Kotak Mahindra Bank elevates Nilesh C. to CTO

MUMBAI: Kotak Mahindra Bank has promoted Nilesh C. to the role of chief technology officer, handing him the keys to the bank’s entire technology engine. The elevation marks a significant step up within the leadership ranks and signals a wider, more unified approach to digital strategy.

Nilesh moves into the CTO chair after serving as CIO and president for wholesale, commercial, and enterprise technology, where he played a central role in shaping the bank’s corporate and commercial tech backbone. His work focused on building systems that could keep pace with the bank’s expanding business, while ensuring reliability at scale.

In his new role, he will oversee the bank’s end-to-end technology agenda, covering digital innovation, platform modernisation, and enterprise engineering standards. The position places him at the heart of Kotak’s push to sharpen its digital edge and streamline operations across business lines.

Before joining Kotak, Nilesh held senior technology leadership roles at Barclays, including CIO for global payments and managing director for retail banking technology. Earlier in his career, he spent several years at JPMorgan Chase, where he served as executive director across technology functions.

His professional journey also includes stints at IDFC Bank and Citi, where he worked on core banking platforms, payments, cash management, and large-scale technology rollouts across multiple regions.

With more than two decades in financial technology, Nilesh’s rise to CTO reflects both his long track record and Kotak’s intent to put technology at the centre of its growth story.