Thursday, September 18, 2008
Monday, September 1, 2008
Sunday, August 31, 2008
"In the long run we are all dead"
John Maynard Keynes
Though the world had embraced his ideas, he made it to the cover of the TIME magazine almost 20 years after his death.
Tata Crucible Corporate Edition 2008- Bangalore Edition
Prelims:
1) Which international voluntary organization was founded by the present French minister for foreign affairs Bernard Kouchner?
Ans: Doctors without borders
2) Which Indian was the richest man in the world in 1937 and appeared on the cover of Time magazine?
Ans: Nizam of Hyderabad
3) Ad Campaign
Ans: Happydent
4) Which legendary CEO owns a restaurant chain called Koo Koo Roo?
Ans: Lee Iacocca
5) Which television personality who in his early career did commercials for Doritos brand of chips is an automobile collector and writes a column in Popular Mechanics?
Ans: Jay Leno
6) ALFA Passenger, a new diesel powered three wheeler is by which company?
Ans: Mahindra
7) Which brand (foods) was sold by Marico to Good Food group of Denmark?
Ans: Sil Jam
8) Which auto major launched S80 sedan and XC90 SUV in the Indian market?
Ans: Volvo
9) Hello Money, an innovative mobile banking service was launched and promises to take convenience to a new level. Which bank has introduced this concept?
Ans: Barclays Bank
10) Accor, is in talks to create neighbourhood hotels under the naem Formulae-1 with which Indian group, famous in the retail space?
Ans: A V Birla Group
11) Photo
Ans: M Damodaran
12) Which is the first train to be branded as 'Airtel Rajdhani Express'? (i.e which city to Delhi)
Ans: Bangalore
13) Tara International, an affiliate of Bengal Enamel has planned Tiny and Titu. What are they?
Ans: Less than 1 lakh (Electric) cars
14) In the mid 40s I signed on for the Blue Books three month modelling course and was hired by Holga Steel (for some host party i think). Who am I?
Ans: Marilyn Monroe
15) Which Public-Private enterprise would the person in picture head (pic of Albert Bruener)?
Ans: Bangalore International Airport Limited
16) Which Indian fashion designers said 'We dont make garments, we make heirlooms'?
Ans: Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla
17) Which Hollywood superstar owns a production house 'play tone'?
Ans: Tom Hanks
18) Which Indian was elected to the board of aviation giant American Airlines?
Ans: Rajat Gupta
19) Which management guru explained synergy as 2 + 2 = 5?
Ans: Igor Ansoff
20) Which media conglomerate did Lowry Mays and Red McCombs found in 1972 and focuses only on radio?
Ans: Clear Channel Communications
21) Established by a British gentleman whose name it took in the year 1908. It was later managed by Dr M.N Mahadevan in 1955 . Which Bangalore 'landmark'?
Ans: Cash Pharmacy
22) Which Indian film director , who owns 'Sahyadri Films' once worked as an ad executive at Lintas?
Ans: Shyam Benegal
23) Which apparel compnay has a CSR initiative 'Being Family' that it has trademarked to help families who adopt children?
Ans: Jockey
1) Which international voluntary organization was founded by the present French minister for foreign affairs Bernard Kouchner?
Ans: Doctors without borders
2) Which Indian was the richest man in the world in 1937 and appeared on the cover of Time magazine?
Ans: Nizam of Hyderabad
3) Ad Campaign
Ans: Happydent
4) Which legendary CEO owns a restaurant chain called Koo Koo Roo?
Ans: Lee Iacocca
5) Which television personality who in his early career did commercials for Doritos brand of chips is an automobile collector and writes a column in Popular Mechanics?
Ans: Jay Leno
6) ALFA Passenger, a new diesel powered three wheeler is by which company?
Ans: Mahindra
7) Which brand (foods) was sold by Marico to Good Food group of Denmark?
Ans: Sil Jam
8) Which auto major launched S80 sedan and XC90 SUV in the Indian market?
Ans: Volvo
9) Hello Money, an innovative mobile banking service was launched and promises to take convenience to a new level. Which bank has introduced this concept?
Ans: Barclays Bank
10) Accor, is in talks to create neighbourhood hotels under the naem Formulae-1 with which Indian group, famous in the retail space?
Ans: A V Birla Group
11) Photo
Ans: M Damodaran
12) Which is the first train to be branded as 'Airtel Rajdhani Express'? (i.e which city to Delhi)
Ans: Bangalore
13) Tara International, an affiliate of Bengal Enamel has planned Tiny and Titu. What are they?
Ans: Less than 1 lakh (Electric) cars
14) In the mid 40s I signed on for the Blue Books three month modelling course and was hired by Holga Steel (for some host party i think). Who am I?
Ans: Marilyn Monroe
15) Which Public-Private enterprise would the person in picture head (pic of Albert Bruener)?
Ans: Bangalore International Airport Limited
16) Which Indian fashion designers said 'We dont make garments, we make heirlooms'?
