Kolkata, November 18,2025: India is at a “defining moment” as it navigates global disruptions and key domestic transitions, former diplomat and global advisor Ajay Bisaria said at the ICC Wealth Management Summit 2025. Addressing industry leaders and policymakers, he said India’s strong growth of 6.5% made it the world’s fastest-growing major economy, but its per-capita income of USD 3,000 and agriculture’s 17% share of GDP highlighted the need for deeper structural reforms. He added that policy milestones such as GST, UPI, the JAM trinity, banking reforms and large-scale infrastructure upgrades had laid the foundation for India to target long-term growth of 8%.
Bisaria said India’s foreign-policy approach had evolved into a sophisticated “multi-alignment”, balancing ties with the US, China, Europe, Russia, Japan and the Global South. However, he cautioned that India may now need to manage its relationship with the US even more carefully, given Washington’s central role in global finance and strategic technologies. He said the US and China had weaponised trade, with American restrictions affecting USD 35 billion of Indian exports and Chinese measures impacting nearly USD 100 billion of imports crucial for manufacturing. Europe’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and related climate-linked rules were also functioning as protectionist barriers, he said.
He said geopolitics had become a central factor in business planning, noting that over 200 Fortune 500 companies had exited Russia and Ukraine after the conflict. Tariffs, export controls, subsidies and supply-chain restrictions were being used routinely as strategic tools, he said. On the India–US relationship, he said it remained one of India’s most consequential partnerships but had seen friction due to stalled trade negotiations, differences over Russian oil and US policies on Pakistan. A tariff deal in the 15–19% range could be announced soon, though proposed US measures such as the Higher Act — which includes a 25% outsourcing tax and a USD 100,000 levy per H-1B visa — posed new risks.
Looking ahead to 2025, Bisaria said global conditions were cautiously optimistic, with possible movement on a Ukraine settlement and stabilisation in West Asia. He projected India’s GDP growth at 7% this fiscal and next and said the upcoming Union Budget could mark major reforms in land, labour and capital markets. He expected progress on trade talks with the US, EU and Australia while cautioning that a short India–Pakistan conflict could not be ruled out.
ICC President Brij Bhushan Agarwal said India’s wealth-management sector was undergoing a major shift driven by technology, collaboration and rising investor sophistication. As India moved towards a USD 5 trillion economy, he said the focus must shift from wealth creation to responsible, long-term wealth management. ICC Director General Rajeev Singh said growing interest in personalised advisory, risk management and tech-enabled solutions was reshaping financial decision-making, and that the sector must build resilient strategies to handle global uncertainties.
ICC said the summit aimed to offer insights into India’s economic trajectory, the rising impact of geopolitics on business and the evolution of the country’s wealth-management landscape.
