Kalyan Kumar assumes charges as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO) of Central Bank of India. He succeeds M V Rao, who retired on superannuation at the close of working hours on July 31, 2025.
Prior to his appointment as MD & CEO, Kumar served as the Executive Director of Punjab National Bank since October 2021, where he drove business growth through Digital Transformation, Strategic Management, Economic Advisory, Data Analytics, and Information Technology Excellence.
With an illustrious career spanning nearly three decades, Kumar began his banking journey in 1995 as a Rural Development Officer with Union Bank of India. Over the next 26 years, he held diverse leadership roles across branch operations, including heading Very Large Branches (VLBs), serving as Principal of the Staff Training College, and leading key corporate functions such as Business Process Transformation, Credit Review & Monitoring, Vigilance, and Human Resources. He also played a pivotal role in steering the successful amalgamation of Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank into Union Bank of India.
At Punjab National Bank, he led the Bank’s vision and strategy for overall growth through Digital Transformation, Strategic Management, Economic Advisory, Data Analytics, and IT Excellence. Keeping ESG goals as a priority, he launched the ‘PNB Palaash’ initiative, under which awareness programmes and sustainability measures such as tree plantation drives, use of digital copies and biodegradable folders, and energy, paper and water conservation were implemented. He also encouraged carpooling as part of a broader green culture.
In addition to these achievements, Kumar provided strategic oversight in business process re-engineering, proactive credit monitoring, asset quality improvement and recovery, strengthening of operations and KYC, and enhancing customer experience at the bank. He also spearheaded the PNB Udaan programme for HR transformation, bringing clarity of roles and expectations for every employee through well-defined and measurable KRAs. Furthermore, he strengthened the bank’s business acquisition and relationship divisions, focusing on driving growth in CASA and expanding the marketing of both asset and liability products, including credit cards. Shri Kumar also led the wealth management vertical with emphasis on increasing fee-based income through third-party products.
