By Arun Kumar, IANS,
Washington : The US-India Business Council (USIBC), an advocacy group seeking stronger US-India commercial ties, has appointed Anil Bhalla, Vice Chairman (Investment Banking-Asia Pacific) of JPMorgan Chase, to its Board of Directors.
“We are delighted to have someone of Anil’s stature and reputation as a member of the USIBC Board,” said Indra Nooyi, chairperson of USIBC, which represents 280 of the largest US companies investing in India, joined by two dozen of India’s largest global companies.
“Anil Bhalla’s financial sector background and expertise, combined with his close affiliation with the US-India Economic Dialogue (CEO Forum), will strengthen the US-India Business Council’s capabilities to advance initiatives in the very sector that must attract the massive capital flows that will build-out India’s infrastructure,” she said.
Commenting on his appointment, Bhalla said: “I am honoured to be invited to join the USIBC Board. We are witnessing a historic transformation in the relationship between the US and India with a broadening of the business and commercial engagement between the two countries.
“I hope that through my work with USIBC, I can contribute in some small measure to the growth of trade and investment between these two great democracies that share such a depth of entrepreneurial talent between them.”
JPMorgan Chase has a long history in India with its first operations in the country dating back to 1945. Today its business footprint in India covers the full range of its wholesale financial services including M&A advisory, equity and debt capital markets, FX and derivatives, ADRs, cash equity, fixed income and equity research, asset management, treasury and securities
services and private equity.
JPMorgan Chase also has business services operations in Mumbai and Bangalore that support its global lines of businesses.
Appointed as vice chairman of investment banking of Asia Pacific in March, Bhalla is actively involved with the firm’s senior client relationships in the Asia Pacific Region. He manages the bank’s business with the North American operations of Asia Pacific companies and financial institutions.
Bhalla has been with JPMorgan and its heritage banks since 1979, and has spent his entire banking career in Investment Banking and Global Capital Markets with senior assignments in New York, India, Hong Kong, Tokyo and London.
He received a B-Tech in civil engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, in 1969 and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, in 1971. Bhalla is a member of the Board of the Korea Society based in New York.
In addition to his business involvement with India during his banking career, including his assignment as Senior Country Officer for India, Bhalla has been actively involved in working with and supporting the Co-Chairs and the members of the US-India CEO Forum set up by President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. It has been operating since 2005.
JPMorgan Chase & Co is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $1.6 trillion and operations in more than 60 countries. The firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers, small business and commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset management and private equity.
A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase serves millions of consumers in the US and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its JPMorgan and Chase brands.