Citigroup India said to hire Ankur Khurana to head commercial banking

Dealmaking has been picking up in India with activity in equity capital markets as well as mergers and acquisitions rising sharply

Citigroup Inc.’s India unit has hired Ankur Khurana as head of commercial banking as the Wall Street Bank seeks to beef up its business with the country’s rapidly expanding mid-sized companies, according to people familiar with the matter.

Khurana had been pursuing opportunities with a few other institutions after working at Standard Chartered Plc, where she was co-head of coverage for India and South Asia, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is not yet public. She has over two decades of banking experience.

The position opened up after veteran banker Bhanu Vohra departed in July to join the Indian unit of global consulting firm BDO.

Citibank declined to comment and Khurana didn’t reply to text messages seeking comment.

Dealmaking has been picking up in India with activity in equity capital markets as well as mergers and acquisitions rising sharply. The mid-market segment offers a range of opportunities as Indian companies scale up operations and acquisition bids overseas.