Ujjivan Small Finance Bank’s managing director and chief executive officer (MD & CEO), Sanjeev Nautiyal, has sought early retirement citing health issues, the lender informed stock exchanges on Tuesday.
Nautiyal, who took charge as MD & CEO on July 1, 2024, wrote to the bank on August 31 seeking early retirement with a three-month notice period.
The board approved his request at a meeting on Tuesday. He ceased to be the bank’s MD & CEO and key managerial personnel with effect from September 1. He will remain on leave during the notice period and formally retire on November 30, according to the bank’s exchange filing.
Nautiyal is the fourth full-time MD & CEO to exit Ujjivan Small Finance Bank since it began operations as a bank in 2017. He is also the third CEO after founder Samit Ghosh to leave before completing his sanctioned tenure.
Ghosh, the bank’s first MD & CEO, stepped down in November 2019 after reaching the mandatory retirement age. Nitin Chugh, who succeeded him, resigned in September 2021 before completing his term. Ittira Davis, who took charge in January 2022, had his tenure originally approved until January 2025, but sought early retirement in May 2024 citing personal reasons and left on June 30, about six months ahead of schedule.
Davis’s early exit paved the way for Nautiyal to take charge in July 2024.
Based on the recommendation of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee, the board appointed existing executive director and whole-time director Carol Furtado as acting MD & CEO with immediate effect, subject to approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Furtado has more than three decades of experience across business, strategy, operations, people and institutional functions. She has been part of Ujjivan’s leadership team through its growth and transformation and, in her current role as executive director, has contributed to business growth and organisational development.
The bank said its board would begin the process of identifying Nautiyal’s successor and submit its recommendation to the RBI. It added that its leadership development and succession planning framework would help ensure a smooth transition.
During Nautiyal’s tenure, the bank said it made progress in areas including the growth of its secured loan book, strengthening its deposit franchise, enhancing digital and analytics capabilities, and improving risk management and internal controls.
Separately, Ujjivan Small Finance Bank appointed Vikas Agrawal as its business head for MSME, effective September 1.
Agrawal is a chartered accountant with more than 25 years of experience across MSME, business banking, retail banking, credit, product and distribution. He began his banking career with Bank of Rajasthan and UTI Bank before spending more than two decades at ICICI Bank in various leadership roles.
At ICICI Bank, Agrawal led the MSME product business nationally, introducing new product lines and simplifying credit processes. He also headed the bank’s gold loan business nationally and introduced a technology-enabled workflow in 2015 that continues to be used across ICICI Bank branches, the filing said.
