Kotak, who led the Kotak Mahindra Group for 38 years, announced his resignation on X (formerly Twitter). “Founders go away, but the institution flourishes into perpetuity,” he said.

He also recalled how names of big shots in the financial sector such as JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs inspired him to open a similar institution in India, which eventually led to the foundation of the Kotak Mahindra Group. “It is with this dream that I started Kotak Mahindra 38 years ago, with 3 employees in a 300 sqft office in Fort, Mumbai. I have deeply cherished every bit of this memorable journey, living my dream,” he said.

In his post, he shared how the bank has grown over the period since it was established and create value for its stakeholders, and also provided over 1 lakh jobs. “An investment of ₹10,000 with us in 1985 would be worth around ₹ 300 cr today,” he added.

As an interim arrangement, the bank will be headed by Dipak Gupta, who so far led it as the joint managing director since 2012. This arrangement will remain in place till December 31, 2023, until the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposes its successor. Gupta has over three decades of experience in the financial services sector and has supervised crucial functions including human resources, marketing, administration, operations among others.

Kotak has led the Group to expand its presence in several financial services sectors including investment banking, stock broking, life insurance, mutual funds and car finance.