The name Y Sudhir Kumar Shetty, COO – Global Operations, UAE Exchange, rings a bell in finance and global remittance circuits, as a financial wizard with strong technical insight and operational expertise. The driving force behind the global remittance major, Mr. Shetty strengthened the company’s culture of innovation and infused inimitable quality in all aspects of its operations.
Born on 26th January 1959 in Perla village, Kasargod District, Kerala, India. His father Vorvady Thimappa Shetty was a District Education Officer and Kalavati Shetty was a Housewife. Young Sudhir did his schooling in Perla Lower Primary School and SN High School. A bright student all along, Sudhir, wields a Degree in Law and Chartered Accountancy, Mr. Shetty took the reins of UAE Exchange in 1991. Since then he has been constantly building and strengthening a powerful team of professionals to achieve top feats in product improvement, customer relationship management, brand positioning and quality benchmarking.
Mr. Shetty’s strong functional expertise in the process flow of the organization coupled with his rich understanding of this dynamic industry have given UAE Exchange, a competitive edge. Under his leadership, UAE Exchange initiated a comprehensive study which led to organizational restructuring, strengthening the brand and expanding its network across the world, thus transforming the company into a global brand with operations in 30 countries across five continents with over 650 direct offices.
UAE Exchange today accounts for over 5.28% of the global remittance volumes, based on World Bank figures.
The soft-spoken leader, who heads this global brand today, actually had a rather humble beginning. Struggling against the odds of life, Mr. Shetty emerged a winner academically and otherwise. His tall and lanky frame contains a subtle personality, which likes to take challenges head-on and conquer every obstacle in style. This trait is very much reflected in the aggressive way in which UAE Exchange grew to be a global brand while keeping its hold strong on its conventional values of Knowledge, Integrity and Commitment, which drive the company forward.
A winner of the prestigious ‘Vishwamaanya Award’ in the World Kannada Cultural Convention, 2012; ‘Global Personality Award’, presented by the Chief Minister of Kerala and many other prestigious awards, Mr Shetty is also a Member of the National Anti-Money Laundering Committee under the Central Bank of the UAE; Treasurer of Foreign Exchange & Remittance Group (FERG), UAE; and many other reputed organisations.
Mr. Shetty is happily married to Mrs. Sheela Sudhir Shetty and the couple is blessed with two kids, Ms. Sushiksha Sudhir Shetty and Ms. Sushmika Sudhir Shetty.
An epitome of simplicity, Mr. Shetty lives by example and his aura has spread beyond the organization he represents. A member of the Indian Institute of Chartered Accountants, Mr. Shetty associates with various executive and business councils in the UAE and beyond, who take pride on him being on board. His strong networking skills have gone a long way in building the brand UAE Exchange and transforming it into the World’s Trusted Money Transferrer.
This inspiring leader is also an eloquent speaker, who delivers speeches at various academic and professional gatherings around the world. Far-sightedness, strategy strengths and a deep-rooted sense of ethics have made Mr. Shetty a trusted icon of sorts in the financial circles, towards whom the experts turn for advice. And Mr. Shetty lets his work do the talking.
Under your leadership, UAE Exchange has made tremendous strides. Could you please brief your journey so far?
UAE Exchange always followed a rich culture of recruiting passionate and energetic talents. I joined this organisation in 1991. Since then, along with these talented professionals, we had reached the top in all areas of business. Today, over 8000 professionals representing over 40 nationalities strive to bring customer delight across 650 branches in 30 countries. We serve over four million registered customers and handle 6% of global remittances. The first non-banking financial institution to get SWIFT membership in the UAE, we are also the first to get the principal member of MasterCard. We have one of the largest numbers of correspondent banking partners in the industry, with 152 global banks. We have over the years pioneered many innovative services, including the recently launched travel card with a capacity to load up to six currencies in it.
Our efficient team has ensured that we won all the major recognitions and awards for excellence including ISO Certification, Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award, Dubai Quality Award, Dubai Service Excellence Scheme Awards and more. We have been also named a Superbrand, four times in a row, since 2009.
In 2011, we handled remittance of USD 19.6 Billion and over USD 18 Billion in foreign exchange.
So my journey with UAE Exchange has been equally eventful and rewarding. This wouldn’t have been possible without my team and of course, our customers, who inspire us at every turn.
