Dam Capital's Alok Malpani likely to be named CEO of Emirates NBD's India investment bank

Mumbai: Emirates NBD Capital India Pvt. Ltd, the newly set-up investment banking arm of the Dubai-based financial services major in India, is likely to appoint DAM Capital Advisors Ltd’s managing director Alok Malpani as its first India CEO, said two people in the know.

A formal announcement could be made as early as this week, the people said, requesting not to be named as they are not authorized to speak to the media.

Emirates NBD and Malpani did not immediately offer a comment.

The development comes as the Dubai-based bank continues to make inroads into India, including with a $3 billion investment to acquire a majority stake in RBL Bank.

Emirates NBD Bank set up operations in India in 2017. It applied for an investment banking license in late 2025 and began appointing dealmakers, Bloomberg reported in October 2025.

Banking veteran

Malpani comes with nearly three decades of banking experience. The long-time BNP Paribas banker did nearly decade-long stints with the French investment bank in Paris and Mumbai, where he advised on the $30 billion merger of Arcelor and Mittal Steel, among other notable deals.

After BNP Paribas, Malpani had a brief stint at Axis Capital as head of structured finance. He then moved to DAM Capital Advisors Ltd in 2019, then known as IDFC Securities Ltd. At DAM, as a managing director, he advised on transactions such as the public market listing of JSW Cement and JSW Infra, as well as the sale of a promoter stake in Sterling & Wilson Renewable Energy Ltd to Reliance New Energy Solar by the Shapoorji Pallonji Group.

At Emirates NBC Capital, he will lead a team of about 50.

The flagship financial services group of Dubai is establishing an India office at a time when deal-making has seen a rebound in the country, despite rising volatility due to US sanctions. Investment banks made a record $1.5 billion through fees in 2025 in India, Mint reported earlier, citing data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).

Most of the money was generated from equity deals, according to the data. About $651.8 million came from equity deals, followed by $391.3 million from mergers and acquisitions deals. On the debt side, investment banks generated $232.5 million from bond deals and $227 million from loan syndications.