From John Matthai to CS Setty, a look at SBI chairpersons over the years

Raj Kumar Talwar was the longest-serving SBI chairman, with his term spanning from 1969 to 1976

Was Independent India’s first railway minister and later became the country’s second finance minister, presenting two Budgets. He went on to become the first chairman of SBI, leading the bank from July 1, 1955, to September 30, 1956.

 

Paresh Chandra Bhattacharya

 

Was the third chairman of SBI, serving from March 1957 to February 1962. Before this, he was a secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, and later became the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, serving from March 1962 to June 1967.

 

Borra Venkatappaiah

 

Was the fourth chairman of SBI, leading the bank from 1962 to 1965. Before this, he served at the Reserve Bank of India as an executive director and later as deputy governor.

 

Raj Kumar Talwar

 

Was SBI’s longest-serving chairman, with a term spanning from 1969 to 1976. He was also the youngest person to head the bank, becoming chairman at the age of 47. Later, he went on to chair IDBI Bank as well. 

 

Dhruba Narayan Ghosh

 

Was the 12th chairman of SBI, serving from 1985 to 1989. He was credited with drafting the nationalisation ordinance for 14 private banks in 1969. During his tenure, SBI began the process of computerising its branches. He also launched SBI’s merchant banking arm — SBI Capital Markets — and SBI Mutual Fund.

 

Arundhati Bhattacharya

 

Was the first woman to serve as SBI’s chairperson, holding the post from October 2013 to October 2017, succeeding Pratip Chaudhuri. Under her leadership, SBI merged five associate banks and Bharatiya Mahila Bank with itself in 2017. She is currently the chief executive officer and chairperson of Salesforce India and South Asia.

 

Dinesh Kumar Khara

 

Succeeded Rajnish Kumar as SBI chairman, serving from October 2020 to August 2024. Under him, SBI’s net profit rose from ₹20,000 crore to over ₹60,000 crore in a single financial year. Cumulatively, the bank earned ₹1.63 trillion in net profits over his four-year term — more than the total profits of the preceding 64 years.

 

Challa Sreenivasulu Setty

 

Succeeded Khara as SBI chairman in August 2024. Under his leadership, the bank crossed ₹1 trillion in operating profit for the first time in 2024-25. He has set a target for SBI to achieve ₹1 trillion in net profit over the next three to five years.