Credit card segment to reach pre-embargo levels in 6 months, Kotak CEO Vaswani says

Ashok Vaswani, MD & CEO, Kotak Mahindra Bank

Kotak Mahindra Bank aims to restore its credit card segment to pre-embargo levels within six months, following a technology embargo imposed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on April 24, 2024, said CEO Ashok Vaswani.

Speaking after the bank’s Q4 FY25 earnings in Mumbai on May 3, Vaswani said, the RBI lifted the embargo in February 2025, easing a major burden.

“We worked closely with the RBI and internal teams to resolve the issues,” Vaswani said.

Kotak expects steady performance in its personal loan portfolio, with Vaswani noting, “Kotak Mahindra Bank expects steady performance in its personal loan portfolio and sees stress in the credit card segment starting to ease.”

However, the microfinance portfolio faced challenges, elevating credit costs and impacting FY25 results.

Exposure to microfinance was reduced to 1.6 percent of net advances from 2.5 percent of total assets.

The bank’s capital markets and asset management businesses performed strongly, benefiting from favorable market conditions.

Vaswani reported, “On the capital market side, Kotak benefited from strong market conditions, with its capital markets and asset management businesses performing well,” adding that the bank’s book value per share rose 21 percent in FY25.

Looking ahead to FY26, Vaswani expressed optimism but remained cautious about global risks, stating, “Looking ahead, the CEO expressed optimism for FY26 but said the bank remains alert to global risks, including potential tariff moves by US President Donald Trump and geopolitical issues in India.”