Early Life and Education

Born on October 18, 1944, in Mumbai, Deepak Shantilal Parekh hails from a family with deep roots in banking. His grandfather was the first employee of the Central Bank of India and his uncle, Hasmukhbhai Parekh, founded HDFC in 1977. Parekh graduated with a B.Com from Sydenham College (University of Mumbai) and qualified as a Chartered Accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).

Personal Information

Achievements and Major Timelines

• 1978: Deepak Parekh joined HDFC bank as deputy general manager.
• 1985: He had risen to the post of managing director in HDFC Ltd.
• 1993: He became the executive chairman of HDFC Ltd.
• 1994: Spearheaded HDFC’s expansion into banking, insurance and asset management, creating a financial services empire.
• 2006: Padma Bhushan was bestowed upon him for his contributions to finance.
• 2008: He received the CNBC-TV18 Outstanding Business Leader Award.
• 2010: He received France’s ‘Knight in the Order of the Legion of Honour’
• 2010: He became the inaugural non-British recipient of the ‘Outstanding Achievement Award’ from the Institute of Chartered Accountants and Wales.
• 2014: He is the recipient of Germany’s ‘Cross of the Order Merit’

Key Achievements

• Crisis Management: He played pivotal roles in rescuing UTI (1990s) and Satyam Computers (2009) as an independent director.
• Policy Influence: He chaired multiple government committees on infrastructure, banking reforms and securities regulation.

Philosophy and Legacy

He advocated for transparency and clean business practices, famously gifting colleagues miniature "compliance" signboards. He stepped down post-HDFC merger in 2025, stating: "Our history cannot be erased and our legacy will be taken forward".

Challenges

He faced scrutiny during HDFC's banking license acquisition (1994) but won board approval despite initial scepticism. The chairman of HDFC resigned ahead of the merger between HDFC and HDFC Bank due to RBI’s restriction on age.