital markets institutions around the world on the most pressing business issues, including financial crime. Hatstand with Synechron will deliver the sales, implementation and client support around Sqreem’s software, working with firms to define the datasets to include, test and integrate the system, as well as train users. It will also help customise reporting or dashboards to reflect individual organisational needs.

 “Global financial institutions face daunting and complex challenges in light of increasing fraud and regulation. They need to rely on technology to help pull together the disparate sources of data to identify aberrant behaviour,” says Ian Chapman-Banks, CEO of Sqreem. “By partnering with Hatstand and Synechron, we will be able to apply their extensive knowledge and expertise to leverage our software for the financial industry.”

Brad O’Brien, CEO at Hatstand comments: “Through this partnership, our capital market clients will benefit from truly innovative technology. We’re excited to pair our detailed knowledge services with Sqreem’s capability in machine learning and big data”.

According to FINRA, in 2015 alone there were “1,512 disciplinary actions and $95.1 million handed out in fines.” In addition, technology research firm Gartner predicts that by 2017, firms leveraging predictive business performance metrics will be 20 percent more profitable due to the fact they are using predictive business performance metrics to guide decisions, provide insights and proactively respond to threats.

About Sqreem

Sqreem operate a highly refined machine-intelligence platform capable of deconstructing and mapping complex processes, without the need to engage in any forms of machine learning.  The technology is designed to operate autonomously and self-adapt towards a wide spectrum of deployment scenarios.  It has the capability to ‘make sense’ of highly chaotic or rapidly changing environments.

About Hatstand, a Synechron Company

Hatstand, a Synechron company, is a Global Financial Consultancy and Capital Markets Specialist.  It operates in three key areas of financial markets:  Trading – Systems & Connectivity, Data Management and Regulation & Risk. In May 2016, global consulting and technology innovator in the financial services, Synechron, acquired Hatstand.

About Synechron

Synechron is a global consulting and technology organization providing innovative solutions to the financial services industry through its three main business focus areas: digital, business consulting, and technology. Based in New York, the company has 16 offices around the globe, with over 6,000 employees producing close to  $400M in annual revenue. For more information on the company please visit the website or our LinkedIn community.

The post HATSTAND PARTNERS WITH SQREEM TO LEVERAGE STATISTICAL (MACHINE) LEARNING IN THE FIGHT AGAINST FINANCIAL CRIME appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

Report Released at Make in India Week, Mumbai by Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Hon’ble Minister for Food Processing Industries

Mumbai, February 16, 2016: YES BANK has partnered with the Ministry of Food Processing Industries as the Sector Partner for the ongoing Make in India Week. At the inaugural session of the seminar on Food Processing Industries, YES BANK, MoFPI, Invest India and CII released a strategic report ‘Make in India: Opportunities in Food Processing Sector’ (attached) which provides an extensive review of the food processing opportunities in India.

The report was released at the Make in India Week, Mumbai by Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Hon’ble Minister for Food Processing Industries, Shri Avinash K Srivastava, Secretary, MoFPI and Mr. Rana Kapoor, MD & CEO, YES BANK and Chairman, YES Institute.

Speaking at the session, Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Hon’ble Minister for Food Processing Industries, said, “The Food Processing Industry in India rests on two strong pillars of the Indian economy – Agriculture and Manufacturing, which are the key sectors of a developing nation. This sunrise sector is currently going through a positive transition, wherein policies are being amended, a conducing investment ecosystem is being created and all efforts to set up the required infrastructure are being made. Given the inherent strengths of India in availability of quality raw material and availability of skilled and unskilled workforce at competitive prices, I am sure that the country shall soon become the food processing hub for the world and shall bolster food exports, mapping India as a key player in global trade.”

