Who is Anup Kumar Saha, the banker set to lead Kotak Mahindra Bank next?
Anup Kumar Saha is appointed as the next CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, succeeding Ashok Vaswani. He will serve a three-year term and aims to accelerate the bank's growth as the fourth-largest private bank in India.
Anup Kumar Saha is set to become the next CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, the bank said on Thursday. He would be succeeding Ashok Vaswani, whose term ends next year.
Saha has been appointed for a three-year term.
India's fourth-largest private bank had recommended the names of executive directors Anup Saha and Paritosh Kashyap for the post to the Reserve Bank of India last month for approval. Following the central government nod, Saha has been selected for the post.
Under banking rules, banks must propose at least two candidates for the CEO post, from whom the regulator selects and approves one.
Kotak Mahindra Bank, under the leadership of Vaswani, had set its sights on becoming India's third-largest private lender by after-tax profit. The new CEO is expected to accelerate that growth momentum.
Who Is Anup Kumar Saha?
Saha joined Kotak in January this year and, since March 2026, he has been overseeing the retail bank, government business, data analytics and marketing functions.
He is currently working as a whole-time director (executive director) at Kotak
He has more than 32 years of professional experience, including 25 years in banking and financial services.
Before joining Kotak Mahindra Bank, Saha worked at Bajaj Finance for seven years. He became managing director & CEO of Bajaj Finance in April 2025 and resigned from the position in July 2025.
Prior to Bajaj Finance, Saha worked at ICICI Bank from May 2003 to June 2017, a total of 14 years. There, he worked in retail secured assets, business intelligence, retail and rural collections, credit cards and retail structured finance.
Prior to that, Saha worked with GE Capital in credit cards, sales and analytics and with Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) in production engineering.
Saha holds a B.Tech degree in Engineering from IIT Kharagpur and an MBA from IIM Lucknow.
What Kotak said about Saha
C S Rajan, Chairman of the Board of Kotak Mahindra Bank, said earlier that Saha brings extensive experience across banking and financial services and has already been closely involved with the bank’s businesses in his current role.
“We welcome the Reserve Bank of India’s approval. Anup brings with him extensive experience across banking and financial services and has already been actively engaged with the Bank’s businesses in his current role. As the Bank continues to build on its strong foundations we look forward to Anup’s leadership in strengthening the franchise and in pursuing sustainable growth. On behalf of the Board, I wish Anup every success in leading Kotak into its next phase of growth," said Rajan.
About the Author
Sanchari Ghosh is an Assistant Editor at Mint with over 12 years of experience in journalism, specialising in personal finance, DLT & DeFi, geopolitics and foreign policy, with a particular emphasis on how these areas intersect. <br> She writes extensively about how money works in everyday life—helping readers navigate personal finance decisions. <br> As AI reshapes investing behaviour, capital is increasingly flowing into decentralized ecosystems, redefining how assets are managed, traded, and valued. She focuses on explaining how money flows within frameworks like Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT), DeFi protocols, and crypto markets—while also exploring what the future of money could look like in a trustless, programmable financial world. <br> She also focuses on immigration-related issues, simplifying complex topics around visas, passports, overseas financial planning, and the many practical challenges Indians face while moving or living abroad. <br> Alongside personal finance, Sanchari has a strong understanding of international politics, contemporary and historical conflicts, and global state decisions. She closely tracks how geopolitical developments influence economies, markets, and individual financial choices, bringing together finance and global affairs in her reporting. <br> She began her career as a desk editor, which gave her a strong foundation in news writing. Over time, her interest naturally shifted toward personal finance. Before joining Mint in 2020, she worked DNA, The Times of India, Outlook Money, BloombergQuint, and ETMoney. At Mint, she got an opportunity to expand her coverage to include immigration and geopolitical developments while continuing to closely follow personal finance trends and market movements.As a journalist, she is committed to accuracy, intellectual rigour, and fairness. <br> She is an English Major and her work took her across cities including Delhi, Mumbai, and Pune. Living independently from an early age gave her firsthand experience in managing life and money on her own. This practical exposure sparked her strong interest in personal finance. <br> Outside the newsroom, Sanchari is a sports enthusiast who regularly plays lawn tennis and squash. In her younger years, she was also a national-level badminton player.
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