IDBI Bank top team wiped out

The exit of Ajay Bhimbet from IDBI Bank as its acting CEO and retail chief has virtually wiped out the bank's senior management team, which was built by the former chairman M S Verma and managing director Gunit Chadha over the last three years.

A three-member high-level committee of the bank's board comprising P P Vora, D B Phatak and Mukund M Chitale met today to discuss Bhimbet's resignation.

In a release sent to the stock exchanges, the bank said the board of directors had accepted the resignation.

Bhimbet will continue as acting CEO for three months or till the time a new managing director & chief executive is appointed.

Bhimbet is joining Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank to head its retail operations in Abu Dhabi. "I am glad that I had two choices and am happy to exercise one of them," Bhimbet said.

On being asked whether the reason for his resignation was the uncertainty over the future of IDBI Bank, he said, "That was also a consideration. Abu Dhabi is looking for a retail focus and is in the same stage where IDBI Bank was three years back."

The bank's parent IDBI had sent three names to the Reserve Bank of India for the managing director's post.

These were Bhaskar Ghose, CEO of IndusInd Bank, Nageshwara Rao, managing director of IDBI Capital Markets, and Ajay Bhimbet himself.

Sources said that Bhimbet was miffed as his name was third on the list. Sources also said with Bhimbet's exit there will be now a further exodus from the retail operations of the bank.

Verma and Chadha had made a core team in IDBI Bank in the last three years. Other senior executives who have resigned include: Kumar Subramanian, country head, operations and retail assets; Ulhas Deshpande, head of human resources; and Neeraj Bhai, chief technology officer.

Bhimbet came from Stanchart Grindlays, Subramanian from BankAm and Neeraj Bhai from ICICI Bank. The two senior officials who are now left are Sushil Kak (from Deutsche Bank), head corporate banking and Janak Desai (from StanChart), treasurer.

By the end of this month three posts in the bank's board will also fall vacant. MC Shah and Shekhar Bajaj have already left, and Phatak's tenure will come to an end.

The board also is left without any chairman after Verma's tenure came to an end a few months back. Sources said foamier CMD Vora may become the chairman.

A search committee was formed by IDBI to spot the new head for the bank. The candidates who were interviewed included Atul Sahasrabuddhe, former country head of ING Bank, Robin Roy, executive vice-president, retail, ING Vysya Bank, Deepak Bagla, a senior executive with Citibank's corporate banking team, and TR Chawla of Dena Bank.