YES Bank gets new leadership as RBI approves Vinay Tonse as MD & CEO

The Reserve Bank of India has approved Vinay Muralidhar Tonse as the new managing director and chief executive officer of YES Bank for a term of three years, marking a key leadership change at the private lender.

The approval was conveyed by the central bank through a letter dated 3 February 2026, YES Bank said in a regulatory filing, a development first reported by BusinessLine. Tonse’s appointment will take effect from the date he assumes charge and is subject to approval by the bank’s shareholders.

The move follows the completion of Prashant Kumar’s extended tenure as MD and CEO. In its exchange filing, YES Bank said it had sought regulatory clearance for new leadership after considering Kumar’s preferences and the bank’s growth requirements.

Tonse is currently a managing director at State Bank of India, where he has held senior responsibilities across retail and corporate banking. His appointment brings another senior SBI executive to the helm of YES Bank, which has been under close regulatory and investor scrutiny since its reconstruction in 2020.

Kumar, also a former SBI executive, led YES Bank through a prolonged stabilisation phase after the lender was rescued by a consortium led by SBI under an RBI-supervised plan. During his tenure, the bank focused on restoring depositor confidence, strengthening capital adequacy and improving asset quality.

Market participants see Tonse’s appointment as a signal of continuity in governance and risk management, given his public-sector banking background. Analysts say the new CEO will face the challenge of steering YES Bank from recovery towards sustainable growth, while navigating tighter regulatory oversight and intensifying competition in retail and corporate lending.

YES Bank said further details on the transition would be shared following shareholder approval. The leadership change comes at a time when India’s banking sector is witnessing strong credit growth alongside heightened scrutiny of balance sheet resilience.

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