Mumbai: Muthoot Exim, the precious metals division of the 130-year–old corporate conglomerate Muthoot Pappachan Group, today launched India’s first ever range of non jewellery platinum products made from the rarest of precious metals, platinum.

Named ‘Anantavarsham Platinum Series’, the new range of non jewellery products aims to give Indian customers unprecedented access to affordable platinum products, purchased via savings and accumulation plans. The launch is part of a new partnership with the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) intended to further stimulate and service the growing demand for physical platinum in India.

As part of its initial offering, Muthoot Exim will sell a range of precious metal statuettes of Lord Ganesh in 95% pure platinum metal. Platinum is ideal for the production of statuettes and medals of deities as it is the most stable precious metal and so, unlike silver, it does not tarnish. This means that images of deities made from platinum do not require the polishing and cleaning associated with traditional metal images of deities.

The statuettes can be purchased through Equal Monthly Instalments as well as one-month schemes. The program also includes a spot buy-back option with assay, which will be available throughout Muthoot Pappachan Group’s countrywide network of Gold Point centers.

The Ganesh deity statuettes are fabricated by Emerald Jewel Industry India Ltd., Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.

In the initial stages, the new platinum scheme will be available in 624 branches of Muthoot Fincorp Ltd, the flagship company of Muthoot Pappachan Group and one of the largest Non-Banking Finance Companies (NBFC) in India. The product will be available at Muthoot Fincorp branches in Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Vijayawada, Kolkata and Ludhiana.

Mr. Thomas Muthoot, Executive Director, Muthoot Pappachan Group, said, “In India platinum is often perceived as accessible to only the privileged few. We, at Muthoot Pappachan Group, are proud to offer for the first-time a more affordable means to own this highly desirable metal, including in the form of Lord Ganesh statuettes. Supported by our platinum buy-back option, our innovative savings program has been designed to satisfy the current unmet and growing demand for platinum ownership in India.”

Mr. Keyur Shah, CEO, Muthoot Precious Metals Division, said, “Through these images of deities, Muthoot Exim is setting new standards for innovation, excellence, affordability and accessibility in the Indian platinum market. Expanding into platinum is a natural step for us, and we are especially proud to be working with the WPIC to expand our product offering.”

Mr. Marcus Grubb, Director of Market Development, World Platinum Investment Council, said, “India represents one of the most significant global opportunities for the development of platinum as an investment medium. We’ve already seen enormous growth in the market in recent years, especially with young consumers. Together with Muthoot Pappachan Group, we look forward to building even further momentum.”