Speaking at the session, Avinash K Srivastava, Secretary, MoFPI, said, “The Food Processing sector in the country has immense potential to attract huge investments with abundant supply of raw materials, suitable human resource, encouraging policy initiatives and investor friendly governance ecosystem. With higher levels of food wastage and lower levels of processing than the standards in the developed countries India can offer tremendous future growth in this industry. Our food processing industry ranks 5th in production, consumption and exports and accounts for 32% of the country’s total food market. This bold and timely ‘Make in India’ initiative showcases the prospect of channelizing resources to this sector to achieve higher income and gainful employment vis a vis sustainable gainful returns for the global and domestic investor community.

Commenting on the sector, Mr. Rana Kapoor, MD&CEO, YES BANK said, “India’s Food Processing sector is the single biggest enabler of multiplier benefits for India. An increased growth rate of the sector from the current 8% to 15%, will catapult India into a virtuous cycle of sustainable development, inclusive growth & economic prosperity for the Farmer, and for the Nation. The USD 260 bn sector, currently growing at 9%, has the potential to grow at higher levels of 15%. High value perishables processing focus, rural asset creation & infrastructure development, modernization and capacity expansion of logistics & cold chain infrastructure, regulatory enablement through a consultative approach between the industry & government, efficiently administered PPP initiatives and skill development are the key enablers in order to actualize this potential. Proactive initiatives under the strategic ‘Make in India’ mission, coupled with adequate policy reforms, investment in  infrastructure and revamping the investment ecosystem, will help to position India as the preferred food processing hub, globally.”

Several key initiatives by the Government like according priority status to all agro-processing businesses, setting-up of mega food parks, allowing 100% FDI in the food processing and cold chain infrastructure, streamlining supply-chain as well as facilitating exports, are highly praiseworthy and key to realize the immense potential of the sector.

The post YES BANK-MoFPI-CII Report Highlights Key Opportunities to Leverage Food Processing Sector & Boost Make in India appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

When Suzlon Energy began taking over Western wind energy businesses, the world woke up to Indian wind power capabilities. Here was a company that boasted of an enormous track record in India and had an excellent bottom-line backed by a healthy stock market performance. Unfortunately the euphoria was short lived as Suzlon began reporting losses and got embroiled in crisis after crisis which caused its stock to nosedive from over Rs. 400 per share to near face value threshold at Rs. 12 per share in a period of five years.

A combination of factors including the global financial crisis led to Suzlon’s troubles in 2009 and it was not before the middle of 2011 that the company managed to overcome losses and regain profitability. However, the stock market refuses to buy its success story resulting in its stock still lying buried near the face value threshold at around Rs. 12 per share. This is despite the fact that the company still boasts of an impressive order book valued at over USD 7 billion. The previous government’s policies also didn’t help energize investor confidence on wind energy businesses.

The new government came to power with the stated aim of maximizing the utilization of renewable energy including wind power and announced a slew of policies that would become effective within a year. One such policy is the integrated single window policy aimed at developing offshore wind energy which has tremendous potential in India. Not one to let opportunities slip out, Suzlon didn’t waste time in announcing that it plans to set up a 300 MW offshore wind farm for a pilot project and went on to initiate the techno-economic study of the proposed project.

The completion of the study is expected to coincide with the government’s announcement of the integrated single window policy by next year as Suzlon wants to be the first off the blocks in harnessing offshore wind energy in India. The company is serious about forward integration involving setting up of wind farms and operating them. Its German subsidiary Senvion has the capability to make large sized offshore wind turbines and this will give Suzlon the necessary edge when it enters the fray in the Indian offshore wind energy segment.

It is apparent that the improved scenario for renewable energy in India is going to rub off on investor perception of the industry which remained cagey till May 2014 as India barely added 2 GW of renewable power in the year. With the new government resolving to increase that fivefold, the sector has suddenly come to the center-stage of the Indian economy. A significant part of India’s economic development as envisaged by this government will depend on sustainable and affordable energy sources and this is where the country’s huge renewable energy potential will chip in.