Ans: Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla
17) Which Hollywood superstar owns a production house 'play tone'?
Ans: Tom Hanks
18) Which Indian was elected to the board of aviation giant American Airlines?
Ans: Rajat Gupta
19) Which management guru explained synergy as 2 + 2 = 5?
Ans: Igor Ansoff
20) Which media conglomerate did Lowry Mays and Red McCombs found in 1972 and focuses only on radio?
Ans: Clear Channel Communications
21) Established by a British gentleman whose name it took in the year 1908. It was later managed by Dr M.N Mahadevan in 1955 . Which Bangalore 'landmark'?
Ans: Cash Pharmacy
22) Which Indian film director , who owns 'Sahyadri Films' once worked as an ad executive at Lintas?
Ans: Shyam Benegal
23) Which apparel compnay has a CSR initiative 'Being Family' that it has trademarked to help families who adopt children?
Ans: Jockey
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Monday, August 25, 2008
Quizit..25 August -08
1. Jeffrey Raikes has replaced Patty Stonesifer as the chief executive of which organisation?
2. The XPS brand of gaming systems belongs to which company?
3. Arvind Mills has been renamed as what?
4. 'Like Nothing Else' is the base line of which General Motors brand in the news recently?
5. Which new Research in Motion product is said to be targeting iPhone's market?
6. If Paris' Avenue des Champs Elysees and Hong Kong's Causeway Bay hold the third and second spots in the list of world's most expensive shopping streets, which is No. 1?
7. Yellow Chilli is the name of the restaurant chain promoted by ...?
Answers
1. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
2. Dell
3. Arvind LTD
4. Hummer
5. Blackberry Bold
6. Fifth Avenue
7. Chef Sanjeev Kapoor
Top of Form
2. The XPS brand of gaming systems belongs to which company?
3. Arvind Mills has been renamed as what?
4. 'Like Nothing Else' is the base line of which General Motors brand in the news recently?
5. Which new Research in Motion product is said to be targeting iPhone's market?
6. If Paris' Avenue des Champs Elysees and Hong Kong's Causeway Bay hold the third and second spots in the list of world's most expensive shopping streets, which is No. 1?
7. Yellow Chilli is the name of the restaurant chain promoted by ...?
Answers
1. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
2. Dell
3. Arvind LTD
4. Hummer
5. Blackberry Bold
6. Fifth Avenue
7. Chef Sanjeev Kapoor
Top of Form
Quizit..26 August-08
1. Born as a Jew, he was deported to Buchenwald during World War II, when he refused to collaborate with the German aviation industry. He changed his name from Bloch to X in 1949 which was the code/pseudonym of his brother in the French resistance which was the French 'for assault', and also is the name of the company he went on to start. Who was he and the company name please?
2. In 1888, he set up his first venture - a small bicycle repair shop at Belgaum. Strongly believing that agricultural implements must fit the milieu they are used in, he manufactured iron ploughs. However in January 1910, when they were ousted from Belgaum to make room for a new suburb, they found themselves in dire need of a place to live and work. Sensing this need, the Raja of the princely state of Aundh, who admired and respected this person, offered the latter all the land he needed in Aundh state and this was the place where this person’s dream was realized. The Man and the place please?
3. "Power is nothing without control," is the well known slogan of which company?
4. It is a chain of seafood restaurants launched in 1996 by Viacom Consumer Products and the Rusty Pelican Company. It became the first theme restaurant inspired by a film. There are now twenty locations, all located in the United States and Asia. The menu consists mostly of shrimp dishes, but also other seafood, as well as Southern and Cajun cuisine. Name please? For bonus points name this strategy.
5. It was one of a line of five monster-themed breakfast cereals produced by General Mills, Other cereals in the product line being Count Chocula (chocolate-flavored), Boo Berry (blueberry-flavored), Franken Berry (strawberry-flavored), and Yummy Mummy. Although the cereal was discontinued in 1983 a very famous personality saved a box of it and it prominently appears in two of his masterpieces. Name the breakfast cereal brand and the person. Fundaes please.
6. In 1996, after gaining experience as a pornographic magazine model, she read ‘The HTML Manual of Style’ and Nicholas Negroponte's ‘Being Digital’ during a vacation at the beach. On her return to the US she locked herself in her bedroom and two weeks later she had written the entire code for her website. Now she is the CEO of a pioneering Web site and DHD Media, a subsidiary of her core business, provides Internet infrastructure services for companies in all realms of business. During its first two years online her website was one of the busiest in the world, using more bandwidth than the whole of Central America combined. Who is this lady?
7. X is a marketing icon and mascot and has been appearing in television commercials since 1989. X only appears in North America, due to the rival Y, of which X is a parody that is used in Europe. People often get the two confused, although there are distinct differences between the two and the most striking being X wears sunglasses. Identify X and Y.
