The Managing Director (MD) and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank Ashok Vaswani has decided not to seek reappointment when his first term expires on December 31, 2026, citing personal reasons, and the bank’s board has initiated the process to find a successor.
“We wish to inform you that Mr. Ashok Vaswani, Managing Director and CEO of the Bank, has informed the Board that, for personal reasons, he does not wish to seek re-appointment upon completion of his current term on December 31, 2026,” the lender said in a stock exchange filing. “The Board has, at its meeting held today, respected his decision and has initiated the process for the appointment of a new Managing Director and CEO. The process will be completed within applicable regulatory timelines.”
However, the bank said it expected to have new leadership in place in time to ensure continuity in both operations and strategic direction ahead of the changeover.
Ashok Vaswani succeeded Uday Kotak as the Managing Director and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank on January 1, 2024. He spent over three-and-a-half decades with Citigroup and also worked at Barclays, serving as the Chief Executive Officer of its Global Consumer, Private, Corporate and Payments business and was a member of the Group Executive Committee.
He had notable achievements during his tenure as Kotak Bank’s chief as within months of him taking the charge, Kotak Bbank was hit by a significant regulatory action. The RBI barred Kotak Mahindra Bank from onboarding new customers through its online and mobile banking channels and stopped it from issuing fresh credit cards, citing deficiencies in its IT risk and information security framework.
The bank also got caught in the broader downcycle in the microfinance sector, forcing a recalibration of its MFI strategy.
Bank has recorded a consolidated profit after tax for FY26 at Rs 19,103 crore.