Don't understand what led to Atanu Chakraborty's resignation, says HDFC Bank interim chair Keki Mistry

Atanu Chakraborty resigned on March 18 as HDFC Bank's chairman, citing ethical concerns

HDFC Bank’s interim chairman Keki Mistry on March 19 said that the Reserve Bank of India has no material concerns with regards to the conduct of bank’s governance, a day after former chairman Atanu Chakraborty resigned, citing ethical concerns.

“RBI has said that there are no material concerns and records as regards conduct or governance,” Mistry said during a press briefing.

The stock of the company was trading 5.25 percent lower at 3:22 pm at Rs 798.8 on NSE.

He further noted that the merger of HDFC Bank of HDFC Ltd was successful and the continued results have given the new entity a stronger presence.

“The merger successful and continued results have not only boosted the bank balance but also giving it a stronger presence,” he said.

Moreover, Mistry said he would not personally take up the role if conduct of the bank did not align with his values.

“I remain confident of the bank's franchise. The management stands together will ensure the best standards of governance. I would like to reiterate at that end of that I would not personally taken up the role if this was not assigned with my values.”

Mistry said the board of the bank could not understand the reason behind Chakraborty's resignation and they were "baffled" by this reaction. In addition, Mistry said Chakraborty said there were no particular issues, when the board asked him about his concerns.

"When we asked Chakraborty for instances of lack of governance, he said nothing, and hence, we used the word "baffled" to describe how we viewed the resignation letter. We do not understand what led to the reaction from the chairman yesterday. It may have been a routine issue, which is no different from the issues that happen in any other bank," Mistry said.

Mistry said governance of the bank is "top class" and the reputation impact is being taken care of.

"The management will be speaking to all the major shareholders in next few days. As far as the reputation damage is concerned, people will understand that there is nothing serious or wrong in any manner once RBI gets roped in," he said.