“We regret to inform about the sad demise of non-executive director Gurvirendra Singh (Rana) Talwar, which was intimated to the company by the family members,” real estate giant DLF said in a regulatory filing, reported the Times of India.

Talwar was a board member at DLF, having joined the realty major in 2006. He will be cremated at Delhi’s Lodhi Road cremation ground on Sunday.

Who was Rana Talwar?

(1.) He began his career with Citibank India in 1969, swiftly ascending through the ranks to lead its retail businesses in Asia-Pacific, Middle East, Europe, and North America.

(2.) Then, in the summer of 1997, the St Stephens alumnus joined Standard Chartered, assuming the position of CEO after some months, becoming the first Asian to head an international bank.

(3.) There, he was instrumental in major acquisitions, including the Trade Finance business of UBS, Grindlays Bank in India and the Middle East from ANZ, and the Credit Card business from Chase Manhattan in Hong Kong.

(4.) After moving on from Standard Chartered in 2002, the veteran banker founded Sabre Capital, a private equity firm. Interestingly, ‘Sabre’ means a sword, which translates to ‘Talwar’ in Hindi.

(5.) He is survived by his wife, Renuka, whose father is DLF Group chairman emeritus KP Singh. The couple’s son, Rahul, is also involved with DLF.