12 Chanda Kochhar

 

Chanda Kochhar was born  on 17 November 1961 is the managing director and chief executive officer of ICICI Bank. She is widely recognized for her role in shaping retail banking in India. Kochhar was instrumental in establishing ICICI Bank during the 1990s. In 1993, Kochhar was appointed as one of the core team members who were assigned the responsibility of setting up the bank. She was promoted to assistant general manager in 1994 and then to deputy general manager in 1996. In 1996, Kochhar headed the newly formed Infrastructure Industry Group of ICICI Bank, which aimed to create dedicated industry expertise in the areas of power, telecom and transportation. In 1998, she was promoted as the General Manager and headed ICICI Bank's major client group, which handled relationships with ICICI's top 200 clients. In 1999, she also handled the strategy and e-commerce divisions of ICICI Bank. Under Kochhar's leadership, ICICI Bank started building the nascent retail business in 2000 focusing largely on technology, innovation, process engineering and expansion of distribution and scale. In April 2001, she took over as executive director. In 2006, Kochhar was appointed as deputy managing director of ICICI Bank. In 2006–07, Kochhar handled the international and corporate businesses of the bank. From 2007 to 2009, she was the bank's chief financial officer (CFO) and joint managing director. In 2009 Kochhar was appointed as managing director and chief executive officer of the bank and has been responsible for the bank’s diverse operations in India and overseas.  She also chairs the boards of most of the bank’s subsidiaries, which include India’s leading private sector life and general insurance companies. Kochhar received an honorary doctorate from Carleton University, Canada in 2014, in recognition of her pioneering work in the financial sector, effective leadership in a time of economic crisis and support for engaged business practices. She was conferred with the Padma Bhushan, one of India's highest civilian honors, in 2011. Under Kochhar's leadership, ICICI Bank won the "Best Retail Bank in India" award in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2005 and "Excellence in Retail Banking Award" in 2002; both awards were given by The Asian Banker. Kochhar personally was awarded "Retail Banker of the Year 2004 (Asia-Pacific region)" by the Asian Banker, "Business Woman of the Year 2005" by The Economic Times and "Rising Star Award" for Global Awards 2006 by Retail Banker International. Kochhar has also consistently figured in Fortune's list of "Most Powerful Women in Business" since 2005.