RBI clears Anup Kumar Saha as Kotak Mahindra Bank MD‑CEO from 2027

Reserve Bank of India has approved Anup Kumar Saha as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Kotak Mahindra Bank, for a three‑year term starting 1 January 2027. The bank said the board will soon formalise the appointment and seek members’ approval. Saha takes over from Ashok Vaswani, whose tenure ends on 31 December 2026; Vaswani stepped down for personal reasons after succeeding founder Uday Kotak in January 2024. Saha joined Kotak in January 2026 and is currently an Executive Director, overseeing the retail bank, data analytics and marketing since March. He brings more than 32 years of experience, including 25 years in banking and non‑banking finance. Before Kotak, he served in senior roles at Bajaj Finance Ltd, ending as its MD and CEO. He spent 14 years at ICICI Bank Ltd, heading retail secured assets, business intelligence, retail and rural collections, credit cards and retail structured finance. Earlier in his career he worked at GE Capital on credit cards, sales and analytics, and at Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd in production engineering. He holds a B.Tech from IIT Kharagpur and an MBA from IIM Lucknow.

Context

The appointment follows a recent wave of leadership changes at major Indian banks, as seasoned executives with cross‑industry experience are tapped to steer growth amid a competitive banking sector.