HDFC Standard Life Insurance on Wednesday announced that Vibha Padalkar, executive director and chief financial officer (CFO) will succeed Amitabh Chaudhry as the MD and chief executive officer (CEO) of the company.
In an exchange filing, the company said Padalkar's appointment will be effective immediately (from September 12) for a period of three years. The terms of appointment are subject to shareholder approval and a nod from the insurance regulator Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).
Amitabh Chaudhry, who is credited with overseeing the company's recent bumper IPO, resigned on September 8 and was named the new MD and CEO for Axis Bank.
Padalkar joined the insurance firm in 2008, and leads the finance, investor relations, legal, secretarial and compliance, internal audit and risk functions, HDFC Life said in a statement. Along with Chaudhry, she too played a crucial role in the company's successful listing.
She has earlier worked with WNS Global Services, Colgate-Palmolive and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
"It will be my constant endeavour to continue expanding the reach of life insurance and deepen the trust bestowed upon us by customers, partners , shareholders and other stakeholders . We have a strong team in place that has delivered over the years to make HDFC Life an industry leader and we hope to continue with this track record, delivering more value as we go along,” Padalkar said in the statement.
Chaudhry's exit and Padalkar's elevation mark the beginning of a period of churn at the top management level in the banking and finance space. Analysts believe that such a churn will bode well for the entire sector.
Ajay Bagga of OPC Asset Solutions said, "This churn is definitely a healthy sign; and this shows that there is managerial depth in the industry," adding that industry veterans like Romesh Sobti of IndusInd Bank and Rana Kapoor of Yes Bank nearing the point of handling over the reins to a successor, younger, mid-level professionals will now have the opportunity to bring fresh ideas into the business.
