A gentleman banker

BS PEOPLE: Arun K Thiagarajan

At 66, Arun K Thiagarajan is no stranger to corporate responsibility. He’s steered Wipro’s fledgling IT business, given strategic direction to HP in India and helped firm up the foundation of ABB in India. Given these impeccable credentials, it’s little wonder, then, that ING Group has appointed Thiagarajan as chairman of ING Vysya Bank in India for a period of three years. The Dutch group holds a little over 44 per cent in its Indian subsidiary.

Thiagarajan succeeds distinguished banker K R Ramamoorthy, who completed his term of office on 7 July.

Thiagarajan is no stranger to ING Vysya Bank, either. He was first nominated to the board in 2003. As one of its key members, he contributed significantly in keeping the ship on an even keel as Indian banks steered a course through the global financial storm.

ING Vysya Bank, in a statement, said: “The board nominated Arun Thiagarajan to succeed K R Ramamoorthy for his vast experience in strategic planning, economics & finance, technology and systems. We look forward to his rich experience and vision to lead ING Vysya Bank in its journey to be a strong, vibrant, technology-driven bank that stands for innovation and making banking easier for customers.”

ING Vysya has been growing steadily over the past few quarters. The bank’s net profit for the quarter ended 30 June increased by 15 per cent to Rs 69 crore over the same period last year.

“Arun has the ability to gain the confidence of people and distill down a consensus when a board has disparate views. He has an impeccable knack of keeping temperatures down,” said a close friend of Thiagarajan from his Wipro and HP days.

Thiagarajan graduated in business administration & information systems from Uppasala University, Sweden, obtained his masters degree in engineering from Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, and attended the advanced management programme at Harvard Business School.

“He is a thorough gentleman and is squeaky clean, which is much needed on many boards,” said a close friend from Wipro.