- Kotak Mahindra Bank recommended two internal executives as CEO successors to RBI for approval
- Executive Directors Anup Saha and Paritosh Kashyap were proposed as potential successors to Ashok Vaswani
- CEO Ashok Vaswani’s term ends December 31, 2026, and he will not seek reappointment
Kotak Mahindra Bank has recommended two senior executives from within the bank as potential successors to CEO Ashok Vaswani, whose term ends on December 31, 2026, Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.
The private-sector lender has submitted the names of Executive Directors Anup Saha and Paritosh Kashyap to the Reserve Bank of India for approval, according to the sources.
Under Indian banking regulations, lenders are required to recommend at least two candidates for the post of CEO.
The RBI can approve one of the proposed names or ask the bank to submit alternative candidates if it finds them unsuitable.
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The recommendation marks the first formal step in the succession process at India's fourth-largest private-sector bank. Vaswani, who took charge as CEO on January 1, 2024, has said he will not seek reappointment after his current term ends, citing personal reasons.
The succession process is being closely watched as Kotak Mahindra Bank seeks to strengthen its position in India's competitive private banking sector.
Under Vaswani, the lender had set its sights on becoming the country's third-largest private bank by after-tax profit.
Saha joined Kotak Mahindra Bank in January 2026 after heading non-bank lender Bajaj Finance.
He currently oversees the bank's retail banking operations. Kashyap, a long-time Kotak executive, heads its wholesale banking business.
Vaswani, a former Barclays and Citigroup banker, succeeded founder Uday Kotak after more than two decades at the helm.
The Kotak family remains the bank's largest shareholder, with a 26% stake.
Shares of Kotak Mahindra Bank have risen about 5% over the past five trading sessions.
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