Mumbai | Country's largest private sector lender HDFC Bank on Tuesday said that Anup Bagchi has taken charge as its managing director and chief executive.
His predecessor, Sashidhar Jagdishan, vacated office on Monday after the completion of his term, the bank informed exchanges.
Bagchi, an ICICI Group veteran, is the first outsider to head HDFC Bank in its over-three-decade history. His previous assignment was as the MD and CEO of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance.
He joins HDFC Bank at a time when the lender is battling a slew of challenges, including ones on core income growth and margins, which have made investors wary.
In brief comments on an earnings call which he attended, Bagchi said a part of the work on the bank's 2023 merger with housing finance major parent HDFC is yet to be executed and also announced that he will be meeting all the stakeholders to better understand the bank.
Bagchi had also appreciated the strong and committed leadership at HDFC Bank, amid speculation over whether he continues with the same team or gets new people.
Ahead of his joining, Kayezad Bharucha, a HDFC Bank veteran who is serving as the deputy managing director, announced his intent to retire by December this year.
Jagdishan had announced his unavailability for an extension amid allegations of shortcomings on the governance front. The bank's own probe had also found shortcomings in the practice of booking high quantum deposits by paying off an extra amount over and above the card rate to the depositor under a different head. Jagdishan was also slapped with a fine for the practice.
The surprise resignation of the bank's non-executive chairman Atanu Chakraborty in March this year, flagging values and ethics, blew the lid off certain practices at the largest private lender.
In the exchange filing on Tuesday, HDFC Bank said it "sincerely appreciates the strategic vision and unwavering commitment demonstrated by Jagdishan throughout his distinguished tenure".
"His stewardship has been instrumental in strengthening the bank's performance, culture, and customer-centric approach," the bank said, acknowledging his pivotal role in steering the successful completion of one of the largest mergers in corporate India.
HDFC Bank scrip was trading 0.07 per cent up at Rs 688.7 apiece on the BSE at 0956 hrs on Tuesday as against a 0.11 per cent correction on the benchmark.