8. In 1997, the TATAs sold Lakme to HLL and acquired Britain based Littlewoods chain. What did it later re emerge as?
9. Founded in 1932 it is an international retail franchise comprising over 17,500 convenience stores in 34 operating regions. It's original name, is an acronym of the initial letters of a phrase in local language meaning "All will benefit from united co-operation". The name translates into English as fir tree, and hence it's logo is a fir tree. Which franchise?
Answers:-1) Marcel Dassault and Dassault2) Laxmanrao Kirloskar and Kirloskarwadi3) Pirelli4) Bubba Gump Fisheries and Reverse Product Placement5) Fruit Brute. Quentin Tarantino saved a box before the cereal was discontinued in 1983. It prominently appears in Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction6)Danni Ashe of the Danni's Hard Drive fame7) Energizer Bunny is X and Duracell Bunny is Y8) Westside9) SPAR
Branchless banking in India
Branchless banking can greatly extend the distribution of financial services to poor people, both by reducing the cost of delivery (of building and maintaining branches, and handling low value transactions directly) and by reducing the cost to customers of accessing services (travel and queuing time).
There was a great deal of excitement therefore in early 2006 when the RBI came out with a circular permitting the use of “business correspondents” by bank branches in order to increase client coverage and financial inclusion. The business correspondents (BCs) would, on behalf of the banks, for a commission, disburse small value credit, recover principal and interest, collect small deposits, receive and deliver small value remittances, and sell micro-insurance, pension and other products.
According to the Rangarajan Committee on Financial Inclusion, reporting a couple of years later, only 27% of farm households have access to bank credit. The committee called for access to financial services, including credit, to be raised to 50% 2012 and 100% 2015. The business correspondent model, riding on appropriate technology, was to be the “core of the strategy”, with the goal of having at least one BC in every village.
The BC idea came from Brazil where retail vendors, lottery outlets and post offices double as bank branches for customers. An estimated $1 billion in transactions were processed through Brazil’s 90,000 agents in 2005, and about 12 million accounts were opened across this network in only three years. Banking agents process transactions with point-of-sale (POS) devices such as biometric or smart card readers, barcode scanners and sometimes personal computers that connect with the bank server using dial-up or other data connection means, including mobile phones.
They collect and disburse cash, make bill payments and other money transfers, and fill in credit applications. Some agents generate so much business that they dedicate an employee for operating the POS device. The idea has spread to several other Latin American countries. In Peru it is estimated 40 banking agents can be opened for the price of one branch.
Challenges remain even in Latin America. In locations not served by banks most users open an account primarily to access welfare payments, or because their employer deposits their salary directly into their account. Apart from withdrawals, the most frequent use of the accounts is for making utility bill payments. The vast majority of clients do not use the full range of financial services on offer, such as makings small savings deposits, or availing of credit. This is analogous to the situation in India where NREGA and pension payments are increasingly being deposited directly into bank accounts in Andhra Pradesh and elsewhere.
The experience is, however, that most clients are so poor that they withdraw their entire balance, leaving little in their accounts as savings. Another difficulty with the use of agents that has surfaced in Latin America is in managing their liquidity, since most of them handle more cash inflows than outflows. To mitigate the risk of excessive liquidity with their agents, banks may have to ask them to refuse larger payments, or require them to deposit the inflows in a bank branch above a certain limit.
However, in India the BC model has not taken off at all. The reason lies in our usual bureaucratic penchant for half measures. For one thing, in India we do not allow the use of retail establishments such as kirana stores and other vendors that are found on every street corner, are open all day, and that handle cash as part of their normal business. In India, under the RBI circular, BCs can only be appointed from among NGOs, MFIs, and post offices, all of which are less accessible and less ubiquitous than retail establishments.
Second, the scheme lays down that all transactions with the agent have to be accounted for and reflected in the bank’s books by the end of the day. This “end-of-the-day-requirement” is a problem because not all NGOs and MFIs are equipped with POS devices and the IT connectivity to enable them to communicate transactions to the banks by the end of the day.
The third and perhaps most important reason for the failure of the scheme at least for credit transactions is that in India banks are not allowed to charge more than the prime lending rate as interest on small loans of less than Rs 2 lakh. This prohibition flies in the face of the fact that small loans are more, not less expensive to make, which explains why our banks do not make them, except for the priority sector loans they are forced to make and which they cross-subsidise from regular lending. Since the rate of interest banks can charge is capped at the PLR, there is just not enough headroom for the bank to pay the BC a commission that is attractive enough to cover the core-banking solution (CBS) costs.
Even if the banks were willing to pass on the entire difference between its cost of funds and the PLO, it is highly unlikely that this margin would be high enough to enable the CBS to cover the cost of originating, disbursing, monitoring, and collecting loans. It should be noted though that this difficulty applies only to credit transactions, because of the PLR, and not to savings or remittances or insurance though BCs which have indeed done much better than credit.
