HDFC, Kotak Get Their Anups: Same Roots, But Very Different Challenges

There was an unusual coincidence at the top of India's banking industry this week.Two of the country's biggest private banks picked new chiefs on the same day. Both are named Anup. Both are Bengali. And both have an important connection with ICICI.But that is where the similarities largely end.Also Read | Layoffs Are Rising In Tech, But These Skills Are Helping People Unlock Better PayAt HDFC Bank, Anup Bagchi will take over as Managing Director and CEO after the end of Sashidhar Jagdishan's tenure. At Kotak Mahindra Bank, Anup Kumar Saha has been appointed MD and CEO for three years.Two Anups. Two large private banks. Two very different jobs.Bagchi is walking into HDFC Bank as an outsider. Saha, meanwhile, is being asked to accelerate a bank where he has already spent time getting familiar with its operations and leadership.Two Bengali Anups, One ICICI ConnectionThe coincidence gets even more interesting when their careers are compared.Bagchi has spent much of his career in the ICICI group. He was MD and CEO of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance and has also held senior positions at ICICI Bank and ICICI Securities.Saha too has a long ICICI connection. He spent about 14 years at ICICI Bank before moving to Bajaj Finance, where he eventually became MD and CEO.Both have come to their new jobs with experience of the ICICI way of doing business. Both have also worked across retail and consumer-focused financial services.Yet HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank are not asking their new chiefs to solve the same problem.Anup Bagchi: The 'Outsider' At HDFC BankFor Bagchi, the first challenge could be understanding HDFC Bank from the inside. His appointment is significant because the bank has chosen an outsider for the top job at a crucial point in its journey.HDFC Bank has spent the past few years dealing with the enormous task of integrating the former HDFC Limited business with the bank. The merger created scale. But it also changed the bank's growth profile and brought greater investor scrutiny.Now, Bagchi has to take the institution into its next phase. That means keeping growth strong. It means managing deposits and margins. And it means addressing investor concerns around the bank's post-merger performance.There is another important factor. Bagchi is not coming from another bank looking for a similar job. He comes from insurance, after senior roles across the ICICI ecosystem. That gives him a different perspective. But it also means he will have to quickly establish himself inside India's largest private-sector bank."His challenge is partly about change. HDFC Bank does not simply need a new person in the CEO's chair. It needs its next phase to look different from the one that preceded it," Abhishek Bhilwaria, Partner at BhilwariaFinserv told NDTV.Anup Saha: Kotak's Growth AssignmentSaha's starting point is different. He joined Kotak Mahindra Bank only in January 2026, but has already taken on a senior role as Executive Director. His responsibilities include retail banking, government business, data analytics and marketing.Before that, his career included a long stint at ICICI Bank and more than eight years at Bajaj Finance. That background gives him something Kotak needs at this stage: deep experience in consumer finance and retail businesses.Kotak is well-capitalised. But growth has been a key focus for the bank. In the June quarter, its advances grew 15 per cent year-on-year, while deposits increased 12 per cent. Its annualised return on equity stood at 12 per cent. Saha's task will be to push the bank harder on growth while preserving its conservative approach to risk.That is a delicate balance."Kotak wants faster decisions. It wants stronger loan and deposit growth. But the new CEO cannot chase growth at the expense of asset quality. His challenge is more about execution," Bhilwaria added.Same Roots. Different ProblemsAnd that is what makes the appointment of the two Anups interesting. Their CVs have striking similarities.Both are Bengali. Both have ICICI connections. Both have experience across financial services. Both have worked in businesses where retail customers and consumer finance matter.But the jobs waiting for them are different.