ICICI Bank may rejig top deck as Justice Srikrishna probes loan scam
18 Jun 2018
ICICI Bank board isconsidering a reshuffle of its top management, which could see the exit of its chief executive officer Chanda Kochhar and the appointment of a new CEO, with reports suggesting ICICI Prudential Life CEO Sandeep Bakhshi becoming ICICI Bank's interim chief
The ICICI Bank board at its meeting today is also expected to announce the appointment of a committee headed by Justice B N Srikrishna to probe the allegations of misconduct against its CEO.
A report in The Economic Times suggested that Bakhshi, CEO of ICICI Bank’s life insurance venture, ICICI Prudential Life, could be appointed as the group's interim chief.
The ICICI Bank board is contemplating the interim rearrangement, while a probe panel headed by retired Supreme Court judge B N Srikrishna investigates the role of Kochhar in the Videocon loan fiasco.
Kochar, who is on an annual leave, is likely to remain on leave until the investigation is complete, according to the report.
Srikrishna will investigate whether Kochhar violated the bank's code in sanctioning a loan of Rs3,250 crore to Videocon group in 2012.
Chanda Kochhar was on the credit committee of ICICI Bank that sanctioned the credit. It is alleged that Videocon chairman Venugoal Dhoot, a friend of her husband Deepak Kochhar, invested Rs80 crore in NuPower Renewables promoted by Deepak Kochhar.
The allegations follow whistle-blower revelations of conflict-of-interest by Kochhar over loans to Videocon Industries. It was alleged that she did not disclose business dealings of her husband Deepak Kochhar with the Dhoots of Videocon.
Dhoot subsequently transferred his stake in NuPower to firms controlled by him or his associates until it was finally transferred to a trust controlled by Deepak Kochhar in 2013, for a token amount.