This difficulty (albeit only for credit) was so obvious when the scheme was introduced it defies belief it was not foreseen. It is after all the reason why banks do not extend direct microcredit loans in India — it is just not profitable for them to do so. Not surprisingly, in their discussions with the Rangarajan Committee, bankers cited it as the main reason for their “muted response” to the scheme. However, having recorded this fact, the committee than copped out by brushing the difficulty under the carpet.
Instead of recommending a relaxation of the PLR cap, at least for lending through BCs, it lapsed into wishful thinking, about “over time, on account of the incremental business brought in, the arrangement is expected to become viable and self-sustaining”. This is after two years of evidence to the contrary. If branchless banking comes to India it is not likely to be through agents, but through technological innovations such as the use of mobile phones.
There was a great deal of excitement therefore in early 2006 when the RBI came out with a circular permitting the use of “business correspondents” by bank branches in order to increase client coverage and financial inclusion. The business correspondents (BCs) would, on behalf of the banks, for a commission, disburse small value credit, recover principal and interest, collect small deposits, receive and deliver small value remittances, and sell micro-insurance, pension and other products.
According to the Rangarajan Committee on Financial Inclusion, reporting a couple of years later, only 27% of farm households have access to bank credit. The committee called for access to financial services, including credit, to be raised to 50% 2012 and 100% 2015. The business correspondent model, riding on appropriate technology, was to be the “core of the strategy”, with the goal of having at least one BC in every village.
The BC idea came from Brazil where retail vendors, lottery outlets and post offices double as bank branches for customers. An estimated $1 billion in transactions were processed through Brazil’s 90,000 agents in 2005, and about 12 million accounts were opened across this network in only three years. Banking agents process transactions with point-of-sale (POS) devices such as biometric or smart card readers, barcode scanners and sometimes personal computers that connect with the bank server using dial-up or other data connection means, including mobile phones.
They collect and disburse cash, make bill payments and other money transfers, and fill in credit applications. Some agents generate so much business that they dedicate an employee for operating the POS device. The idea has spread to several other Latin American countries. In Peru it is estimated 40 banking agents can be opened for the price of one branch.
Challenges remain even in Latin America. In locations not served by banks most users open an account primarily to access welfare payments, or because their employer deposits their salary directly into their account. Apart from withdrawals, the most frequent use of the accounts is for making utility bill payments. The vast majority of clients do not use the full range of financial services on offer, such as makings small savings deposits, or availing of credit. This is analogous to the situation in India where NREGA and pension payments are increasingly being deposited directly into bank accounts in Andhra Pradesh and elsewhere.
The experience is, however, that most clients are so poor that they withdraw their entire balance, leaving little in their accounts as savings. Another difficulty with the use of agents that has surfaced in Latin America is in managing their liquidity, since most of them handle more cash inflows than outflows. To mitigate the risk of excessive liquidity with their agents, banks may have to ask them to refuse larger payments, or require them to deposit the inflows in a bank branch above a certain limit.
However, in India the BC model has not taken off at all. The reason lies in our usual bureaucratic penchant for half measures. For one thing, in India we do not allow the use of retail establishments such as kirana stores and other vendors that are found on every street corner, are open all day, and that handle cash as part of their normal business. In India, under the RBI circular, BCs can only be appointed from among NGOs, MFIs, and post offices, all of which are less accessible and less ubiquitous than retail establishments.
Second, the scheme lays down that all transactions with the agent have to be accounted for and reflected in the bank’s books by the end of the day. This “end-of-the-day-requirement” is a problem because not all NGOs and MFIs are equipped with POS devices and the IT connectivity to enable them to communicate transactions to the banks by the end of the day.
The third and perhaps most important reason for the failure of the scheme at least for credit transactions is that in India banks are not allowed to charge more than the prime lending rate as interest on small loans of less than Rs 2 lakh. This prohibition flies in the face of the fact that small loans are more, not less expensive to make, which explains why our banks do not make them, except for the priority sector loans they are forced to make and which they cross-subsidise from regular lending. Since the rate of interest banks can charge is capped at the PLR, there is just not enough headroom for the bank to pay the BC a commission that is attractive enough to cover the core-banking solution (CBS) costs.
Even if the banks were willing to pass on the entire difference between its cost of funds and the PLO, it is highly unlikely that this margin would be high enough to enable the CBS to cover the cost of originating, disbursing, monitoring, and collecting loans. It should be noted though that this difficulty applies only to credit transactions, because of the PLR, and not to savings or remittances or insurance though BCs which have indeed done much better than credit.
This difficulty (albeit only for credit) was so obvious when the scheme was introduced it defies belief it was not foreseen. It is after all the reason why banks do not extend direct microcredit loans in India — it is just not profitable for them to do so. Not surprisingly, in their discussions with the Rangarajan Committee, bankers cited it as the main reason for their “muted response” to the scheme. However, having recorded this fact, the committee than copped out by brushing the difficulty under the carpet.
