CEO Interview with Swapnadip Roy Founder of RNR Group about Markets and COVID 19

Q1. As a professional financier and investor what are your thoughts regarding investment opportunities in global markets during 2020 and COVID-19 pandemic? Are there special entry points in the market within certain sectors that could possibly bring a positive ROI to businesses and investors?

I would say it depends on the investor's interest as there are many types of investments. You can invest your money in stocks, bonds, high risk assets like crypto currencies, commodities, daily liquid assets, but each of them come with their own set of risks and dangers of loss while at the same time have a potential for high income value. Given how the stock market has been throughout Asia, Europe and USA, you need to have an in depth knowledge of the stock market and of the companies that you are attracted to when it comes to putting money to associated stocks, but as per my experience index stocks have performed really well compared to other high valued stocks which have also performed well but I feel more secure in terms of investing in index funds at least during COVID19 period of the last 5-6 months.

Regarding success sectors during 2020 for ROI, I would say pharmaceutical and medical industries but if the company has diverse and vast experience in trading, given the volatility in the market, there are numerous ways how companies and investors can make money, depending on how deep is the investors’ knowledge about the existing market and industries.

Q2. You have earlier experience in international trading and in 2020 you have founded a new group of firms named RNR Group. Considering your experience and expertise do you see trade business generating profits during the pandemic?

Of course, the trade business can generate profit during the pandemic, but it is a very tough market to work around the ins and outs of this particular market. There are a lot of difficulties during the pandemic, there are a lot of newcomers and experienced businesses. Experienced businesses and long established companies, don’t prefer to deal with newcomers as newcomers lack of experience and capital.

However, in the end of the day, the trade business has a lot of income opportunities and when companies put their minds and experience together then success comes no matter what. It is challenging to work between professional large trade enterprises and just established new businesses, however each of them can bring something unique to the market, while at the same time you need to be careful and analyze every market player very detailed as lack of experience from a collaborate business party can actually bring damage to the company.

Q3. As a Chief Executive of RNR Group and its member companies, what are the key areas you focus in terms of business development and return of investment for short and long term investing?

I would say it’s definitely building long lasting relationships based on corporate values and eagerness to do business so that there is sufficient growth and success for all our partner companies, along with sustainable development of my own companies so as to leave a footprint for future individuals who would want to do the same in terms of revenue generation, business development and also corporate social responsibility during the pandemic era.

Q4. There have been market influencers such as Amazon and Netflix during COVID-19 which stock price has grown significantly. We can see that certain technology companies are pushing the market with profitability. What about general companies? Does RNR Group represent a more traditional business consulting approach or do you also cover innovative solutions such as tech or bio?

I prefer to work with a traditional business approach as that is tested and proven but of course you need to take risks and you need to be flexible in terms of doing business. Different innovative ways give you more options to deal with varying individuals and organizations who don't necessarily fit the mold of traditional business models or traditional business approaches.

If I'm being honest with myself, I am a little of bit of risk taker, as much as I like to stick with traditional business approach, 70% of the time, I do try new approaches that might be untested and represent significant amount of risk, and most of the time, they do pay off, and as of now they have proven to bring in quite a lot of success, because as a trading company, or as a capital investment firm, we have to be involved in doing business with many different countries and cultures, which in itself represents challenges dealing with different people and personalities.

Each individual as per my experience has his own way of assessing a situation and coming up with his own solution if there might be a problem associated with that situation. For me, I like to find an approach to deal with many individuals who are trying to find many solutions to a problem which might be unique to the whole circle of people. At the end of the day, if you can fit varying personalities with their varying approaches to the problem in a single mold and provide a unique solution to that unique problem, in that case that’s the golden ticket to Charly’s chocolate factory.

Q5. In your opinion, what can you recommend for new business comers, startup founders and early investors who are looking to invest in the crisis market?

They should all find their niche, and they should also find what attracts them as per risk taking appetite. If they feel that they would be comfortable with the given risks that the market is presenting them, then most certainly there is a lot of capital to be gained and a lot of profit to be made but that should not be the primary concern. The primary concern should always be sustainable growth of yourself and of the ones depending on you, which are your company members, partners, team, colleagues, other shareholders and also stakeholders. The key is to maximize profit with sustainable growth and healthy learnings in ethical business ways.

Disclaimer: The views, suggestions and opinions expressed here are the sole responsibility of the experts. No Forbes India journalist was involved in the writing and production of this article.