Archive for the ‘Tamal Bandopadhyaya’ Category
A Bank For The Buck, The Story Of HDFC Bank by Tamal BandopadhyayaMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
A good read. The book is about the the HDFC Bank and it gives the details of how it was setup by Deepak Parekh and how it was nurtured by Aditya Puri and his cohorts.
The book starts with Deepak Parekh reaching out to Aditya Puri, who was then in Citibank in the South East Asia and asking him to join as the CEO of a new bank that is being setup.
It takes a while, but Aditya decides to jump in and so do a set of enthusiastic people who wish to create history by being part of a team that would setup a new bank in India.
The book describes the growth of the HDFC Bank from the small beginnings in Sandoz house from where the initial appointment letters were sent out, many of them not even on a letter head, to being one of the largest private sector bank in India.
It underlines the philosophy of the bank which says ‘take calculated risk’. Aditya Puri and his team have taken the bank from its humble beginnings to the current levels without risking too much, being ethical all along, and being mildly aggressive. A part of the success is due to its decision to embrace IT system and innovations whole heartedly unlike many of the Public Sector banks.
The author does not hide some of the blemishes that is has had to withstand; trading in currency derivatives; allowing a trader to open 100+ accounts in its various branches, through which she managed to make multiple applications for the IPOs as a retail investor and how they came out of these with nary a scratch.
It is a good story to read for those interested in the history of the HDFC Bank.
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