'ICICI is CEO-making factory' trends on internet as Anup Saha, Anup Bagchi named MD-CEO of Kotak Mahindra, HDFC Bank

The phrase ‘ICICI is a CEO-making factory’ is trending on social media as two former ICICI executives were named to lead major private lenders. On Thursday, Anup Kumar Saha was named MD & CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, while Anup Bagchi will take charge as HDFC Bank’s MD & CEO.

And there is some solid basis for the internet chatter. If you look at the records, several bankers who have previously worked at ICICI Bank have gone on to lead, or currently head, some of the biggest financial institutions in India.

Some of the biggest names include:

Shikha Sharma — She served as the Managing Director and CEO of Axis Bank from 2009 to 2018

V. Vaidyanathan — Currently serving as the Managing Director and CEO of IDFC Bank

Madhabi Puri Buch — former chairperson of the securities regulatory body (SEBI)

Nilesh Shah – Currently Managing Director of Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Company

Rajiv Sabharwal — Currently serving as the Managing Director and CEO of Tata Capital

Sonjoy Chatterjee — Currently serving as Chairman and CEO at Goldman Sachs India Securities

Kalpana Morparia — Former chairperson of South & South East Asia JPMorgan

Renuka Ramnath — Founder, MD and CEO at Multiples

Zarin Daruwala — Former CEO at Standard Chartered Bank, India. She retired this year

Vishakha Mulye — Currently serving as Managing Director and CEO at Aditya Birla Capital

Also Read | One day, two Anups; one Saha, one Bagchi at helm of 2 big Indian banks

Some of the phrases that are currently viral on the internet are: ‘Manufacturers of CEOs and CIOs for MF industry’, ‘ICICI Bank is truly a CEO-making factory!’, ‘ICICI Bank — Truly a CEO-Making Factory!’

Even Harsh Goenka joined the party, saying, ‘ICICI is becoming a strong leadership factory’

All about the two Anups

Anup Bagchi is set to be the next chief executive and managing director of HDFC Bank, with the Reserve Bank clearing his name to lead the largest private sector lender on Thursday.

Bagchi, 55, succeeds Sashidhar Jagdishan, who decided in August not to seek reappointment after his second three-year term ends on October 26, triggering an unplanned and accelerated succession process.

He has been serving as managing director and chief executive of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance since 2023 and served as executive director of ICICI Bank for six years. Before that, he was overseeing both retail and wholesale banking.

Also Read | How Anup Bagchi got the HDFC Bank MD-CEO job: Timeline of developments

Anup Saha has been appointed CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank after India’s banking regulator approved his appointment.

Saha has been appointed for a three-year term starting from 1 January, the Mumbai-based lender said in an exchange filing on Thursday. He will succeed Ashok Vaswani, who is stepping down for personal reasons at the end of his three-year term on 31 December.

He has over three decades of experience, including 25 years spanning banks and non-banking financial institutions. He had a 14-year stint at ICICI Bank, where he led some retail verticals.

Apart from their names and previous association with ICICI, the two executives share another common link: they are IIT-IIM alumni.