RBI questions Shikha Sharma’s reappointment as Axis Bank CEO: newspaper report
02 Apr 2018
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is reported to have asked Axis Bank to reconsider appointment of Shikha Sharma as CEO for a fourth term.
A bank statement to a newspaper said: “The bank's board follows a standard process on senior appointments, and forwards its recommendations to the regulator. This process is currently in progress and we are unaware of any final decision on this issue. We would also like to mention that the correspondence between regulator and bank is strictly private and confidential.”
Newspaper reports quoted unnamed RBI sources of having asked the bank to reconsider Sharma’s appointment, more than eight months after it re-appointed her following a board approval.
The central bank is believed to have adopted a cautious approach while dealing with lenders in the country, especially after many incidents surfaced recently.
Last month, the central bank said it had imposed penalties on Axis Bank as “statutory inspection of the bank with reference to its financial position as on 31 March 2016, revealed violations of various regulations issued by RBI in the assessment of NPAs.”
Based on the inspection report and other relevant documents, a notice was issued to the bank in November 2017 advising it to show cause as to why penalty should not be imposed on it for failing to comply with directions issued by RBI, said the central bank.