A Journey in Harmony – Shanti Ekambaram’s Rhythm of Trust and Leadership in Balance (1991 – 2025)

  

💫 November 1 – Shanti Ekambaram: A Leader Who Grew with India’s Banking and Social Evolution 💳

Kotak Mahindra Bank marks a key leadership transition as Shanti Ekambaram retires and Paritosh Kashyap takes charge as Executive Director. A personal reflection on continuity, gratitude, and growth.

Disclaimer:
This post is written in a personal capacity and does not represent the official views of Kotak Mahindra Bank.

It is intended purely as a reflection of goodwill and respect for Ms. Shanti Ekambaram’s leadership journey and her contribution to India’s financial and social progress.

🌿 A Journey that Paralleled India’s Digital Transformation

Few leaders have witnessed — and shaped — as much change in Indian banking as Ms. Shanti Ekambaram.

From the early 1990s liberalization to today’s digital-first economy, her career reflects the same steady progress that has defined India’s ePayment revolution.

Since joining Kotak Mahindra Group in 1991, she has driven transformation across capital markets, consumer banking, and treasury — with a focus on customer trust, innovation, and inclusion.

---

📊 Professional Milestones & India’s ePayment Evolution

Year / Period	India’s ePayment Milestone	Shanti Ekambaram’s Professional Milestone
1991–1995	Early bank computerization; NEFT under conceptualization.	Joins Kotak Mahindra Group; builds foundations in corporate finance and markets.
2003	NEFT framework introduced by RBI.	Leads Kotak’s Capital Markets division, expanding access for retail investors.
2008–2010	Internet banking becomes mainstream; Payment & Settlement Systems Act enacted.	Heads Treasury, strengthening financial resilience during global volatility.
2014–2015	IMPS and UPI pilots enable instant digital payments.	Becomes President – