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APGJF 2024 is a resounding success

State’s Largest B2B jewellery exhibition helps consolidate Vijayawada’s
position as a key GJ hub

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Andhra Pradesh’s largest B2B jewellery exhibition, ANDHRA PRADESH GEM AND JEWELLERY FAIR (APGJF) 2024, held between December 13th and 15th at SS Convention Centre, Vijayawada, soared to new heights this year.Large crowds thronged the venue on all the three days and almost all the exhibitors were extremely satisfied with the brisk business transactions that they concluded and the network of new contacts they could establish.

APGJF is jointly organized by India’s premier jewellery exhibition management company United Exhibitions and AP Bullion Gold Silver & Diamonds Merchants Association.

The show began with the grand Inauguration Ceremony attended by the Chief Guest Dr. Ponguru Narayana, Hon’ble Minister of Municipal Administration and Urban Development, Govt of Andhra Pradesh. at the inaugural ceremony the chief guest was accompanied by the esteemed leaders from the Indian jewellery industry.

This year’s show brought together over 200 of India’s top and renowned jewellery manufacturers, wholesalers and technology service providers under one roof with over 9,600 visitors from across the Southern states and other parts of India. On display were over 5,00,000 designs displaying innovation and creativity and provided perfect options to the retailers as they prepare for the forthcoming festive and wedding season for the people from Telugu states.

K. Vijay Kumar, State President, APBGSDMA, said, “The buying spirit at the exhibition was consistently high on all three days after a fantastic start! APGJF 2024 saw a remarkable turnout of visitors from across the region, covering the spectrum of retail businesses from large corporate chains to small, single store retailers. This is a clear sign that the show serves a very important need in the region. We are confident that it will continue to grow.”

Shantilal Jain, State Chief Organizer, APBGSDMA said that Vijayawada is now gaining recognition as a key hub of the gem and jewellery industry. “Visitors were highly appreciative of the vast variety of choices which they had. They also reacted positively to the innovation and creativity in new designs that gave contemporary look to the traditional southern ornaments. APGJF is being seen as an important platform in the B2B supply chain for Telugu states.”

APGJF also won praise for its business-friendly environment with strict B2B norms implemented in regulating entry, along with a number of key networking and knowledge-sharing events that provided space for interaction and exchange of ideas and information.

V.K. Manoj, Project Director, United Exhibitions said  “We made every effort to ensure the success of the show by adhering to the highest standards in planning and execution and ensuring that hospitality was flawless in every aspect .We are happy that APGJF has been recognised as a high-quality platform and now become an important milestone in the trade fair calendar of South India. A clear indication of this is that we have already received many confirmations for participation in APGJF 2025.”

Among the highlights of the three-day event was the Stars of Andhra Pradesh Awards & Networking Nite held on the evening of Dec 13th 2024 at Novotel Vijayawada where leading jewellers and key supporters who have helped uplift the trade were felicitated. Adding sparkle to the event was the presence of Miss Mannara Chopra, popular actress and celebrity in South India Cinema has filled the evening with glitter and glamour. 

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JB Insights

Gold Loans Fuel MSME Expansion

Industry Seminar Focuses On E-Commerce Growth, Logistics Solutions and Global Shipping Opportunities For The Gem and Jewellery Sector

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Across India, gold loans are rapidly shifting from purely personal-finance products into a go-to source of working capital and business-expansion funding for MSMEs, with non-bank lenders such as Muthoot Finance playing a central role in this transition. Record-high gold prices and easier documentation, combined with short-term tenures and relatively quick disbursal, are making gold-loan collateral attractive for small manufacturers, traders, and services-sector entrepreneurs who struggle to access traditional bank credit.

Gold loans have become a key contributor to India’s consumption-loan growth, with originations surging amid slowing personal-loan and credit-card growth and elevated gold prices improving collateral coverage.

Rating agencies and brokers note that high gold prices not only allow larger loans against the same jewellery but also help maintain asset quality, as borrowers are more incentivised to repay rather than forfeit precious metal.

Why MSMEs are turning to gold loans

  • Many MSME borrowers use family-held gold as collateral to finance working-capital gaps, inventory purchases, machinery upgrades, or local-market expansion, especially where cash-flow cycles are irregular or credit history is thin.
  • Gold loans typically offer lower interest and faster processing than unsecured personal loans or credit cards, and the presence of a tangible asset (gold) makes lenders more comfortable with shorter-tenor, higher-ticket loans.

Role of organised lenders like Muthoot Finance

  • Muthoot Finance and other large NBFCs explicitly position gold loans as flexible, short-term credit for “business-related” needs, including trade, small-scale manufacturing, and micro-retail, and have reported that a significant share of new disbursements go to self-employed professionals and small business-owners.
  • Digital-first interfaces, branch-network expansion into semi-urban and Tier-2/3 towns, and features such as missed-call status checks and mobile-based payment reminders help MSME-type borrowers manage repayments without frequent visits to branches.

Regulatory and risk-management angle

  • Regulators and rating agencies note that channeling gold-loan funds toward productive MSME activity can improve asset quality, as business cash flows often support repayment better than purely consumption-driven loans.
  • At the same time, tighter supervision on re-pledging and stricter documentation—from April 2026 onward—are pushing MSME borrowers toward organised players, reducing reliance on informal pawn-shop-style lending and improving transparency in SME-oriented gold-loan portfolios.

Market-level impact

  • With the organised gold-loan market expected to breach ₹15 lakh crore by March 2026, MSME-oriented lending is emerging as one of the key growth segments, particularly for NBFCs that combine branch-level trust with digital ease.
  • This trend is encouraging gold-loan houses to design quasi-MSME packages—such as higher ticket-sizes, flexible moratoriums around festival seasons, and payment-tracking tools—while keeping the underlying product clearly tagged as a secured gold-loan.
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JewelBuzz is Asia’s First Digital Jewellery Media & India’s No.1 B2B Jewellery Magazine, published by AM Media House. Since 2016, we’ve been the trusted source for jewellery news, market trends, trade insights, exhibitions, podcasts, and brand stories, connecting jewellers, retailers, and industry professionals worldwide.

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