HDFC Bank, India’s largest private sector lender, on Wednesday said the Reserve Bank of India has approved the appointment of former Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar as the bank’s part-time chairman for a period of three years, effective July 15.
Kumar is likely to chair his first board meeting on July 18, when the bank’s board will review its financial results for the first quarter of FY27. One of his immediate priorities as chairman will be to lead the board’s discussions on the reappointment of Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sashidhar Jagdishan.
In a regulatory filing, the bank expressed its appreciation to Keki Mistry, who served as interim part-time chairman after Atanu Chakraborty stepped down in March.
“The bank places on record its sincere gratitude to Mr Keki Mistry for his valuable guidance and contributions during his tenure as the interim part-time chairman. Mr Mistry continues to serve as a non-executive, non-independent director of the bank,” HDFC Bank said.
Last month, the bank’s board had approved Kumar’s appointment as part-time chairman for three years, subject to RBI approval. It had also cleared his appointment as an additional independent director for four years, subject to shareholders’ approval.
Kumar, 66, is a retired IAS officer who served as Chief Election Commissioner from May 2022 to February 2025. Earlier, he held the roles of finance secretary and secretary, Department of Financial Services, before retiring from government service in February 2020.