Moglix’s Expansion, Data-Driven Operations, and Future Growth Plans

Exclusive Interview with Piyush Malviya, Vice President and Head of MEA region, Moglix

1. What has been Moglix Business’s primary business focus throughout the years? Can you provide an overview of Moglix and its primary business focus?

Yeah, so if you ask about our larger company, we are a Singapore-headquartered company with a primary business presence in India, the Middle East, the USA, and Mexico as well. We are into multiple businesses, but if I talk about the Middle East, which is the business I manage and lead, the primary focus is on the supply chain and procurement space. We act as a bespoke version of an e-commerce platform for large corporates. So, basically, anyone across the industry engaged in the procurement of materials or services can benefit from our services. Large corporate procurement and supply chain space, doing e-commerce there, is our primary offering. Apart from that, we also enable a lot of export financing and credit financing via our other financing arm called Credlix, where we enable working capital for exporters to smoothen their business.

• That’s very interesting. As you mentioned the primary business focus, can you explain what motivated Moglix Business to expand its operations into the Middle East and GCC region?

Yeah, in 2015, I fortunately happened to join the company when we were at the early stages. We were headquartered in Singapore. The ambition from day one was always to create a cross-border, multi-country business. We chose India, which is a tough market to operate in due to its vast geographical landscape and fragmentation across supply-based industries, etc. After four to four and a half years of operating in India, we realized that we had understood our niche and that there was a particular problem area that was not being solved by global players. Then in 2019, we started to look at other markets where the same problem areas existed. Firstly, because of the proximity to India and because a lot of operations and knowledge transfer had to happen from India to the UAE, we were looking at countries within a four- to five-hour flying distance from India. Dubai sits right there. Language-wise, it’s easier to execute, and the focus at the industry-government level on technology adoption is very high. There are very few countries where you would see such a level of smooth technology adoption. Secondly, it also positions us as the epicenter for regional expansion to other countries. So, that way, the UAE became an ideal choice for us.

• That’s very insightful. Coming to data centers, can you explain in what ways they facilitate better forecasting and inventory management?

Inventory forecasting is always a hybrid process for us. Over the last eight to nine years of operating and solving the problem for multiple large corporates, whether they be conglomerates in India or global MNCs operating in India, the UAE, the US, Mexico, etc., we have developed a particular expertise and knowledge base around industry forecasting. We have also translated it into AI and machine learning tools at the back end. What we are able to do, especially in the tail-end procurement space, is optimize it much more efficiently than legacy systems would. So that’s the key driver for us. It’s driven by our knowledge base, our access and expertise in handling data across customers, and then applying it across industries. I think that has been the key enabler for us.

• In your opinion, how do data centers enhance the decision-making process, especially when it comes to procurement and supply chain management?

I think in today’s day and age, data is key to everything. The better organized your database is, the better your insights will be. And the better your insights, the faster, smoother, and more efficient your decision-making will be. So, every decision, be it inventory-related, deciding where to position a supplier, or how to risk-profile a supplier, is data-driven. The more data you have, the more efficient and accurate your decision-making can be. More importantly, data helps you organize different insights, especially in a region like the UAE, which is heavily dependent on imports. For example, something might happen in the Suez Canal or the South China Sea, and it might impact the local industry here in the UAE. It’s very dependent on the global supply chain. So, data helps with better forecasting, drives better insights, and ultimately leads to faster and more efficient decision-making.

• That’s great to know. Regarding cybersecurity, since it’s very relevant in today’s era, can you provide us with a little insight into the implications of data privacy for Moglix Business?

It’s a very sensitive and important topic for us. Not only is the data that we hold very important and secure, but the kind of clients we operate for makes it even more critical. These could range from a large defense manufacturer to a nuclear plant operator or even a small manufacturing company. So, the importance of data and cybersecurity is critical to the core of our business. What we try to do is stay at the cutting edge, partnering with the right experts, whether it’s Amazon Azure Data Cloud or Google Data Cloud. Having the right partner and resources at your disposal, we do a lot of bespoke work for our clients. For many clients, we create very customized data centers on their premises just to cater to their security needs. So, it’s very bespoke and very critical for us to manage it that way.

• That’s very informative. Moving on to sustainability, how does Moglix Business incorporate sustainable practices into its operations?

I think the biggest core to sustainability is lean operations and minimizing overheads, reducing leakage in the ecosystem and the entire supply chain. The core to sustainability is being very lean and efficient. Any process or step that doesn’t add value, we try to automate and digitize. If we’re taking X number of days today, we aim to do it in half the time or 20% less next year. That’s a continuous practice. Second, we work with many SMBs (small to medium businesses) at the back end, who are our suppliers. They may not be capable of adopting eco-friendly or ESG sustainability practices, so we provide them with tools. For our marketplace, even basic things like generating an invoice are all digital. A supplier doesn’t need their own invoicing system; they can just log in, input an invoice number, and we take care of everything. All reconciliations, runners, delivery vans, purchase orders, and proof of deliveries are digital. We aim to be fast and avoid unnecessary steps. That’s the core philosophy behind ESG for us. Additionally, we implement sustainable practices in packaging, driven by client interests, especially in the UAE, where government clients often mandate it. But the core philosophy remains: digitize and automate redundant business practices.

• One last thing I’d like to know is what can we expect from Moglix Business in the upcoming years?

I think we are very well set in the markets we’ve been operating in. The UAE has been a great choice for expansion for us. Being backed by Alpha Wave Ventures and based in Abu Dhabi gives us a lot of legitimacy, backing, and belief to stay here long-term. We will continue to invest in the UAE as a market, treat it as the epicenter and headquarters for regional expansion, transfer our learnings, and expand into other GCC countries, including Oman and Saudi Arabia. As we speak, Saudi Arabia is already on the way. I can’t commit to a strong deadline, but this year, you should see our Saudi operations go live in some shape or form. Another key focus is playing an active role in the South Asia-to-UAE trade corridor, where there is a lot of emphasis on increasing non-oil-and-gas trade. Whether through Credlix, our capital trade financing arm, or our own supply chain, we aim to play an active role in increasing cross-border business between the Middle East and India/South Asia.