Suzlon already enjoys the redoubtable reputation of being the fifth largest wind turbine maker in the world and with its well-thought out integration into wind farm installation and management, the company has already positioned itself suitably for a larger role in the sector, globally. Suzlon has already installed 8,500 MW of the total wind power capacity of about 22,000 MW in India. After Gujarat, where the Suzlon story effectively began, the company began betting big in Madhya Pradesh and has announced further mega investment plans in the state.

The company now intends to develop another 2,000 MW of wind power capacity in the state at a cost of Rs. 15,000 crores. For a profit-making company with such formidable technological capabilities and a massive order book, it won’t be long before its market capitalization begins to look better. One of the reasons for the lackluster performance of its share in the market was the unpromising industry scenario before the new government came in with the stated objective of giving a major boost to the sector.

(Dev K Dutta has been following developments in the renewable energy sector as a freelance journalist since the year 2000. He has always held that this is one of the next big sectors that will drive the growing Indian economy in the near future. He likes to share and receive views and opinion on this vital sector. )
You can follow Dev K Dutta in Twitter: https://twitter.com/DevKDutta

The post Will Suzlon be able to leverage improved public confidence on the new government’s renewable energy thrust? – Dev K Dutta appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

McAfee Study Reveals Screensavers and “Skills” Video Downloads as Most Likely to Pose Risk to Fans

India – June 4, 2014 – According to research from McAfee, part of Intel Security, cybercriminals are most likely to use Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo to lure visitors to web pages designed to infect them with malware. The McAfee “Red Card Club” showcases the top eleven Brazil-bound players whose web pages are considered to be risky for fans to search for online. Following Ronaldo are Argentina’s Lionel Messi, Spain’s Iker Cassillas, Brazil’s Neymar and Algeria’s Karim Ziani.

As is common with other cultural sensations, cybercriminals leverage consumer interest in the world’s most popular sport to lure them to websites rigged with malware, malicious code capable of infecting a user’s machine and stealing passwords and personal information. McAfee researchers have used McAfee® SiteAdvisor® site ratings to determine which sites are risky to search when coupled with footballer names and have calculated an overall risk percentage.

According to the research, fans run the greatest risk when visiting sites offering screensaver downloads and videos showcasing the extraordinary skills of the players. Searching for the latest Cristiano Ronaldo content yields more than a 3.7% chance of landing on a website that has tested positive for online threats, such as spyware, adware, spam, phishing, viruses and other malware.

Players make the McAfee “Red Card Club” by scoring among the top eleven positions in terms of greatest percent chance of web page risk:

“Consider the McAfee “Red Card Club” as our effort to warn consumers against allowing passion to trump digital hygiene,” said Paula Greves, director of web security research at McAfee. “Cybercriminals can’t resist taking advantage of ‘fever-pitch’ excitement around this summer’s epic matchups in Brazil. The danger is that this anticipation could lead fans to download content from pages they shouldn’t to fulfill their football experience.”

Tips to Stay Protected

To avoid the summertime blues of becoming infected during the Brazil games and beyond, fans can follow a set of basic tips to protect themselves wherever their love of the game may take them:

• Beware of content that prompts you to download anything before providing you the content. Opt to watch streaming videos or download content from official websites of content providers.

• “Free downloads” are the highest virus-prone search term. Anyone searching for videos or files to download should be careful to not unleash malware on their computer.
• Established news sites may not entice you with exclusives for one solid reason: there usually aren’t any. Stick to official news sites that you trust for breaking news. However, trusted sites can also fall prey to hackers. Make sure to use a safe search tool that will notify you of risky sites or links before you visit them. A complimentary version of SiteAdvisor software can be downloaded at www.siteadvisor.com.

