Former Finance Secretary Ajay Seth appointed as new Irdai chairman

Ajay Seth, former finance secretary and G20 finance track lead, appointed as Irdai chairman for three years or until the age of 65, whichever is earlier

India’s top finance ministry honchos till recently, who had combined forces on many a Union Budget including the one presented this year, are now collectively responsible for securing and developing the country’s financial sector, with the Centre appointing the recently retired Finance Secretary Ajay Seth at the helm of the insurance regulator on Thursday. 

Seth was picked as the new chairman of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), nearly four months after the post fell vacant after the tenure of incumbent chief Debashis Panda ended this March. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved Seth’s appointment for a period of three years or till he attains 65 years of age or until further orders, whichever is the earliest. 

Seth, who also held the position of economic affairs secretary since April 2021 till his retirement as Finance Secretary last month, had been a key part of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s Budget formulation team for four years. 

His fellow North Block mandarins also moved on to lead critical financial sector regulator roles, a transition that began last December when the then Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra was appointed as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor. 

 

Malhotra, who took on the central bank’s mantle from another ex-finance ministry official Shaktikanta Das, had earlier served as Secretary, Department of Financial Services (DFS). 

Soon after the Budget for this year was presented, then Finance Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey, who had also steered the Departments of Revenue and Investment & Public Asset Management (DIPAM), was named the chairman of the stock market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). Pandey, who had begun his stint as DIPAM secretary in October 2019 and oversaw the successful completion of Air India’s privatisation, was brought in to succeed Madhabi Puri Buch, who was brought in from the private sector as the first female boss at Sebi. 

The Finance Ministry’s imprint at key regulatory positions was also apparent last week when the government appointed former Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) chairman Nitin Gupta as the chief of National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) that regulates financial reporting quality. An Indian Revenue Service officer, Gupta was the CBDT chief between June 27, 2022 and June 30, 2024. 

They may not be working on another Budget in the future, but Seth and his former North Block colleagues can be expected to meet formally under the stewardship of their former boss, the FM. After all, Sitharaman chairs the meetings of the Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) meeting, where all financial sector regulators convene to deliberate on issues related to macro financial stability. For those few hours, it will be like the good old times again.