Meenakshi Joshi, a certified financial planner in India, was deciding which stocks to recommend to her risk-averse, income-seeking retired clients. For these types of portfolios she often sought stocks that paid regular dividends. Then, in April 2023, the state government of Gujarat officially mandated the payment of dividends—the first such mandate in India—and seven state-owned enterprises (SOEs) became ideal candidates for dividend investing. The .....more

In January 2022, Ken Shea, president and chief executive officer, and Sally van de Wiel, senior vice president of member experience and strategy, met to discuss East Coast Credit Union’s potential pursuit of B Corporation (B Corp) certification. Shea and Van de Wiel were responsible for leading a discussion at the board of directors’ annual strategic planning session scheduled for May 2022 and were expected to present a recommendation about whether .....more

Manappuram Finance Ltd., the second-largest gold loan non-banking financial company in India, faced a critical capital allocation and strategic prioritization decision in January 2025, just weeks before finalizing its fiscal year 2026 plan. The firm's managing director and chief executive officer had to choose between two mutually exclusive growth paths: digital-first consolidation, with investment in AI and blockchain to accelerate digital expansion, .....more

Great Eastern Holdings Ltd. (GEH)—a leading insurance company offering life and general insurance products, along with asset management services across Southeast Asia—received a buyout offer on May 10, 2024, from its major shareholder, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Ltd. (OCBC). The offer was to acquire the remaining 11.56 per cent stake for S$1.4 billion. The offer price of $25.60 per share was 36.9 per cent higher than GEH’s last traded price .....more

DMI Finance (DMI) was formed and registered as a non-banking financial company in 2008. The enterprise utilized a technology-driven process comprising application programming interface (API); algorithms; and data points captured using Aadhaar, a unique identification assigned to Indian residents, to disburse loans to individuals and firms. As a digital lender, DMI initially operated in personal loans, SME loans, and housing finance. After 2018, it .....more

This case on Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) provides an analysis of stock valuation using three popular methods: discounted cash flow (DCF), dividend discount model (DDM), and market multiples. The task before Rahul Sharma, junior analyst at New India Investment Trust plc, was to evaluate whether HUL’s stock was reasonably priced at ?2,300 per share. Sharma applies three valuation methods to compare discrepancies in the results, analyze the strengths .....more

The Chief Digital Officer (CDO) role was crucial for guiding organizations through digital transformation. The Chief Digital and Technology Officer (CDTO) for Momentum Group Limited faced the challenge of harnessing digital technology for competitive advantage. The CDO needed to navigate the complexities of the federated organizational structure to foster digital innovation and alignment across autonomous business units (BUs). The tension between .....more

Manappuram Finance Limited (Manappuram), a leading Indian non-banking financial company, faced a strategic human resource dilemma. Traditionally, Manappuram differentiated itself within India’s hyper-competitive finance sector by exclusively building talent internally through well designed and robust learning and development programs. In the face of strong competition and increasing regulatory and technological demands, however, Manappuram’s growth .....more

In June 2024, the Indian banking system was facing a decline in the current account and savings account (CASA) ratio and a significant gap in credit-deposit growth. CASA deposits had an important influence on profitability for banks in India. Union Bank of India (Union Bank), the country’s fifth-largest public-sector bank, held shares of 5.5 per cent in net advances and 6.0 per cent in total deposits, respectively. The bank had seen a substantial .....more

Dreamplug Technologies Pvt. Ltd. (CRED), a unicorn in India’s financial technology (fintech) ecosystem, revolutionized the credit card payment landscape through innovative services and celebrity-driven marketing campaigns. However, with increasing competition in the Indian fintech market, low entry barriers, and a decline in funding, chief executive officer Kunal Shah faces a critical juncture. In financial year 2022, despite rapid growth, CRED’s .....more