On July 1, 2015, ICICI Bank appointed MK Sharma as non-executive chairman of the bank, for a period of three years. Now, as his term expires at the end of this month and he may not want a second term, ICICI Bank starts its hunt for a qualified former banker for the position in this time of crisis. Reports suggest that veteran banker and former Bank of Baroda chairman and managing director MD Mallya is leading the race to succeed MK Sharma.

Although MK Sharma has expressed his unwillingness to continue, a few board members want him to stay in the role for some time. And if the board is unable to find a successor soon, he may have to continue as chairman. 

As per the report, the board of ICICI Bank has approached several reputed industrialists and retired bankers, but the offers have largely been declined, pertaining to the controversy surrounding the bank’s CEO, Chanda Kochhar. 

It was just a few days back that ICICI made news with its decision to ask CEO Chanda Kochhar to go on indefinite leave. They informed that she was on her annual leave which was planned in advance. In fact, the Board also denied that they appointed any search committee to find her successor. 

As the ICICI Bank is dealing with a lot of crisis and criticism for supporting CEO Chanda Kochhar, the role of the new chairman will be extremely crucial and will bring with it a lot of added responsibilities.