Anup Bagchi to Become HDFC Bank CEO on 27 October After RBI Approval
The Reserve Bank of India has cleared the ICICI Prudential Life chief to succeed Sashidhar Jagdishan at India's largest private lender. Shareholders are still voting.
HDFC Bank has named Anup Bagchi its next managing director and chief executive for three years from 27 October 2026, after the Reserve Bank of India approved his appointment and remuneration under Section 35B of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949. The bank disclosed the decision in a stock exchange filing on 1 October.
Bagchi, currently MD and CEO of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, succeeds Sashidhar Jagdishan, whose term ends on 26 October. As of 20 October, the appointment still needs shareholder approval.
What Has Been Approved and What Is Pending
Outlook Business reports that the RBI approved the appointment and remuneration on 1 October. The bank's filing says the central bank "has approved appointment" of Bagchi as MD and CEO. The term runs from 27 October 2026 to 26 October 2029.
The board, on the recommendation of its Governance, Nomination and Remuneration Committee, appointed Bagchi an additional director from 2 October. That status lasts until shareholder approval.
The bank has put the resolution to a postal ballot. Notice is dated 7 October, and remote e-voting through NSDL runs from 8 October (10:00 AM IST) to 6 November (5:00 PM IST), according to PSU Connect. The cut-off date for eligible shareholders is 2 October.
Jagdishan told the board on 29 August that he would not seek reappointment, according to Business Today. The RBI also approved a CEO succession at Kotak Mahindra Bank. Anup Kumar Saha takes over there from 1 January 2027, replacing Ashok Vaswani, whose term ends on 31 December 2026, Deccan Chronicle reports.
Why Section 35B Matters
Outlook Business says the RBI approved Bagchi's appointment and remuneration under Section 35B of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949. Business Today says the board's appointment is subject to shareholder approval.
Nomura, which had excluded HDFC Bank from its top picks over succession concerns, added it to them after the approval. It said the clearance "removes the succession overhang," according to Outlook Business.
The Bank Bagchi Inherits
HDFC Bank merged with HDFC Ltd in July 2023, after the deal was announced in April 2022. Outlook Business cites an estimate from Kush Gupta of SKG Investments and Advisory that the balance sheet has grown about 78% since the merger.
Funding and margins are the focus. Motilal Oswal data cited by Outlook Business shows the CASA ratio, the share of low-cost current and savings deposits, at 32.3% in June 2026. Outlook Business puts the pre-merger figure at 44%. The bank's target is 38%. Net interest margin was 3.26% in the first quarter of FY27, against 4.1% before the merger.
Deposits grew 18.8% in the September quarter, against 16.3% for advances. Term deposits grew 17.4% in the first quarter of FY27, against 9.4% for CASA.
The share price has also lagged. Motilal Oswal puts the decline at 25% over the past year, and the stock closed at ₹692.60 on 8 October. The brokerage keeps a Buy rating with a ₹925 target and says Bagchi's experience will enable him "to lead India's largest private bank with leadership across BFSI segments."
“removes the succession overhang”
Bagchi's Move From ICICI
Bagchi has been with the ICICI Group since 1992, per Business Today. He was an executive director at ICICI Bank from 2017 to 2023, overseeing retail, business and rural banking and then wholesale banking. He was also MD and CEO of ICICI Securities and chairman of ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company until May 2023.
Since June 2023 he has led ICICI Prudential Life Insurance. In FY2025, the insurer's annual premium equivalent rose 15% to ₹10,407 crore and profit after tax rose almost 40% to ₹1,189 crore, according to Business Today. He holds an engineering degree from IIT Kanpur and a management degree from IIM Bangalore.
Bagchi moves from ICICI Prudential Life Insurance to HDFC Bank.
What Happens Next
Shareholder voting closes on 6 November. Bagchi's three-year term is due to begin on 27 October, ten days before the vote ends. He is an additional director until shareholder approval.
The proxy adviser IiAS has said the coming months will be crucial for HDFC Bank as it rebuilds investor confidence and its deposit base. It put the credit-to-deposit ratio at nearly 96% and the CASA ratio at 32%, compared with about 48% before the merger. Outlook Business gives a different pre-merger CASA figure, 44%.
