Bandhan Bank stock up 12% after RBI approves appointment of Partha Pratim Sengupta as MD & CEO

New Delhi: Shares of Bandhan Bank on Friday jumped 12 per cent after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approved the appointment of Partha Pratim Sengupta as its MD and CEO for three years.

The stock of the Kolkata-based private sector lender surged 11.61 per cent to trade at Rs 209.50 apiece on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

On the BSE, it climbed 11.58 per cent to Rs 209.50 per share.

The 30-share BSE Sensex fell 226.84 points, or 0.28 per cent, to 81,384.57 while the broader Nifty decreased 66.90 points, or 0.27 per cent, to 24,931.55.

In a regulatory filing on Thursday, Bandhan Bank said that the RBI approved the appointment of Partha Pratim Sengupta as its Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO) for a period of three years.

His three-year tenure counts from the date of taking charge, which shall not be later than November 10, 2024, the bank said.

The RBI, vide its letter dated October 8, 2024, has granted its prior approval for the position, it said.

He replaces founder MD and CEO Chandra Sekhar Ghosh who stepped down on July 9. Currently, Ratan Kesh -- one of the executive directors -- is serving as the interim MD and CEO.

Sengupta, who has over four decades of experience, retired as the MD & CEO of state-owned Indian Overseas Bank (IOB).

In a separate filing, Bandhan Bank also announced that the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company had completed an audit of loan claims filed by the lender under a guarantee scheme and said the remaining claims payout to the bank stood at Rs 314 crore.

The audit by the government agency was related to a set of loans the bank had given out as part of a government-backed scheme during the Covid-19 pandemic. The scheme was meant to ensure payments to lenders in the case of defaults on microloans by small borrowers.

Bandhan Bank was launched on August 23, 2015, with 501 branches and 50 ATMs spread across 24 states after the RBI issued in-principle approval on April 2, 2014 to set up a universal bank.

It is the first-ever microfinance institution to become a universal bank from the eastern region.

In 2018, Bandhan Bank was successfully listed on the bourses. In 2019, the acquisition of Gruh Finance took place to provide more affordable banking solutions to homebuyers.