RBI approves Anup Kumar Saha as Kotak Mahindra Bank’s next MD & CEO
Saha will succeed Ashok Vaswani from January 1, 2027, for a three-year term
Kotak Mahindra Bank shares gained as much as 3.5% in early trade
Kotak Mahindra Bank Appoints Anup Saha As MD & CEO, Shares Rise 3.5%
Saha joined Kotak Mahindra Bank in January 2026 and has been an executive director since March. In his current role, he oversees the retail bank, government business, data analytics and marketing functions
Kotak Mahindra Bank Appoints Anup Saha As MD & CEO Kotak Mahindra Bank and AI Editing
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Kotak Mahindra Bank on Thursday appointed Anup Kumar Saha as its next Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer after the Reserve Bank of India approved his appointment.
The bank’s shares gained as much as 3.5% in early trade following the announcement.
Saha will take charge from January 1, 2027, succeeding Ashok Vaswani, and will serve as MD & CEO for three years, Kotak Mahindra Bank said in an exchange filing on Thursday.
The stock opened higher and was trading 1.6% up at ₹424.45 apiece around 9:20 am, even as the BSE Sensex was down 0.2%, according to The Economic Times.
The shares had closed 2.2% higher at ₹415.15 on Wednesday and remain down 6.5% so far this year.
The bank had submitted profiles for the top post in August. Saha and Paritosh Kashyap, who is also a whole-time director at the bank, were recommended for the role, as per a report by CNBC-TV18.
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Vaswani had announced in June that he would not seek reappointment after his term ends on December 31, 2026. He later told CNBC-TV18 in an interaction on July 18 that the decision was driven by personal reasons, including the arrival of his grandchild.
Saha’s Experience In Banking And Finance
Saha joined Kotak Mahindra Bank in January 2026 and has been an executive director since March. In his current role, he oversees the retail bank, government business, data analytics and marketing functions.
He has more than 32 years of professional experience, including 25 years in financial services, as per ET. Saha holds a B.Tech degree in engineering from IIT Kharagpur and an MBA from IIM Lucknow.
Before joining Kotak Mahindra Bank, Saha spent nearly nine years at Bajaj Finance, where he held progressively senior positions, including Executive Director, Deputy Managing Director and MD & CEO. Saha was MD & CEO of Bajaj Finance from April 2025 until his resignation in July 2025.
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Before that, he spent 14 years at ICICI Bank in senior positions covering areas including retail secured assets, business intelligence, retail and rural collections, and credit.