Tarun Ghulati : internationally acclaimed banker heads Bramer Group

After a 25-year career in countries across Asia, Middle East and Europe, the new Bramer Corporation Ltd Group President and CEO Tarun Ghulati is a man of substance, with a highly professionaly et humble demeanour.

Currently sitting on over 20 boards, the new Group President and Chief Executive Officier (CEO) of Bramer Corporation Ltd, Tarun Ghulati spearheads inter alia a host of companies and subsidiaries such as BAI Co. (Mtius) Ltd, Bramer Banking Corporation Ltd, Bramer Asset Management Ltd, Bramer Securities Ltd and Prime Capital Management Ltd.

Mr. Ghulati believes in a visionary leadership style. It is clear that he is highly passionate about leading and motivating people towards achieving outstanding results. Strategy development and execution, creating and leading teams, managing complex and changing businesses and driving balance sheet growth with increased profitability are evidently his key strengths. He is also operationally diligent with wide experience in dealing with legal matters, compliance issues, audits and regulators across continents. He believes in achieving a balance between risk and reward through and rewrad through implementing robust procedures and controls and effective risk management.

One of hiscorestrengths, according to him, ishisability to foster and cultivate relationships on all fronts, a quality that has created extensive connections which facilitate business acrosssectors and geographies. This innate talent has been honed by living and working in many countries and managing businesses across continents, before coming to Mauritius.

Interestingly, Mr. Ghulati has not always been in the financial services sector. At the outset, in 1983, the Indian-born British MBA-Holderassumed Sales and Marketing Management roles in multinationals, namely Philips and Xerox, in India.

He first steppedinto the realm of bankingaround five yearslater. In 1989, Mr. Ghulati joined Citibank working his way up to Senior Executive. During his tenure at the bank, he established and led offices across cities in India.

“I enhanced the bank’s distribution reach and built its sales and business development capability. I subsequently moved on to set up various companies for the bank,” said the Group President and CEO.

He thenmoved to HSBC, India, in 1993 as their Head for Financial Institutions, South Asia. He travelled a lot to strengthen and build a strong financial institutions business in the region.

He then moved as the Credit Operations Manager, HSBC, India, to lead the corporate/commercial bankingoperations for EasternIndiaincludingrisk management.

HSBC was embarking on a journey to push its retail banking in India and appointed Mr. Ghulati to head the North India business in early 1996. It was at this time HSBC selected Mr. Ghulati to their very elite group of International Managers, recognising his ability to lead large global businesses.

Mr. Ghulati moved to Hong Kong to take over as the Credit Manager International, HSBC, in mid 1996. This role entailed safeguarding the Bank from a credit and risk perspective across countries internationally.

In 1997, Mr. Ghulati became the Operations Manager International, HSBC. Sitting in Hong Kong, heen sured the efficient and profitable functioning of HSBC businesses. New offices of the bank in Taiwan, New Zealand, Korea, Kazakhstan, etc wereo pened under his supervision. He finalised the strategies for launching the Personal Financial Services, Credit Cards and SME businesses across Asia Pacific and revamped the Global South Asian Diaspora business for Private Banking.

HSBC wanted to growits business in Thailand and appointed Mr. Ghulati as the Senior Vice President Business Development. Mr. Ghulati built the retail banking business includingWealth/Private Client, Insurance, and Credit Card businesses in this role.

The Middle East beckoned Mr Ghulatinext, in mid 2001, and hewasappointed the Country Manager Personal Financial Service and Credi tCards, HSBC Qatar. The bank achieved more profit than the combined HSBC persona lbanking business in Oman, Bahrain, Lebanon and Jordan during his tenure.

In 2003, Mr. Ghulatimoved to the UK. He led HSBC’s largest branch clusters for commercial, retail, private clients and financial planning businesses. He created new units for South Asian banking, Premier International and AmanahIslamic Finance and introduced many ‘De Novo Distribution’ methods for the bank.

In 2004, he was appointed Head of Premier and HSBC International Personal Banking, UK. He led the team of Premier Managers across the 1,600 plus HSBC branches and managed assets of over USD 40 billion making income of over USD 900 million for the bank. As the Head for HSBC International Personal Banking, Mr Ghulati was appointed part of a Global Management group to develop a consistent cross-border international capability for the bank. The responsibility was to ensure the HSBC Group capabilities were fully exploited to improve business flow fromprivate, personal and commercial customers globally.

In 2008, from the UK, Mr. Ghulati was responsible for ING’s Private Clients across UK, Europe, Africa and the Indian subcontinent.

He thentook over as the CEO, UTI International Ltd, India’slargest and oldest Asset Management Company. From London, heran the asset/fund management business internationally with offices in London, Guernsey, Dubai, Bahrain and subsidiaries in Mauritius and Singapore. He sat on 14 boards for the company in Singapore, Mauritius and Guernsey. He then went on to become the President and CEO of Indus Global Ltd in 2011, before coming to Mauritius last August to lead Bramer Corporation Ltd.

He sits on the committee of the London Chamber of Commerce Asian Business Association as Deputy Chairman and has recently been appointed to the UK Trade and Investment India Advisory Group.

Happily married and father of two, the highly successful leader nonetheless appreciates simplicity, relishing in the small pleasures of life, and values relationships.