ABN Amro has lost one of its most senior Asian executives, the first major departure in the region since a Royal Bank of Scotland-led consortium won the takeover battle for the Dutch bank in October.
Romesh Sobti, ABN country head for India, will move to IndusInd Bank, a domestic private-sector institution controlled by the Hinduja family.
"He's the first real head of a country to have left of his own accord and India is one of the biggest regions in Asia that we have," said one ABN banker.
Mr Sobti's departure comes as staff await news of RBS's plans in the region after its consortium agreed to pay Euro70bn ($103bn) for ABN after a takeover battle this year with Barclays.
The only confirmation to date is that John McCormick, RBS's Asia-Pacific chief executive, will take charge of the much-enlarged operation.
News of what happens to key personnel such as Jeroen Drost, Asia chief executive, is expected within the next four weeks.
The Dutch bank has built up a coveted regional portfolio, spanning retail and commercial banking operations in 17 countries with 14,000 staff. RBS has a much smaller operation in Asia, with fewer than 500 staff.
ABN's India franchise is seen as particularly valuable to RBS, which lacks a significant presence in the fast-growing market.
The government restricts the number of new branches that foreign banks can open in India and limits takeovers of domestic banks.
ABN, with 28 branches in India and plans for three more, ranks among the top five foreign operators in the country in terms of branches, bancassurance, balance sheet size and other measures.
Mr Sobti is India's longest serving head of a foreign bank with 17 years at the helm. He spent nine years at ANZ Grindlays, the Australian bank, and before that worked for State Bank of India, the country's largest financial institution.
His replacement is Meera Sanyal, another ABN veteran who joined the bank in 1992 from Grindlays.
"India is a key market for us," ABN said in a statement announcing Ms Sanyal's appointment.
One ABN employee said: "The future of ABN in Asia will take shape in the next few weeks when RBS makes its strategy and leadership team clearer and people get paid their bonuses."
RBS declined to comment.
