Former Citi India chief Pramit Jhaveri may join Sir Dorabji Tata Trust

Former country head of Citi India Pramit Jhaveri could be appointed as one of the main Tata Trusts trustees. Jhaveri could be appointed as a trustee in the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust, a report in The Economic Times, citing sources, said. Notably, the 56-year-old Jhaveri had taken early retirement after spending close to four decades at the bank in various capacities in November last year.

Neither the trust nor Jhaveri have officially confirmed the development.

He joined the Wall Street major as a management associate way back in 1987 and saw a steady rise to become vice-chairman of banking, capital markets and advisory for the Asia Pacific earlier this year, after heading the India operations for almost a decade between 2010 and 2019.

Under his helm, the bank saw a steady rise as its domestic assets doubled (95.48 per cent to be precise) between FY10 and FY19, to Rs 1.86 lakh crore, while gross non-performing assets improved massively to 1.37 per cent in March 2019 from 3.43 per cent in March 2010.

Net profit also grew 386 per cent to Rs 4,185 crore in the same period when a majority of domestic banks were passing through a tumultuous phase.

When he took over, the bank was witnessing a surge in bad loans in its unsecured portfolio. He went in for a restructuring, which resulted in the shuttering of 280 branches of Citi financial, its in-house NBFC.

Jhaveri's possible appointment comes at a crucial time when TataTrusts is engaged in a legal wrangle with I-T Department. The recent NCLAT order reinstating former executive chairman Cyrus Mistry also came as a blow to the trusts, which hold significant holdings in Tata Sons.

Income Tax department in November terminated the registration of six Tata Trusts, making them unable to avail tax exemptions by virtue of being trusts. This could lead to substantial losses as all Tata Sons profits were handed over to Tata Trusts as dividends. However, the trust said it was a culmination of the decision taken by these trusts in 2015 to surrender, of their own volition, their registration under the Income Tax Act and to not claim the associated income tax exemptions.

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In another legal battle, an NCLAT order in December last year reinstated Mistry on the Tata Sons' board and termed the appointment of N Chandrasekaran as the executive chairman "illegal". Tata Sons, the conglomerate's patriarch, Ratan Tata, and its flagship company, Tata Consultancy Services, have all filed separate appeals against the order in Supreme Court. Cyrus Mistry has, however, said he is not pursuing the position of Tata Sons' executive chairman.

Also read: 6 Tata Trusts lose Income Tax registrations; explore legal options on Rs 1,800 crore demand