ESAF Small Finance Bank has announced the appointment of Karthikeyan Manickam as its new Chairman, effective January 2. The bank said the appointment is aimed at strengthening board-level governance and strategic oversight at a time when small finance banks are operating under tighter regulatory supervision and rising customer expectations.
Manickam is a former Executive Director of Bank of India and brings over 36 years of experience across core areas of banking. His professional background spans banking operations, risk management, regulatory compliance, credit monitoring and recovery, human resources, and financial inclusion. ESAF said his depth of experience across both operational and supervisory roles will add significant value to the board’s decision-making process.
In his role as Chairman, Manickam will provide independent oversight and strategic direction to the board, with a particular focus on governance standards, asset quality, compliance discipline, and long-term sustainable growth. The bank added that he is also expected to support ESAF’s focus on inclusive banking and expanding service delivery to underserved and unbanked segments.
Manickam has previously served on the boards of Tamil Nadu Grama Bank and BOI STAR Investment Managers. He was also Chairman of Star Union Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company, where he was involved in strengthening governance and operational frameworks in the insurance sector.
During his tenure at Bank of India, Manickam was part of the senior leadership team and played a role in policy formulation and execution across multiple portfolios. These included inspection and audit, stressed asset management, retail and MSME banking, agriculture finance, government business, and corporate social responsibility initiatives.
ESAF Small Finance Bank said the appointment is aligned with its long-term objective of reinforcing institutional resilience and maintaining robust governance practices amid a rapidly evolving financial services environment.
From a risk-awareness perspective, Karthikeyan Manickam’s career across supervision, stressed assets and governance underscores how institutional resilience is built long before crises surface.
His appointment reinforces the idea that in regulated banking, seasoned risk judgement at the board level is not optional, it is the first line of defense for sustainable growth.
