ICICI Bank digs into own pool for new leaders

Following weeks of speculation, India's largest private sector lender, ICICI Bank has  unveiled its new management team drawing upon its own talent pool.

Thus, Executive Director V Vaidyanathan will assume the position of managing director and chief executive officer of the bank's life insurance arm, ICICI Prudential. This slot had fallen vacant as Shikha Sharma decided to move to Axis Bank. On April 20, Axis Bank, the country's third-largest private lender, announced that it had chosen Sharma to take over as managing director and CEO from PJ Nayak. Dissenting with the board's decision, Nayak declared that he will leave the group with immediate effect.

Sandeep Bakshi, currently the managing director and CEO of ICICI Bank's general insurance arm, ICICI Lombard, will take over as the bank's executive director from Vaidyanathan. In this role, he will be in charge of retail and rural banking. Bakshi, in turn, will be replaced by Bhargav Dasgupta who at present is executive director, ICICI Prudential.

Vaidyanathan, Bakshi and Dasgupta will assume their new positions from May 1, and their appointments are subject to the requisite approvals.

The lender's non-executive chairman, N Vaghul, will retire on April 30 and his position will be filled by founder CEO and managing director, KV Kamath. Chanda Kochhar will take over from Kamath on May 1. In addition, she will become the non-executive chairperson of the lender's various ventures like ICICI Prudential, ICICI Lombard, ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company, ICICI Securities, ICICI Bank UK Plc and ICICI Bank Canada.

MS Ramachandran, the former chairman of Indian Oil Corporation, has been appointed non-executive director on the board of ICICI Bank.

The two top-level executives who have left the group are Sharma and Renuka Ramanath, the head of the bank's private equity arm, ICICI Venture. Ramanath made public her decision to leave the bank on April 17 and said that she plans to start her own private equity firm.

"I am very pleased at the moment. The challenges of my job will only become apparent once I start my new role," said Dasgupta. "It doesn't make too much of a difference since I am working with the same group. I have a personal bond with the general insurance arm as it has made a great contribution to the society. The real picture of the retail and rural business will be known only after I take charge," added Bakshi.