Anup Kumar Saha, the former managing director of Bajaj Finance, who quit a few months ago, has now joined Kotak Mahindra Bank as Whole-time Director. In an official press release today, the lender said the appointment will “strengthen” its leadership team, adding that it is subject to regulatory approvals.
Till such time as the approval, Saha will “act as Whole-time Director (Designate) and will be a part of Senior Management from January 12, 2026”, according to Kotak's statement.
CS Rajan, Chairman of the Board at Kotak Mahindra Bank said, “We are delighted to welcome Anup to Kotak’s Board. His leadership in scaling businesses, driving digital transformation and building customer-centric organizations will be invaluable as we continue to strengthen our position in the financial sector.”
Who is Anup Kumar Saha?
Saha served as Bajaj Finance's MD, where over eight years he played “a pivotal role in transforming the company into one of India’s leading and most profitable non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) in consumer finance”, the statement said.
Kotak's statement added that Saha has leadership experience in “business transformation, digital innovation and customer-focused strategies, expanding the customer base to 100 million and diversifying the product portfolio”.
Notably, he resigned from Bajaj Finance in July 2025. Prior to his time at Bajaj Finance, Saha spent 14 years at ICICI Bank in senior leadership roles, “building deep expertise in consumer and retail banking, data analytics and digital transformation”.
What will Anup Kumar Saha do at Kotak?
The statement said that Saha will oversee Consumer Banking, Marketing and Data Analytics functions, with a view of “reinforcing Kotak’s leadership depth and driving customer-centric transformation, digital innovation and data-led strategies”.
“Anup’s appointment underscores Kotak’s commitment to building a market-leading financial services business and a strong bench of experienced leaders. His extensive understanding of retail finance, data-driven growth and innovation will help us accelerate our strategy and deliver even greater value to our customers,” Ashok Vaswani, MD & CEO, Kotak Mahindra Bank said.
In the release, Saha said he is “excited and honored” to join Kotak and is looking forward to “build on this strong foundation, drive innovation, deepen customer relationships and create value for all stakeholders”.