• Don’t download videos from suspect sites. Most news clips you’d want to see can easily be found on official video sites, and don’t require you to download anything. If a website offers an exclusive video for you to download, don’t.
• Don’t “log in” or provide other information. If you receive a message, text or email or visit a third-party website that asks for your information—credit card, email, home address, Facebook login, or other information—for access to an exclusive story, don’t give it out. Such requests are a common tactic for phishing that could lead to identity theft.
• If you do decide to search for information on a major event or celebrity in the news, make sure your entire household’s devices have protection. McAfee LiveSafe protects all devices including PCs, Macs, tablets and smartphone and it also includes malware detection software, McAfee® Mobile Security, to protect your smartphone or tablet from all types of malware.
• Always use password protection on your phone and other mobile devices. If your phone is lost or stolen, anyone who picks up the device could publish your information online.

About McAfee SiteAdvisor technology

McAfee SiteAdvisor technology protects users from malicious websites and browser exploits. SiteAdvisor technology tests and rates nearly every trafficked site on the Internet and uses red, yellow and green icons to indicate the website’s risk level. SiteAdvisor site ratings are created by using patented advanced technology to conduct automated website tests SiteAdvisor software works with Internet Explorer and Firefox.

About McAfee

McAfee, part of Intel Security and a wholly owned subsidiary of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC), empowers businesses, the public sector, and home users to safely experience the benefits of the Internet. The company delivers proactive and proven security solutions and services for systems, networks, and mobile devices around the world. With its visionary Security Connected strategy, innovative approach to hardware-enhanced security, and unique global threat intelligence network, McAfee is relentlessly focused on keeping its customers safe. http://www.mcafee.com

The post Ronaldo tops McAfee Red Card Club for riskiest online searches for footballers appeared first on Core Sector Communique.

The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and the Reporting and Assurance Frameworks Initiative (RAFI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to underline their mutual commitment to advancing meaningful corporate human rights reporting.

Both GRI and RAFI believe that robust human rights reporting is a key means of embedding respect for human rights into business practices, as called for by the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs).

The UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, unanimously endorsed by the UN Human Rights Council in June 2011, establish the authoritative global standard on the respective roles of business and governments for ensuring business respect for human rights. Many businesses around the world are now looking at how they can implement the Guiding Principles in their operations.

The GRI Sustainability Reporting Guidelines are the most widely used and comprehensive instrument for human rights reporting. Human rights disclosure has been embedded in the Guidelines since the G3.1 version was released in 2011, and G4, the fourth generation of the Guidelines, includes key elements of the UNGPs.  

RAFI is a recently launched initiative focused on the development of public, non-proprietary frameworks to guide companies in reporting on their implementation of the UNGPs, and to guide assurance providers on the assurance of those reports. The project is based on an open and multi-stakeholder consultative process, overseen by an Eminent Persons Group and facilitated by a project team comprised of Shift, Mazars, and the Human Rights Resource Centre for ASEAN.

The MoU between GRI and RAFI reflects their joint commitment to identify opportunities for the language of the reporting and assurance frameworks to dovetail with the GRI Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. This should ensure that GRI and RAFI together provide companies with a clear roadmap on how best to report on the implementation of the UNGPs.

GRI Deputy Chief Executive Teresa Fogelberg said: “I am delighted to announce this close collaboration between GRI and RAFI. The large GRI network, which includes thousands of reporting companies globally, represents a huge opportunity to drive improvements in human rights implementation across the world through communicating and reporting on human rights performance and their implementation of the UNGPs. The reporting practice built by these thousands of companies is a hugely valuable resource, which can be leveraged to measure and manage human rights impact and to scale up the contribution business makes globally to improving human rights standards.”

Caroline Rees, President of Shift and speaking on behalf of the RAFI project team, said: “This MoU is an important development for RAFI and we are greatly looking forward to collaborating with GRI. While the reporting framework developed through RAFI should give necessary additional guidance on what good human rights reporting looks like, it is important that it should both learn from and dovetail with GRI’s G4 guidance to the greatest extent possible. This consideration will be an important part of RAFI’s on-going consultations with stakeholders.”

For more information on GRI see: www.globalreporting.org 

The post GRI and RAFI collaborate to leverage the power of business to advance respect for human rights appeared first on Core Sector Communique.