Ashok Vaswani, MD & CEO, Kotak Mahindra Bank
Kotak Mahindra Bank’s MD & CEO Ashok Vaswani was the highest paid bank CEO in FY25, taking home ₹12.95 crore in annual salary, excluding gains from stock options, according to the bank’s annual report.
Historically, HDFC Bank’s CEO has drawn the highest salary among large banks in India.
In FY25, though, HDFC Bank’s MD & CEO Sashidhar Jagdhishan was the second highest paid bank CEO, drawing a salary of ₹12.06 crore, higher than ₹10.77 crore in FY24, while salary of Amitabh Chaudhry from Axis Bank rose from ₹9.64 crore in FY24 to ₹9.68 crore in FY25.
IDFC First Bank’s chief V Vaidyanathan’s annual pay increased to ₹5.54 crore (₹5.30 crore). The salaries of the bank chiefs exclude stock options.
Public sector bank heads, meanwhile, continued to receive sharply lower annual pay than their private peers, with State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman CS Setty drawing ₹63.87 lakh annual salary in FY25.
“Kotak Bank’s MD is a veteran banker with significant experience at both Citi and Barclays. The salary of bank heads are subject to approval from the RBI and shareholders. Half of their variable pay is split over a period of three years (including cash and ESOPs). The remuneration committee of banks decide the annual pay of the bank chief basis financial performance, stakeholder management, IT and risk compliance framework, among other factors,” a bank CXO hiring expert said.
New hirings
Despite the advent of artificial intelligence and fear of jobs shrinking, banks are hiring in large numbers especially at the lower levels.
According to HDFC Bank’s annual report, the lender hired a total of 49,713 new employees at the bank, largely in the non-supervisory staff roles. The lender hired 35,933 male employees in FY25 and 13,780 female employees in the same period. businessline earlier reported HDFC Bank’s annual attrition rate fell from 27 per cent in FY24 to 23 per cent in FY25.
Axis Bank, meanwhile, hired 31,674 new employees in FY25, with over 10,000 employees hired directly from campus and academia programmes. In FY24, Axis Bank had hired 40,724 new employees.
SBI, meanwhile, hired 1,770 officers in FY25 and issued advertisement for 14,191 clerical cadre vacancies for FY26. The lender, according to its annual report, has expanded its talent acquisition strategy beyond traditional advertisements by leveraging social media, head-hunters, consultants, and engaging video campaigns— particularly to attract Gen Z talent.
“The Bank continues to focus on lateral hiring to bring in specialized expertise in areas such as IT, Information Security, Risk (including Climate Risk), Wealth Management, and Economics. Additionally, the Bank has initiated the recruitment of sportspersons to support Indian sports and blending athletic spirit with professional excellence at workplace,” the report said.
Published on July 16, 2025