Equitas Small Finance Bank names Balaji interim CEO pending RBI

Equitas Small Finance Bank Limited approved Balaji Nuthalapadi as interim chief executive officer on November 3, 2026, following P. N. Vasudevan’s resignation as managing director and chief executive officer, but the role will begin only after Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approval or on another date set by the RBI. The interim term will run until a regular managing director and chief executive officer takes office, unless the RBI approves another end date.

Why did Equitas appoint an interim CEO?

Equitas appointed Balaji Nuthalapadi as interim chief executive officer because P. N. Vasudevan resigned as managing director and chief executive officer. The board approved the appointment on November 3, 2026, based on the recommendation of its Nomination and Remuneration Committee, with Balaji then serving as the bank’s whole-time director and executive director.

The November 3, 2026 filing supersedes Equitas’s earlier disclosure of October 29, 2026. The latest disclosure describes the change as an appointment consequent to P. N. Vasudevan’s resignation, rather than a removal or another cessation event listed under the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s disclosure format.

Equitas did not disclose the date on which P. N. Vasudevan’s resignation becomes effective. Instead, the board said it will decide his relieving date after receiving RBI approval for the interim appointment and after consulting him, making the regulatory approval the first stated step in the transition sequence.

When will Balaji Nuthalapadi take charge at Equitas?

Balaji will take charge as Equitas’s interim chief executive officer on the date the RBI approves the appointment, or on another date stipulated by the RBI. The board’s November 3, 2026 approval therefore does not itself create an effective start date for the interim role.

Equitas disclosed no expected RBI decision date or regulatory approval timetable in its November 3 announcement. The appointment is expressly subject to RBI approval, and the regulator may also specify a date other than the approval date for Balaji to assume the position.

The interim appointment has no fixed tenure measured in months or years. Equitas stated that Balaji will remain interim chief executive officer until the regular managing director and chief executive officer assumes office, unless the RBI approves a different date for the end of the assignment.

Who is Balaji Nuthalapadi at Equitas?

Balaji has served as Equitas’s whole-time director and executive director since March 29, 2025. The November 3, 2026 board decision would place an existing executive director in the interim chief executive officer role, subject to the RBI’s approval process.

Balaji completed his post-graduation from the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad in 1996 and began his career at Citi in Chennai in 1997. Equitas said he has more than 28 years of continuous experience with Citi, including assignments in Asia-Pacific and Europe, Middle East and Africa markets.

At Citi, Balaji became Head of South Asia Operations and Technology in May 2021. His later role, beginning in September 2024, was Managing Director and Head of Centralized Controls Testing Execution, according to Equitas’s annexure to the November 3 filing.

Equitas listed Balaji’s experience in global capability centre leadership, operations and technology, profit-and-loss leadership, sales and wealth management, banking products, re-engineering, retail asset sales and relationship management. The filing also says he was a member of the Tamilnadu State Fintech Governing Council and records nil relationship with other Equitas directors.

How is Equitas selecting a permanent MD and CEO?

Equitas has initiated the process of identifying a successor to P. N. Vasudevan and will submit its recommendation to the RBI under applicable regulations. The November 3, 2026 filing does not identify potential candidates, set a target date for selecting a candidate or specify stages in the search process.

The permanent selection process runs alongside the interim appointment. Balaji’s disclosed term ends when the regular managing director and chief executive officer assumes office, or on another date approved by the RBI, linking the duration of the interim arrangement to the conclusion of the permanent succession process.

The board has not yet disclosed P. N. Vasudevan’s relieving date. It said that date will be decided after RBI approval of the interim chief executive officer appointment and consultation with P. N. Vasudevan, while its successor recommendation will be submitted separately to the regulator.

Equitas’s board meeting on November 3, 2026 began at 16:30 Indian Standard Time and concluded at 20:35 Indian Standard Time. The company made the disclosure under Regulation 30 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015.

What changed from Equitas’s October 29 disclosure?

Equitas’s November 3, 2026 announcement replaces its October 29, 2026 disclosure and sets out the board-approved interim appointment of Balaji. The newer filing also states that the appointment is conditional on RBI approval and provides the interim term, which lasts until a regular MD and CEO assumes office unless the RBI approves another date.

The November 3 annexure adds Balaji’s profile and confirms his service as Equitas executive director since March 29, 2025. It also provides the stated mechanism for the outgoing chief executive’s relief: the board will make that decision only after the RBI’s approval and consultation with P. N. Vasudevan.

The disclosed facts do not establish when the RBI will decide, when P. N. Vasudevan will be relieved, or when a permanent candidate will be recommended. Those are separate pending steps in the process announced by Equitas on November 3, rather than dates already fixed by the board.

Conclusion

Equitas has put in place a conditional interim leadership plan after P. N. Vasudevan’s resignation, with executive director Balaji approved by the board on November 3, 2026 to become interim chief executive officer. The appointment’s start and potential end dates remain subject to the RBI, while the regular MD and CEO search proceeds.

The next disclosed event to watch is the RBI’s decision on Balaji’s interim appointment, after which Equitas plans to decide P. N. Vasudevan’s relieving date in consultation with him. Equitas has also begun identifying a permanent successor but disclosed neither candidate names nor a timetable for submitting its recommendation to the RBI.