Founder-Director Sandipan Ray, SMBConnect (left) with Global RISE award winners – Pune Edition at Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, Pune

Pune, August 22, 2026: With India’s expanding Free Trade Agreements creating new opportunities across goods and services, Global RISE 2026 - Pune Edition, held on August 21, brought together entrepreneurs, business leaders and industry experts to examine how Pune’s manufacturing and technology strengths can translate into greater global opportunities for MSMEs.

Organised by SMBConnect, the Pune edition is part of Global RISE 2026 - The Next Phase of India’s Growth, a 15-city business series taking conversations around FTAs, global trade, technology, finance and market access closer to regional business communities across India.

A central theme emerging from Pune was the city’s distinctive position in India’s growth story. Its established automotive and manufacturing ecosystem, combined with a growing technology and services base, creates opportunities for businesses to participate in the benefits of India’s evolving trade relationships across both goods and services.

Delegates & attendees at Global RISE 2026 Pune Edition, Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, Pune

Speaking at the event, Sandipan Ray, Founder & Director, SMBConnect, said:

“Pune has a unique advantage. Its identity as one of India’s leading automotive and manufacturing hubs sits alongside a fast-growing IT and education ecosystem, giving the city a rare combination of hardware and software strength. This means businesses here are well positioned to capture opportunities emerging from India’s expanding FTAs across both goods and services. But opportunity alone is not enough. MSMEs need the right information, market understanding, technology and business connections to translate these agreements into actual growth. Through Global RISE, our effort is to bring that ecosystem closer to businesses and help more of them prepare for global markets.”

Taking FTAs from policy to business opportunity

The global trade opportunity was brought into focus by Sudhakar Kasture, Founder, Mentor and Director, EXIM Institute, during the inaugural keynote, “FTAs as a Growth Catalyst - Unlocking Global Opportunities for Bharat’s MSMEs.”

The discussion focused on the need for MSMEs to move beyond awareness of trade agreements and develop a clearer understanding of market access, trade regulations, compliance and export readiness to translate FTAs into business opportunities.

For a business ecosystem such as Pune, the conversation is particularly relevant as companies evaluate not only where new markets may emerge, but also the capabilities they need to compete in them.

Digital transformation meets business resilience

As businesses prepare to scale, technology emerged as another key component of competitiveness at Global RISE Pune.

The panel discussion “Securing Digital Transformation: Cyber Resilience, AI & Smart Technology for Future-Ready MSMEs” brought together Bhushan Mahale, General Manager - Procurement, Eaton Mobility Group; Rajeev Khade, Chief Advisor, Digital Transformation & Industrial Automation, Amazure Technology Pvt. Ltd.; and Avinash Shinde, CTO, Century Enka Ltd. (Aditya Birla Group). The discussion was moderated by Ar. Pranati Shroff Munot, Director, Sustain and Save Pvt. Ltd., Shroff Group.

The conversation examined how businesses can approach digital transformation while strengthening cybersecurity, operational resilience and their ability to integrate emerging technologies into existing operations.

Samir Jhaveri, Managing Director, XcellHost Cloud Services Pvt. Ltd., brought a cloud and digital infrastructure perspective through a Breakthrough Session.

AI was taken closer to everyday business applications through Rupanshi Singla, Associate Director - Growth and Strategy, Haptik, who led the session “Build Your AI Business Team in Minutes,” exploring the growing potential of AI-led capabilities across business functions.

Growth lessons from the MSME journey

The Pune edition also looked at growth through the experience of businesses that have scaled over time.

Anirudh Shrotriya, Managing Director, SHRO Systems Pvt. Ltd., shared the company’s journey in “35 Years of Scaling Success: How Shro Systems Evolved from an MSME into an IT Powerhouse,” bringing a practical enterprise-building perspective to the programme.

Access to capital was addressed by Shabbir Khan, Maharashtra Head - Housing Loans & Loan Against Property, Axis Finance, through the session “Your Property Can Fund Your Business Growth.”

A Breakthrough Session with Minal Mimani, Regional Sales Manager, Tata Power Solaroof, further added an energy and sustainability dimension to the conversations around building future-ready businesses.

Can Pune move from auto hub to global manufacturing powerhouse?

That question formed the basis of the second major panel discussion, “From Auto Hub to Global Manufacturing Powerhouse: Scaling Pune MSMEs Through Advanced Manufacturing, Supply Chains & New Markets.”

The panel brought together Aniket Malshe, Co-founder and CMO, NICHEM Solutions; Ajinkya Shrikant Huddar, Founder, Managing Director and CEO, Pelf Infotech; and Santosh Giranje, Technical Director – IT Infra & Data Centre Solutions, Icon Infoline Pvt. Ltd., with Pooja Kundoo, Editor, SMBConnect, as moderator.

The discussion examined the capabilities businesses need to move beyond manufacturing strength alone - from advanced technologies and resilient infrastructure to stronger supply chains and access to new markets.

The industry perspective was further strengthened by H. P. Srivastava, Chairman, DCCIA Pune, who delivered the Industry Leadership Address: “The Next Growth Chapter for India’s MSMEs.”

Connecting conversations with business opportunities

Beyond the sessions, Global RISE Pune created opportunities for entrepreneurs and business leaders to interact with industry peers and solution providers across technology, AI, energy and finance.

The programme culminated with The Global RISE Awards 2026, recognising businesses and leaders across the enterprise ecosystem, followed by networking among participating businesses, speakers, partners and industry stakeholders.

The format reflects the larger objective behind Global RISE: to bring the different components of business growth - market knowledge, technology, finance, industry expertise and business connections - onto one platform.

Global RISE continues its 15-city journey

The Pune edition forms part of Global RISE 2026, SMBConnect’s 15-city series built around the theme “The Next Phase of India’s Growth.”

As India strengthens its global trade relationships, the series is taking the conversation closer to regional business ecosystems, with each edition examining how the strengths of that region can connect with emerging opportunities across FTAs, exports, technology, manufacturing, finance and global market access.

Global RISE will continue across key business centres in India through December 2026, carrying forward a common business imperative:

Build. Scale. Export.

Event Highlights

Highlights from the Global RISE 2026 - Pune Edition, including photographs, speaker moments and key conversations from the event, are available on SMBConnect’s official social media channels.

View the event highlights: [Global RISE Pune 2026 Highlights]

About Global RISE 2026

Global RISE 2026 - The Next Phase of India’s Growth is a 15-city business series by SMBConnect focused on connecting Indian businesses with opportunities and stakeholders across global trade, Free Trade Agreements, technology, finance, exports and market access.

More information: Global RISE 2026

About SMBConnect

SMBConnect is a 13-year-old business community and ecosystem platform focused on helping small and medium businesses connect, learn and grow through communities, business conferences, industry engagement and access to relevant knowledge, networks and opportunities.

More information: SMBConnect / The RISE

Media Contact:
Ranjeeta Rastogi
Communication Specialist
ranjeeta.rastogi@redefine.in
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