KSOM organizes 11th National Finance Konclave

Bhubaneswar: KIIT School of Management (KSOM) organized its 11th National Finance Konclave on 13th December, 2020. The theme of this year’s conclave was “Re-imagining Opportunities in the Shadow of Uncertainty: An Emerging Economy Perspective”.

Prof. Saroj Mahapatra, Director, KIIT School of Management, introduced everyone to the Industry Engagement Activities of KSOM and set the context of the conclave. He spoke about the different kinds of fiscal stimulus given by the governments of various countries and unravelled its impact at macroeconomic, microeconomic and individual levels.

In the welcome address, Prof. Jnana Ranjan Mohanty, Registrar, KIIT Deemed to be University expressed his views regarding the theme of the conclave and mentioned the significance of reforms and policy changes taken under Atma Nirbhar Bharat.

Prof. Sasmita Samanta, Pro Vice Chancellor, KIIT Deemed to be University in her inaugural address, flagged the importance of innovation. She mentioned that disruption is inevitable and only innovation can make a difference. Citing views of thought leaders, she visualised the emergence of a new normal situation and emphasised the need for an eco-system of researchers to combat such a situation whenever it arrives.

Vikram Gupta, Founder and Managing Partner of IvyCap Ventures Advisors Private Ltd.were the keynote speaker. He spoke about the slew of optimistic trends which is happening in the country related to GST collection, Fintech and other financial policy initiatives. He mentioned how the Indian currency has remained stable and shared his views with respect to Venture Capital. He felt India being the 3rd largest start-up ecosystem with huge global investments coming in;the growth opportunities in the future are immense.

Prof. SN Mishra, Dean KSOM summarised the discussions and offered the Vote of Thanks

The inaugural session was followed by two panel discussions which were facilitated by Prof. KK Ray.

The first panel discussion was on the topic – “Re-imagining Value Creation – Innovation and Agility in Financial Markets”. The panel consisted of Mr. Sovan Mandal, Chief Business Officer – India Mortgage Guarantee Corporation (IMGC) who moderated the discussion. The other esteemed panelists were Mr. Siddhartha Dash, Executive Vice President -UTI AMC Ltd.; Mr. Sabyasachi Rath, CEO and Executive Director – Karvy Financial Services Limited & Mr. Swarup Mohanty, CEO -Mirae Asset.

The panel discussed how the various financial sectors operate and allocate resources and how to re-think value creation. The panellists spoke about the Mutual fund industry, Debt market, MSME segment, Fintech and the innovation and agility in each of the sectors that can drive value creation. They also shared their views on the regulatory perspective taking place in the current scenario and the impact thereon.

The second panel discussion was on the topic – “Re-imagining Economic Reforms – Planting seeds for long-term growth”. Mr. Sovan Mandal, Chief Business Officer – India Mortgage Guarantee Corporation(IMGC) moderating the discussion. The other eminent panelists were Mr. Siddhartha Dash, Executive Vice President -UTI AMC Ltd.; Mr. Sabyasachi Rath, CEO and Executive Director – Karvy Financial Services Limited & Mr. Swarup Mohanty, CEO -Mirae Asset.

The panel discussed the impact of Covid-19 on India’s growth and stated the importance of demand side support in the near to medium term for economic revival. The panel believed that there is a need for rapid infrastructural development and emphasised the availability of long term capital to achieve it. The panellists also shed light on the reforms in the financial sector and debated on the areas of reforms that have been beneficial for the economy and the areas where a lot more has to be done.

The conclave delegates had a general view that though the economy has suffered and there are challenges, the government is taking initiatives to mitigate the situation and brighter days are ahead.

The second half of the conclave consisted of eight workshops for the students with topics related to MSMEs, Investor Psychology, Start-up Funding, Digitization of Financial Services, Revival of Financial health of the Economy, International Capital Flows to Emerging Economies and StockMarket Investment.

This was one of four national level conclaves which are annually organized by KIIT School of Management in the areas of Finance, Marketing, HR and Business Analytics to bring the students closer to industry. This year’s Finance conclave provided the students with an opportunity to interact with business leaders and policy makers from across the nation. The conclave created a platform to connect industry professionals, academia and students.