MUMBAI, February 10: Winds of change are blowing across the corporate and investment-banking community. At the helm, that is. Barclay's Bank Plc's chief executive - India, Ajay Sondhi, is expected to move over to the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS). At Maker IV, in Nariman Point, Mumbai, American Express Bank's country-head James Vaughn is set to pack his bags and go to Egypt as head of the bank's operations.That is not all. The glass-and-waterfall facade of the Ruias at Mahalaxmi has also seen an exit. Essar group treasury's vice-president Alok Ganguly, who was earlier with Deutsche Morgan Grenfell, has moved over to NationsBank as its country-representative. Rumours abound that Ganguly's colleague at Essar, India Securities' chief financial officer (CFO), Carl Saldhana, may also bid adieu. Saldana had left Chase Manhattan to team up with the Ruias as their CFO - Essar Oil before he was moved to India Securities. The investment-banking grapevine has it that ING Bank's country-head SD Nayar may move out ofhis present charge to join another within the Dutch financial powerhouse here. Sources say that in a new order being envisaged within the ING group, there may be a common country-head for both ING Barings and ING Bank.
The other rumour is that Dutch concern, Rabo Bank, expected to set up a non-banking finance company, is on the lookout for high-fliers. Names being mentioned in bankers' cocktail-circuit as having been "sounded off" include that of ANZ Investment Bank's general manager Rana Kapoor and ABN Amro Bank - India's former country-head Ashok Kapoor. The changes come at a time when jobs are hard to get in the investment- banking sector. The post of country-treasurer, ANZ Grindlays Bank, however, is vacant. The post is up for grabs after Arvind Sethi left to join, what is reckoned as the hottest corporate bank in town, Bank of America, as its treasury-head. ANZ Grindlays may want to recruit an expatriate as its treasury-head, feel local corporate bankers.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
