HDFC Bank names new CFO and General Counsel

The Board of Directors of HDFC Bank on Monday (June 29, 2026) approved the appointment of Puneet Sharma as the Chief Financial Officer-Designate (CFO-Designate), with effect from September 1. He will then take over as the Chief Financial Officer, starting December 1. The decision was based on the recommendations of the Audit Committee and Governance, Nomination and Remuneration Committee.

Mr. Sharma will replace Srinivasan Vaidyanathan, the current CFO whose term is scheduled to end in October 2026.

The Board also approved the appointment of Jigar Shah as the General Counsel – Designate (GC-Designate), effective August 20, 2026 and as the General Counsel, starting October 1, 2026.

Both, Mr. Sharma and Mr. Shah would be part of Senior Management Personnel of the Bank with effect from their date of joining the Bank as CFO-Designate and GC-Designate, respectively.

Puneet Sharma brings over 26 years of experience cutting across banking, financial services and strategy. He has been the Group Executive and Chief Financial Officer of Axis Bank Ltd.

Prior to Axis Bank, Mr. Sharma was Chief Financial Officer at Tata Capital Ltd where he played a pivotal role in strengthening the finance function, driving strategic initiatives, interactions, and supporting the organisation’s growth and transformation agenda.

Earlier in his career, he held leadership roles at Citibank and The Boston Consulting Group, gaining extensive experience across banking, treasury, strategy, financial management and business operations.

Mr. Shah has over three decades of experience across legal, compliance, governance regulatory matters in the banking and financial services sector. with Elmcroft Consulting Services, where he led complex asset Legal, workout, restructuring and recovery mandates for a leading NBFC platform.

Prior to Elmcroft Consulting Services, Mr. Shah was the Managing Director at KKR India, where he served as Head of Legal & Compliance and was a member of the India Leadership Team.

Prior to KKR India, Mr. Shah was Managing Director and Head of Legal – India at JPMorgan Chase Bank and held various senior legal leadership roles at Deutsche Bank across India, Hong Kong and London. He began his legal career in the United Kingdom, working with leading international law firms.