RBI appoints Sudha Balakrishnan as its first CFO

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Monday appointed Sudha Balakrishnan as its first chief financial officer (CFO) effective from May 15, according to news report.

This is the biggest organisational change ever since Urjit Patel took over as RBI Governor in September 2016.

As CFO, Balakrishnan will also be in charge of the dividend RBI pays to the government, which is crucial in the final budgetary calculations.

Balakrishnan, a chartered accountant, was until recently a vice-president at the NSDL, India's first and largest depository. She will be the 12th executive director at RBI, and will serve a three-year term.

RBI has been on the look out for a CFO since May 2017 when it first advertised for the post. A foreign bank executive was reportedly selected for the post, but declined to join due to differences in remuneration.