He is 87-years-old and could barely walk. But he has the sharpest mind, even today.
Meet Narayanan Vaghul, best known for laying the foundation of ICICI Group, which is the country's second-largest private sector bank, and also for his contribution to the banking sector in India.
But he is in limelight now for altogether different reasons. He has turned author at the age of 87. That's also a unique achievement, as someone has to recall and go back decades to write about the incidents that shaped them.
In fact, it was the persistence and encouragement of Ajay Piramal, chairman of Piramal Group, that pushed him to pen down his memoirs spanning over seven decades. "My career was characterised by a series of serendipitous events, and I am pleased to offer this book—an anthology of my own experiences—as the buttress of my point of view, "said Vaghul at the launch amidst a standing ovation from the crowd.
The respect for the man was very evident when Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman landed in Mumbai to launch his book, 'Reflections'.
At Mumbai's Jio World Convention Centre, the auditorium was packed with the who's who of banking and corporate India. HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh, Salesforce India CEO Arundhati Bhattacharya, L&T CEO S N Subrahmanyan, K V Kamath, IDFC First Bank CEO V Vaidyanathan, Hemendra Kothari, chairman of DSP Investment Managers in India, among others.
In fact, the current team at ICICI Bank, led by Sandeep Bakhshi, was also present.
A teacher and public sector banker, Vaghul took the reins of the then Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI), now ICICI Bank, as its MD & CEO in the mid-80s. He played a key role in scaling up the developmental financial institution. After stepping down as MD & CEO in 1996, Vaghul presided over the board as non-executive chairman until 2009. In fact, he groomed K V Kamath as the next CEO. and also guided the bank till 2009. That was when Kamath relinquished his executive position and became chairman.
While recognising Vaghul's contributions to mentoring leaders, which have left a lasting impact, Sitharaman said that Vaghul's ideas and vision on women's empowerment will continue to be relevant and valuable for India as more women take on leadership roles in financial services.
Vaghul encouraged a gender-neutral meritocracy at ICICI Bank , which saw the emergence of many women leaders in the senior management team. Kalpana Morparia, who was joint MD at ICICI Bank, went on to become the chairperson of JP Morgan South and Southeast Asia. Lalita Gupte, who retired from ICICI Bank as a Joint Managing Director, found a seat on the global boards of Nokia and Alstom. Shikha Sharma , who headed the bank's life insurance subsidiary, became the MD& CEO of Axis Bank. Similarly, Renuka Ramnath, who served at ICICI Ventures, is now the founder, MD, and CEO of private equity firm Multiples Alternate Asset Management. Vaghul, a Padma Bhushan awardee, said India is at present among the fastest growing economies in the world, and the country not only withstood severe turbulence from time to time but also has shown remarkable resilience in overcoming such crises and regaining our stability while retaining a strong link to our traditions. Ajay Piramal, Chairman of Piramal Group, who actually 'coaxed' him to pen down some of the incidents during his career , said Vaghul is considered the ‘Bhishma Pitamah’ of banking in India. "The journey of his life epitomises selfless service, nation-building, mentorship, and women's empowerment, "said Piramal.
K V Kamath , chairman of the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development, said that Vaghul mentored him at the ICICI Bank. "It was a daily learning experience under him, "said Kamath while narrating an incident from the mid-80s when Kamath was responsible for ICICI's leasing business.
"Vaghul called to ask about a large aircraft leasing transaction that was being talked about in the market. I gave him several reasons why we could not do the deal. It was too large. We had a limit of Rs 1 crore per deal, "said Kamath. Vaghul heard him out patiently and simply said, "If that is the policy, perhaps it is time to revisit it."
"That piece of advice from Vaghul taught me to always challenge the status quo and to not be daunted by a change in orbit," said Kamath.
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