Modest Pay Increases for India's Private Bank CEOs Under RBI's Watchful Eye

Top executives at India’s private banks experienced only modest increases in their FY25 pay packages. The Reserve Bank of India's strict oversight on CEO compensation, including salaries, bonuses, and stock options, requires prior regulatory approval. This move is part of a broader effort to ensure transparency and restraint in the banking sector.

India’s Highest-Paid Bankers in FY25

Sashidhar Jagdishan, HDFC Bank’s managing director and CEO, emerged as India’s highest-paid banker in the financial year 2024–25, with a total salary exceeding Rs 12 crore, marking a 12% rise from the previous year. Additionally, he was granted 212,052 shares in employee stock options (ESOPs), valued at over Rs 42 crore based on current market prices.

Ashok Vaswani of Kotak Mahindra Bank was paid Rs 13 crore, along with 18,580 ESOPs worth more than Rs 4 crore.

Amitabh Chaudhry, CEO of Axis Bank, drew a salary of Rs 9.11 crore, down 5.4% year-on-year, but received over 259,429 stock options, currently worth more than Rs 30 crore.

V Vaidyanathan of IDFC First Bank earned Rs 5.54 crore, a 4.5% increase from last year, and was allotted more than 24,20,626 stock options valued close to Rs 18 crore.

Sandeep Bakhshi of ICICI Bank was paid Rs 9.96 crore in FY24, with the latest year’s compensation figures yet to be released.