Union Bank CDO quits within just 18 months

Union Bank of India’s chief digital officer (CDO) Rajnish Khare quit after a nearly 18-month stint, the lender informed exchanges on Saturday.

Khare had joined the bank on November 2, 2022, and his last date of service would be April 12, 2024. The bank said the resignation was “on account of prolonged reflection on his professional journey and personal principles”. The lender said Anil Kuril, chief general manager and chief technology officer, will be given the additional responsibility of heading the digitisation department of the bank.

As per Khare’s resignation letter, seen by FE, he thanked the bank for providing opportunities to contribute towards the bank’s digital transformation.

“However, it has become increasingly clear that may be a mismatch in the organisation’s expectations. This misalignment has promoted me to re-evaluate my professional path and seek opportunities that are more in harmony with my long-term aspirations,” the letter said.

A digital banking veteran with over 23 years of experience, Khare helped make “transformational experiences and capabilities for domestic and international Banks,” according to the Union Bank’s website. He worked in the fields of digital strategy, technology, transformation, payments, digital channels, among others.

Prior to joining Union Bank, Khare was the head of digital transformation in HDFC Bank, chief innovation officer in Citibank, head of direct banking & innovation in Standard Chartered Bank, head alternate channels and cross sell in ICICI Bank.

In November last year, soon after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) barred Bank of Baroda (BoB) from onboarding new customers on its flagship BoB World app, the bank’s chief of digital lending business, Akhil Handa, quit from his position.

BoB MD CEO Debadatta Chand, however, had then said that Handa’s contract was terminated, along with several staffers, for the BoB World mishap. Handa, meanwhile, claimed that he had resigned, and the management was just “deflecting from its operational lapses” by saying it terminated employees.