MC EXCLUSIVE SMBC Global CEO Akihiro Fukutome to visit India soon

According to people in the know, Fukutome’s trip will be a very significant one. (image credit: Reuters)

The global president and chief executive officer of Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), Akihiro Fukutome, is expected to visit India in the coming weeks. According to sources in the know, Fukutome is expected to address the employees of Yes Bank and assuage concerns regarding their roles and responsibilities in the bank. This would be his first trip to India after SMBC acquired over 24 percent stake in Yes Bank last week.

An email sent to SMBC remained unanswered while a spokesperson for Yes Bank declined to comment.

According to people in the know, Fukutome’s trip will be a very significant one. “There has been a lot of uncertainty among employees about what will happen when SMBC becomes the majority shareholder. Fukutome’s address (to employees) should put to rest most of these concerns,” said a person aware of the matter.

The people cited indicate that the primary agenda of the global CEO’s trip to India is to engage with Yes Bank’s employees and assure them about the future trajectory of the bank and provide them comfort on the job front. While Fukutome is expected to spend much of his time in Mumbai, he will also address employees across the country through a few town hall sessions.

After acquiring 24.2 percent stake last week, the process for which started in May, Fukutome virtually addressed a select group of senior leaders at Yes Bank earlier this week, according to the people cited.

To put things in context, in April this year, the bank had let go four key senior level employees namely Akshay Sapru, Head of Affluent and Private Banking; Dhaval Shah, Head of SME Banking; Sanjiv Roy, Head of Fee Business; and Pankaj Sharma, Chief Strategy Officer as part of its strategic restructuring plan to enhance operational efficiency and drive profitability.

It is understood that since this exercise, attrition has been a tad higher than usual at Yes Bank. “Confusion among employees went up since the announcement of SMBC’s investment in Yes Bank. A meeting with a few senior employees was held by SMBC’s group president, Fukutome, earlier this week to put to rest some of these concerns,” said a senior banker who didn’t want to be named.

In May, State Bank of India announced that it has agreed with to sell a 13.8 percent stake it held in Yes Bank to SMBC. Seven other banks, including Axis Bank and Bandhan Bank, which held about 1 percent stake each, joined hands with SBI in the sale process. Subsequently, SMBC acquired over 4 percent stake from Carlyle and on September 17, it announced the completion of 24.2 percent stake acquisition in Yes Bank. SMBC has appointed Rajeev Kannan and Shinichiro Nishino as nominee directors on Yes Bank’s board.