Reserve Bank Of India (RBI) Approves Appointment Of Rajeev Ahuja As Interim MD, CEO Of RBL Bank
Shares of RBL Bank were trading at Rs 133.10, down 7.76 per cent on the BSE.
New Delhi:
The Reserve Bank has approved the appointment of Rajiv Ahuja as interim MD and CEO of RBL Bank for a period of three months or till regular appointment is made.
In a sudden development, the bank’s board last Saturday sent the then managing director and chief executive officer Vishwavir Ahuja on leave and promoted Rajiv as interim MD and CEO to look after his day-to-day operations. Can go Subject to bank, regulatory and other approvals.
“We would like to inform you that the Reserve Bank of India vide its letter dated December 28, 2021 has approved the appointment of Rajiv Ahuja as the interim Managing Director and CEO of the Bank for a period of three months with effect from December 25, 2021. , or till the appointment of a regular MD and CEO, whichever is earlier,” RBL said in a regulatory filing on Thursday.
Vishwavir’s sudden departure was seen as a result of the RBI’s communication to the bank a day earlier (December 24, 2021), in which his chief general manager Yogesh K Dayal was appointed to the board of the private sector lender.
The appointment of an RBI official on the board of a private sector bank is generally not seen as a normal occurrence. Rajiv, in his first interaction with journalists and investors on December 26, had said that the bank was financially sound and had the full support of its board of directors and the RBI.
The apex bank, on its part, came to the bank’s rescue the very next day, stating that it was financially sound. RBI had said that depositors and investors should not pay heed to speculations about sudden changes in the functioning of the bank.
However, despite RBI’s clarification, the bank’s stock faced a selloff on Monday and plunged 18 per cent, before touching an intra-day low of over Rs 132 on BSE.
Shares of the bank were trading at Rs 133.10 on the BSE, down 7.76 per cent from the previous close.