Instead of recommending a relaxation of the PLR cap, at least for lending through BCs, it lapsed into wishful thinking, about “over time, on account of the incremental business brought in, the arrangement is expected to become viable and self-sustaining”. This is after two years of evidence to the contrary. If branchless banking comes to India it is not likely to be through agents, but through technological innovations such as the use of mobile phones.
World's 10 Richest Billionaires (Men)
(Latest Rating by May 2008)
#1 Warren Buffett
Age: 77 Fortune: self made Source: Berkshire Hathaway Net Worth: $62.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: United States Residence: Omaha, Nebraska, United States, North AmericaIndustry: InvestmentsMarital Status: widowed, remarried, 3 children Education: University of Nebraska Lincoln, Bachelor of Arts / Science Columbia University, Master of Science
Achievements:beloved investor is now the world's richest man. Soared past friend and bridge partner Bill Gates as shares of Berkshire Hathaway climbed 25% since the middle of last July. Son of Nebraska politician delivered newspapers as a boy. Filed first tax return at age 13, claiming $35 deduction for bicycle. Studied under value investing guru Benjamin Graham at Columbia. Took over textile firm Berkshire Hathaway 1965. Today holding company invested in insurance (Geico, General Re), jewelry (Borsheim's), utilities (MidAmerican Energy), food (Dairy Queen, See's Candies). Also has noncontrolling stakes in Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola, Wells Fargo. Insurance operations flourished in 2007. "That party is over. It's a certainty that insurance-industry profit margins, including ours, will fall significantly in 2008." The Oracle of Omaha issued a challenge to members of The Forbes 400 in October; said he would donate $1 million to charity if the collective group of richest Americans would admit they pay less taxes, as a percentage of income, than their secretaries. Had long promised to give away his fortune posthumously. Irrevocably earmarked the majority of his Berkshire shares to charity in 2006, mostly to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Gift was valued at $31 billion on day of announcement; donation will far exceed that sum so long as Berkshire shares continue to rise.
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#2 Carlos Slim Helu & family
Age: 68 Fortune: self made Source: telecom Net Worth: $60.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: Mexico Residence: Mexico City , Mexico, Latin AmericaIndustry: CommunicationsMarital Status: widowed, 6 children Education: NA
Achievements:Second-richest man in the world this year; even richer than Microsoft's Bill Gates, at least for now, thanks to strong Mexican equities market and the performance of his wireless telephone company, America Movil. The son of a Lebanese immigrant, Slim made his first fortune in 1990 when he bought fixed line operator Telefonos de Mexico (Telmex) in a privatization. In December, America Movil struck a deal with Yahoo to provide mobile Web services to 16 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. A widower and father of six, Slim is a baseball fan and art collector. He keeps his art collection in Mexico City's Museo Soumaya, which he named after his late wife. In recent years, he has donated close to $7 billion worth of cash and stock to fund education and health projects, and to the revitalization of Mexico City's downtown historical district.
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#3 William Gates III
Age: 52 Fortune: self made Source: Microsoft Net Worth: $58.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: United States Residence: Medina, Washington , United States, North America Industry: Software Marital Status: married, 3 children Education: Harvard University, Drop Out
Achievements:Harvard dropout and Microsoft visionary no longer the world's richest man. Blame Yahoo: Microsoft shares have fallen 15% since the company boldly attempted to merge with the search engine giant to better fight Google for Internet dominance. Gates is preparing to give up day-to-day involvement in the company he cofounded 33 years ago to spend more time focused on his philanthropic endeavors. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has $38.7 billion in assets, donates to causes aimed at bringing financial tools to the poor, speeding up the development of vaccines (for AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis) , bettering America's lagging high schools. Sells 20 million Microsoft shares every quarter, proceeds going to private investment vehicle Cascade; more than half of net worth now outside of Microsoft. Company spent $6 billion to land Web ad firm Aquantive last May. Would-be rival to Apple's iPod, the Zune, not yet a hit. Believes Microsoft's far-flung bets, including 10-year affair with Internet-based television, may soon pay off; says next 10 years will be the "most interesting" in software history.
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#4 Lakshmi Mittal
Age: 57 Fortune: inherited and growing Source: steel Net Worth: $45.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: India Residence: London , United Kingdom, Europe & Russia Industry: Manufacturing Marital Status: married, 2 children Education: St Xavier's College Calcutta, Bachelor of Arts / Science
Achievements:Heads world's largest steelmaker, $105 billion (sales) ArcelorMittal, which accounts for 10% of all crude steel production. Just delivered 580 tons to be used in construction of the World Trade Center memorial in New York. With 44% stake, is the company's largest shareholder. Longtime resident of London is Europe's richest resident.