Making a revolution, UAE Exchange recently had launched gocash travel card in the Middle East and FLASHremit in association with Corporation Bank. Can you please explain the benefits for customers in detail?
We are a brand, which constantly innovates so as to make life easy for our customers. gocash and FLASHremit are examples of that. More than just a travel card, gocash is a multi-currency prepaid travel card, which is powered by MasterCard, thus making it accepted worldwide, across 3.4 million POS locations and over 1.9 million ATMs. We are the first non-banking financial institution to have a principal membership with MasterCard. Apart from security and competitive exchange rates offered, gocash has the facility to lock in the exchange rates. The gocash user can load the card in a prescribed foreign currency at an exchange rate of that particular time, which will then remain constant until the next reload. Travellers can save a lot of money and time, and can also make their travel worry-free without carrying hard cash. Customers can load up to 6 currencies in a single card, out of a bouquet of 15 currencies offered.
And FLASHremit; is a real-time account credit facility, where the customer can send money to the beneficiary bank account real-time, at no extra cost. An SMS alert will also be sent to the sender and the receiver, the moment the money gets credited.
Corporation Bank is the latest addition to the list of banks that offer FLASHremit. We have a tie-up with seven leading banks in India for this real-time account credit facility, and more banks are in the pipeline. Other banks
include Federal Bank, Vijaya Bank, South Indian Bank, State Bank of India, Union Bank of India and Axis Bank. Apart from India, the facility is available for Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Indonesia and the Philippines. More countries will be added to the list, very soon.
Do you have any plans to introduce Travel Cards in India also?
Yes, we do have plans to introduce gocash multi-currency travel cards in India and other countries. Let it be or business or leisure, the number of people travelling across borders is on an increase in India. gocash will definitely become an ideal companion for their travel needs.
Can you brief me about UAE Exchange’s growth in India especially Kerala? What’s your modus operandi to woo more Kerala customers?
India is the largest market for inbound remittance in the world. A large number of Indians are working abroad and for reaching out to their beneficiaries, we have located our branches across 320 locations, which is by far the largest network in the country owned by a remittance brand. We thus add convenience to not the just the people who remit money, but also their loved ones who receive it. We also have very innovative products for the India market, which have good acceptance in all our branches in India.
It is our penchant to offer quality service to our customers that attract them to us. Our strength in products, correspondent banking partners, technology gives us top-of-the-mind recall by our customers, especially Malayalees, for whom we run various special campaigns and promotions, more from a social commitment and community networking perspective. We conduct the popular Onasowbhagyam promotion which offers Malayalees value added prizes. It is not just a promotion; rather we look at it as an opportunity to thank the vibrant community, for their support and trust in us. We also offer a wide array of services in the market which includes UAE Exchange Travel, XPay – the facility to pay shopping bills, utility bills, food bills and more through mobile phones, Gold loans etc. apart from the regular transactions.
Future plans of UAE Exchange in Kerala? What all new services are you offering to Kerala customers?
Kerala remains a key focus market for us as Keralites form an integral part of our customer base, and so we would continue exploring prospects for introducing new products and services, and plans for new services are in the pipeline. We have over 100 branches in Kerala. Our present plans are focused on widening this ever-expanding network and strengthening all available services, thus adding more value to our customers.
Could you please explain the prospects of Kerala in the Money Exchange sector and what are the major hurdles for the state?
Over the past few years, Kerala has been increasingly contributing to the number of NRIs. Also, Kerala is becoming increasingly visible in the global tourism map, leading to a spike in the number of global and domestic travellers visiting the State. These two movements facilitate our business, and so corresponding to these changes, we gear our product and services stable to meet the future prospects. In the days to come, more and more Keralites would travel overseas in pursuit of career and commerce, and more people would visit the State. The prospects of remittance and money exchange would get better as times go by. We are all waiting for that.
Please share a few words about your relationship with Dr. B. R. Shetty?
Dr. Shetty is our driving force, who inspires us to go ahead. More than being the MD & CEO of this organisation, he is a very good mentor. He is very particular that the service we offer should be the best in the industry and till date, we have been able to match up to his expectations.
A great human being Dr Shetty always ensured that his employees get the best of facilities. It is his support that gives us the confidence to walk that extra mile to offer our customers the best.
Your message to youngsters aspiring to be businessmen?
It is dreams that lead the world. If you have a dream, go for it and never settle before you achieve it. Nothing is impossible. It is determination and perseverance that matters.
