The Reserve Bank of India has granted approval for the appointment of Ashok Vaswani as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD and CEO) of Kotak Mahindra Bank. Vaswani’s tenure begins and shall not extend beyond January 1, 2024, as per the bank’s regulatory filing. He succeeds Uday Kotak, who spent 21 years with the bank.

Uday Kotak expressed his satisfaction with the RBI’s approval of Ashok Vaswani as the next MD & CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank. He praised Vaswani as a world-class leader and banker with a strong focus on digitalization and customer-centric strategies. Kotak emphasized the pride of bringing a “Global Indian” back to build the future of Kotak and India.

Ashok Vaswani, in response, conveyed his gratitude to the board for entrusting him with the responsibility of guiding Kotak Mahindra Bank into its next phase of growth. He expressed excitement and honor in carrying forward the legacy of Uday Kotak, who played a pivotal role in building the bank’s stature.

Vaswani highlighted the determination of the proven leadership team to elevate the bank to new heights and ensure its meaningful contribution to India’s journey towards becoming one of the world’s top three economies in the next five years, while delivering value to shareholders.

As a top banker currently based in New York, Vaswani expressed his delight at the prospect of returning home for this role.

Who is Ashok Vaswani?

Ashok Vaswani boasts a remarkable three-and-a-half-decade career in banking. He initially worked with Citigroup and played a pivotal role in building and expanding global businesses at a significant scale. His tenure at Citigroup included serving as the CEO of Citigroup Asia Pacific and being a member of the Citigroup Global Operating and Management Committees.

Subsequently, Vaswani served as the Chief Executive Officer of Barclays Bank in the United Kingdom, where he oversaw Global Consumer, Private, Corporate, and Payments businesses. He was also a member of the Group Executive Committee during his time with Barclays.

Currently, Ashok Vaswani holds the position of President at Pagaya Technologies Ltd, a US-Israeli AI Fintech company. He also serves on the boards of the London Stock Exchange Group and the SP Jain Institute of Global Management, UK.

Vaswani’s educational background includes a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce, Economics, and Accountancy from Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics (Bombay University). He is a qualified Chartered Accountant and has participated in the Executive Education program at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.

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