Archive · 1 Oct 2026
RBI Approves Anup Kumar Saha as Kotak Mahindra Bank CEO
Kotak Mahindra Bank has chosen Anup Kumar Saha to become its next chief executive.
India’s banking regulator approved him for a three-year term.
He will begin on January 1, 2027.
He will replace Ashok Vaswani, who will finish his term at the end of 2026.
Vaswani said he would not ask for another term because of personal reasons.
Saha joined Kotak at the start of 2026 and already manages several important areas.
He has worked in banking and consumer finance for more than 32 years.
Analysts believe his experience could help Kotak grow its retail business, but the bank still faces strong competition and other challenges.
The Reserve Bank of India approved Anup Kumar Saha as Kotak Mahindra Bank’s managing director and CEO for three years from January 1, 2027.
Saha will succeed Ashok Vaswani, whose current term ends on December 31, 2026, after Vaswani decided not to seek reappointment for personal reasons.
Saha joined Kotak in January 2026 and became a whole-time director in March, overseeing retail banking, government business, data analytics and marketing.
He brings more than 32 years of professional experience, including senior roles at Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, GE Capital and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited.
Analysts described the appointment as providing leadership continuity and a retail-growth focus, while Kotak faces competition, digital-expansion challenges and stress in parts of its unsecured lending book.
- Who
- Anup Kumar Saha, Kotak Mahindra Bank, the Reserve Bank of India and outgoing CEO Ashok Vaswani.
- What
- The RBI approved Saha’s appointment as Kotak Mahindra Bank’s managing director and chief executive officer for three years.
- When
- Saha’s term begins January 1, 2027; Vaswani’s current term ends December 31, 2026. The bank said the RBI approval was issued in a letter dated September 30.
- Where
- Kotak Mahindra Bank in India.
- Why
- The transition follows Vaswani’s decision not to seek reappointment for personal reasons and comes as Kotak seeks to strengthen growth, especially in retail and consumer finance.
Growth and Continuity
Execution and Competitive Pressure
Strategic direction
Growth and Continuity
Supporters and analysts said Saha’s consumer-finance and retail experience provides strategic continuity and could support faster growth, capital deployment and stronger customer relationships.
Execution and Competitive Pressure
The bank must demonstrate that a retail-focused strategy can accelerate expansion while addressing competition from larger private-sector lenders and challenges in parts of its unsecured lending book.
Leadership transition
Growth and Continuity
Kotak’s board and Vaswani expressed confidence that Saha understands the bank’s opportunities and can build on its foundations with discipline.
Execution and Competitive Pressure
The appointment comes after leadership uncertainty and follows earlier technology-related restrictions that slowed digital expansion, making execution and operational improvement important tests for the new CEO.
- Incoming CEO
- Anup Kumar Saha
- Appointment term
- Three years beginning January 1, 2027
- Outgoing CEO
- Ashok Vaswani
- Saha joined Kotak
- January 2026
- Current responsibilities
- Retail banking, government business, data analytics and marketing; one report also referred to market functions
- Professional experience
- More than 32 years overall, including 25 years in financial services
- Recent quarterly performance
- Customer assets rose 16% year on year to ₹5.71 trillion, while standalone net profit increased 26% to ₹4,123 crore in the quarter ended June