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#5 Mukesh Ambani
Age: 50 Fortune: inherited and growing
Source: petrochemicals Net Worth: $43.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: India Residence: Mumbai , India, Asia & Australia Industry: Manufacturing Marital Status: married, 3 children Education: University of Bombay, Bachelor of Chemical Engineering Stanford University, Master of Business Administration
Achievements:Asia's richest resident heads petrochemicals giant Reliance Industries, India's most valuable company by market cap. His fortune is up $22.9 billion since last year, making him the world's second biggest gainer in terms of dollars. The biggest gainer was his estranged brother Anil, who ranks 6th in the world just behind his older brother. The sons inherited their fortune from their late father, renowned industrialist Dhirubhai Ambani. But they couldn't get along and in 2005 their mother brokered a peace settlement breaking up the family's assets. Mukesh is using some of his money to build a 27-story home.
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#6 Anil Ambani
Age: 48 Fortune: inherited Source: diversified Net Worth: $42.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: India Residence: Mumbai , India, Asia & Australia Industry: DiversifiedMarital Status: married, 2 children Education: University of Bombay, Bachelor of Arts / Science University of Pennsylvania Wharton School, Master of Business Administration
Achievements:The year's biggest gainer, Anil Ambani, is up $23.8 billion in the past year, and is closing gap with estranged brother, Mukesh, who ranks one spot ahead of him in the world at number five. The sons inherited their fortune from their late father, renowned industrialist Dhirubhai Ambani. But they couldn't get along and in 2005 their mother brokered a peace settlement breaking up the family's assets. A marathon runner, his biggest asset is his 65% stake in telecom venture Reliance Communications. He recently raised $3 billion from the highly anticipated initial offering of his Reliance Power, the biggest in India's history. Despite the hype, the stock tumbled 17% immediately after its February listing. In a bid to appease investors, company's board recently approved the issue of bonus shares. Still feuding with brother Mukesh: battling him in court over a gas-supply agreement.
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#7 Ingvar Kamprad & family
Age: 81 Fortune: self made Source: Ikea Net Worth: $31.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: Sweden Residence: Lausanne , Switzerland, Europe & Russia Industry: Retailing Marital Status: married, 4 children Education: NA
Achievements:Peddled matches, fish, pens, Christmas cards and other items by bicycle as a teenager. Started selling furniture in 1947. Now his company Ikea, which sells hip designs for the cost conscious, is one of the most beloved retailers in the world, with an almost cultlike following. Ikea now has stores in 40 countries, from Sunrise, Florida, to Guangzhou in China. As egalitarian as his brand, Kamprad avoids wearing suits, flies economy class and frequents cheap restaurants. Has been quoted as saying that his luxuries are the occasional nice cravat and Swedish fish roe. Says his home is furnished mostly with his own Ikea products. Last May was awarded the Global Economy Prize by the University of Kiel for his contributions to society.
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#8 KP Singh
Age: 76 Fortune: inherited and growing Source: real estate Net Worth: $30.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: India Residence: Delhi , India, Asia & Australia Industry: Real Estate Marital Status: married, 3 children Education: NA
Achievements:Singh is now the world's richest real estate baron after listing his real estate development company DLF in 2007. The offering helped triple his fortune to $30 billion this year, up from $10 billion. A former army officer, known as K.P., he joined his father-in-law's Delhi Land & Finance in 1961. Singh later built DLF City in Gurgaon, his showpiece township on the outskirts of Delhi, by acquiring land from farmers. Over time, he transformed it into one of India's biggest real estate developers. Group plans to raise another $1.5 billion by listing a subsidiary in Singapore. A keen golfer, he now leaves son Rajiv, daughter Pia to run operations.
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#9 Oleg Deripaska
Age: 40 Fortune: self made Source: Russian Aluminum Net Worth: $28.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: Russia Residence: Moscow , Russia, Europe & Russia Industry: DiversifiedMarital Status: married, 2 children Education: Moscow State University, Plekhanov Academy of Economics
Achievements:Former metals trader survived the gangster wars in the post-Soviet aluminum industry. His holding company, Basic Element, now owns Russian Aluminum (UC Rusal), automobile manufacturer GAZ, aircraft manufacturer Aviacor and insurance company Ingosstrakh. In 2006 Rusal, SUAL and Glencore International, of Switzerland, merged their aluminum assets into the United Company Rusal, the world's largest aluminum producer. Married to a relative of Yeltsin, Deripaska has been busy expanding UC Rusal's activities in Russia and abroad, moving it into aluminum production in Nigeria and China. To integrate vertically, has signed agreements to produce coal in Kazakhstan and invest in a nuclear power plant in eastern Russia. Attempting to get a stake in Norilsk Nickel, which co-owner (and fellow billionaire) Vladimir Potanin is fighting.
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#10 Karl Albrecht
Age: 88 Fortune: self made Source: Aldi Net Worth: $27.0 bil Country Of Citizenship: Germany Residence: Mulheim an der Ruhr , Germany, Europe & Russia Industry: RetailingMarital Status: married, 2 children Education: NA
Achievements:Germany's richest man. After World War II Karl and his younger brother, Theo, developed their mother's corner grocery store into discount supermarket giant Aldi, which now has more than 8,000 stores and $67 billion in sales. They eventually split ownership and management of the chain into North and South regions. Now retired, Karl used to manage more profitable southern half of Aldi's business in Germany. Fiercely private: Little known about him other than that he apparently raises orchids and plays golf.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Quizit.....24 August-08
Chairman of Steering Committee Incredible India@60, who is also co-chairman of a famous IT company is______
A:Nandan Nilekani
Asimo is the World’s most advanced humanoid robot developed by which company?
