'Never a good time to call it a day…': Kotak Bank’s MD & CEO Ashok Vaswani on his decision to leave

On June 27, 2026, Kotak Mahindra Bank notified stock exchanges that its MD and CEO Ashok Vaswani had informed the board that for personal reasons he doesn’t wish to seek reappointment upon completion of his current term on December 31. The news came as a surprise considering that Vaswani had taken the top job at the private sector lender only in January 2024. 

“There is never a good time to call it a day…” Vaswani said interacting with reporters following the bank’s first quarter earnings. He informed that the he had just become a grandfather and his daughter who was in San Francisco, was calling him, which made it compelling.   

In the last few years, the bank had faced some headwinds, such as the embargo imposed by the Reserve Bank of India from issuing new credit cards or onboarding new card customers via online and mobile banking channels. That restriction was lifted in 2025.   

Vaswani noted how the bank had done a lot of “heavy lifting” addressing the various challenges and was now ready to step up the accelerator, and therefore perhaps not a bad time for him to walk away. 

“You are aware of the technology embargo, you are well aware of rebuilding of the entire management team, you are well aware of how we have cleaned up the personal loan book, how we have cleaned up the credit card book, microfinance book, how we got our liability engines cranking. So, the bank and the group, we have a good unified strategy and we are well set now to accelerate our journey. So, you know it may not be a bad time to step away,” he pointed. 

Vaswani has said the bank will submit names for his successor to the Reserve Bank within the regulatory timeframe. 

Kotak Mahindra Bank on Saturday reported a 26% year-on-year rise in net profit for the April-June quarter at ₹4,123 crore. Its net interest income rose 9% from a year ago to ₹7,928 crore.