After 25 years at the helm of HDFC Bank, Aditya Puri recently handed over the responsibilities as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director of the bank to Shashidhar Jagadeesan, thus spending his last day at the bank’s corporate office. After that took leave from everyone at 5.30 pm. Puri took over as the first head of a private sector bank 25 years ago and built a banking business that employs 1.20 lakh people on his shoulders. Officials said Jagdishan arrived at the bank headquarters opposite Kamala Mills complex in the Lower Parel area of the city to take charge. Both Puri and Jagadishan addressed their colleagues through the virtual medium. In his address, Puri recalled his journey in building the bank with utmost focus on the employees.
Earlier in the day, HDFC Bank’s rival ICICI Bank publicly tweeted in honor of Puri, calling him an inspiration. ICICI Bank on its official Twitter handle wrote ICICI Bank expresses its gratitude to Aditya Puri for his contribution to the Indian Banking Industry. The bank said, ‘In your tenure of several decades, you have been an inspiration to many. We wish you a bright future.
Website of HDFC bank: https://www.hdfcbank.com/
This is how HDFC Bank was made a world-class bank
Aditya Puri told that when this bank was established 25 years ago, many of our friends were children at that time. There were many middle-class people who used to wear Bata shoes. There were many friends who were working in foreign companies in good positions. He said that at that time all his friends had only one wish that a world-class bank should be established in our country as well. He said, ‘I clearly remember when I was building the team for the bank at Sandoz House, I used to tell people to come and join the best bank in the world. Aditya Puri said that there were a lot of challenges in the initial days. Due to financial constraints, we opened our office in Kamla Mills. He used to return home from work during the day and when he reached the office the next morning, the computers and machines were not working because the rats had bitten the wires. He said that in the beginning, our training used to take place under the trees. But thank God we kept moving forward on the decision we took and today we have reached here.
This is how HDFC Bank started Aditya Puri founded the private sector HDFC Bank in India in the 90s. He had come from Malaysia leaving a good job in Citibank. In nearly two decades, Puri took the bank a long way and made it the lowest NPA bank while keeping it profitable.
Highest-paid banker in the country Aditya Puri, MD and CEO of HDFC Bank, is the highest-paid banker in India. Aditya Puri’s salary and other benefits increased by 38 percent to Rs 18.92 crore in the last financial year. Apart from this, according to the bank’s annual report, Aditya Puri received an additional Rs 161.56 crore for exercising share options in the last financial year.
Deepak Parekh gave me complete freedom to brand HDFC Bank – Talking to CNBC-TV18, Puri said that the bank has inherited the best brand in financial services under HDFC. Puri said that I had already told Deepak that I want to work independently. I want to form an organization. So I will come only when I get free permission to work here. There will be no binding of any kind. Because it will be fun to work for free hand. Only if you have faith in the vision, you can walk with the philosophy.
Aditya Puri further said that Deepak Parekh also joined the board, but he never interfered in our work. Puri said HDFC Bank has built its brand on trust, security, and transparency coupled with cutting-edge technology.
Aditya Puri said that the leadership of any company changes, and people also move here and there, but our bank already has a strong and better team. He added that even though he is the face of the brand, all decisions are taken in consultation with the team.
There is complete planning to work here. Everyone on the team knows about that plan. We have a strong team. We take full care of the employees.
Puri said that I am the first person who said that there will be no reduction in the bonus, promotion, and any other facilities available to the employees. This year also I want to assure you that we will not see any such reduction. And we will achieve all the targets this year. Puri further said that his dream is that HDFC Bank should become the largest bank in the country.