A:Honda
Which organization has a the tagline “save money, live better”?
A:Walmart
Femina magazine owned by Worldwide Media Pvt. Ltd., is a 50:50 joint venture between BBC world(UK) and _______
A:The Times Group
Kishore Kumar modeled for only one product in his lifetime. Which one?
A:Brylcreem
What was the name of the company now known as 3iInfotech?
A:ICICI infotech
Which company was created in 1996 from the merger of two swiss companiesCiba-Geigy and Sandoz laboratories?
A: Novartis
What is Brad’s drink?
A: Pepsi founded by Caleb Bradham
This company had to change its trademark logo in Saudi Arabia as it showcased a female form with her hair kept open, which was considered indecent. Which company?
A:Starbucks
Which was the first bank to introduce ATMs in India?
A: HSBC
14. In this company’s logo the slash stands for consistent growth in a secured environment. Which global bank?
A: Deutsche bank
15. Identify the tagline, “The Power of Knowledge”
A: The Economic Times
16. Which multinational owns the brand Georgia Ice Coffee and Aquarius?
A: Coca Cola
17: What is “The Bush House”? [Hint: United Kingdom]
A: BBC Headquarters
18: DAX is the stock index of which country?
A: Germany
19. Calculating, Tabulating & Recording (CTR) Company is now known as?
A: IBM
20. Which company in 1969 was founded by Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom and Robert Lynn?
A: DHL
A:Nandan Nilekani
Asimo is the World’s most advanced humanoid robot developed by which company?
A:Honda
Which organization has a the tagline “save money, live better”?
A:Walmart
Femina magazine owned by Worldwide Media Pvt. Ltd., is a 50:50 joint venture between BBC world(UK) and _______
A:The Times Group
Kishore Kumar modeled for only one product in his lifetime. Which one?
A:Brylcreem
What was the name of the company now known as 3iInfotech?
A:ICICI infotech
Which company was created in 1996 from the merger of two swiss companiesCiba-Geigy and Sandoz laboratories?
A: Novartis
What is Brad’s drink?
A: Pepsi founded by Caleb Bradham
This company had to change its trademark logo in Saudi Arabia as it showcased a female form with her hair kept open, which was considered indecent. Which company?
A:Starbucks
Which was the first bank to introduce ATMs in India?
A: HSBC
14. In this company’s logo the slash stands for consistent growth in a secured environment. Which global bank?
A: Deutsche bank
15. Identify the tagline, “The Power of Knowledge”
A: The Economic Times
16. Which multinational owns the brand Georgia Ice Coffee and Aquarius?
A: Coca Cola
17: What is “The Bush House”? [Hint: United Kingdom]
A: BBC Headquarters
18: DAX is the stock index of which country?
A: Germany
19. Calculating, Tabulating & Recording (CTR) Company is now known as?
A: IBM
20. Which company in 1969 was founded by Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom and Robert Lynn?
A: DHL
Financial Inclusion Index
It's pretty obivious that India has a pretty poor score in terms of Financial Inclusion, but just how poor is the question. Traditional indicators like the number of bank accounts per thousand adults or the credit-to-GDP ratio are often used, but don't always convey the correct picture. So, for instance, Russia has amongst the highest number of bank account per thousand adults (2245 versus India's 627) but its credit-to-GDP ratio is just 24.1% to India's 36.9%. Which figure one should use while calculating Financial Inclusion? Argentina, similarly, has a higher number of bank branches per ten thousand adults than India (13.7 versus 9.4) but a credit-to-GDP ratio that's less than a third (10.3% versus 36.9%). Mandira Sarma of ICRIER has developed a single index of Financial Inclusion that tries to capture all facets of Financial Inclusion-it includes, for instance, the actual usage of banks accounts which is what really matters instead of just the number of bank accounts. The Index shows India's ranked 50th out of 100 countries.
Inputs by Sunil Jain.
Inputs by Sunil Jain.
Index of Financial Inclusion
IFI Rank Country
1 Spain
4 Germany
17 UK
21 USA
32 China
44 Brazil
50 India
60 Indonesia
69 Bangladesh
83 Russia
Saturday, August 23, 2008
India's Space Programme:
After decades of hiatus, India is on track with its space exploration programme. Earlier this year, in April, Indian Space Research Oraganization (ISRO) created a world record by putting 10 satellites in Earth's orbit on a single flight of its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C9). And come October, the country will put an unmanned spacecraft in Moon's orbit. Called Chandrayaan, It will circle the moon for two years mapping its surface for chemical composition.
How Do Oil Bonds Work?
The govt. of India (GOI) issues special oil bonds to govt. owned oil marketing companies to compensate for the losses they incur due to the administered pricing regime. What exactly are these oil bonds and how exactly do they compensate the oil marketing companies?
We will work out the answer to this question by using the financial statements of Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) for 2007-08.
IOC makes a loss selling petroleum products due to govt. restrictions on pricing (i.e. due to the administered pricing regime). The govt. of India compensates this loss by issuing special oil bonds.
IOC shows these bonds as income on its P&L (the IOC P&L for 2007 - 2008 shows an income of Rs.13,943 CR this way), thus converting the loss into a profit.
IOC also shows these bonds as investment on its balance sheet (Schedule G of IOC balance sheet for 2007 - 2008 shows investment worth Rs. 14,308 in these GOI special bonds). This means that without paying a penny for these bonds, IOC has invested in these GOI bonds! If you think about it, the real investment is the losses IOC incurred to oblige the GOI.
Now, if IOC just sits on these bonds, it will get a cash flow (around 7% - 8%) from GOI by way of interest payment on these bonds. Also upon maturity, the GOI will have to redeem these bonds from IOC (maturity periods are anywhere from 2009 to 2026 as per Schedule G). i.e. upon maturity the GOI has to cough up cash compensation for the losses IOC has incurred in 2007 - 2008!
Instead, what IOC does is, it sells these bonds in the secondary bond market to mutual funds, insurance companies and other such financial institutions (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/02/stories/2008050250780600.htm). Thus, the bonds are converted into hard cash (Schedule G says IOC made Rs. 6,503 Cr this way in 2007- 2008). This is how IOC gets hard cash to compensate for its losses immediately. (Of course, upon maturity the GOI has to still pay cash to whoever holds these bonds at that time).
The interesting part is this: GOI has issues bonds without actually borrowing from anybody. Does this run counter to the very definition of a bond? Not really.
The GOI has issued bonds to IOC without directly borrowing any money from IOC. The borrowing is indirect - IOC made a loss to oblige the GOI and that is akin to the GOI borrowing from IOC and hence the GOI issues these bonds to IOC. This is the crux of the matter.
Bottom line is, the oil bond is a GOI bond and hence is a govt. debt which has to be repaid some day. Interestingly, this debt stays off-budget and does not reflect in the revenue or fiscal deficit of the GOI.
We will work out the answer to this question by using the financial statements of Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) for 2007-08.
IOC makes a loss selling petroleum products due to govt. restrictions on pricing (i.e. due to the administered pricing regime). The govt. of India compensates this loss by issuing special oil bonds.
IOC shows these bonds as income on its P&L (the IOC P&L for 2007 - 2008 shows an income of Rs.13,943 CR this way), thus converting the loss into a profit.
IOC also shows these bonds as investment on its balance sheet (Schedule G of IOC balance sheet for 2007 - 2008 shows investment worth Rs. 14,308 in these GOI special bonds). This means that without paying a penny for these bonds, IOC has invested in these GOI bonds! If you think about it, the real investment is the losses IOC incurred to oblige the GOI.
Now, if IOC just sits on these bonds, it will get a cash flow (around 7% - 8%) from GOI by way of interest payment on these bonds. Also upon maturity, the GOI will have to redeem these bonds from IOC (maturity periods are anywhere from 2009 to 2026 as per Schedule G). i.e. upon maturity the GOI has to cough up cash compensation for the losses IOC has incurred in 2007 - 2008!
Instead, what IOC does is, it sells these bonds in the secondary bond market to mutual funds, insurance companies and other such financial institutions (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/02/stories/2008050250780600.htm). Thus, the bonds are converted into hard cash (Schedule G says IOC made Rs. 6,503 Cr this way in 2007- 2008). This is how IOC gets hard cash to compensate for its losses immediately. (Of course, upon maturity the GOI has to still pay cash to whoever holds these bonds at that time).
The interesting part is this: GOI has issues bonds without actually borrowing from anybody. Does this run counter to the very definition of a bond? Not really.
The GOI has issued bonds to IOC without directly borrowing any money from IOC. The borrowing is indirect - IOC made a loss to oblige the GOI and that is akin to the GOI borrowing from IOC and hence the GOI issues these bonds to IOC. This is the crux of the matter.
Bottom line is, the oil bond is a GOI bond and hence is a govt. debt which has to be repaid some day. Interestingly, this debt stays off-budget and does not reflect in the revenue or fiscal deficit of the GOI.
For more info go to (http://www.business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?leftnm=10&bKeyFlag=BO&autono=323750) andhttp://wiki.answers.com
Best US States To Do Business
1- Virginia
2- Utah
3- Washington
4- North Carolina
5- Georgia
6- Colorado
7-Idaho
8- Florida
9- Texas
10- Nebraska
2- Utah
3- Washington
4- North Carolina
5- Georgia
6- Colorado
7-Idaho
8- Florida
9- Texas
10- Nebraska
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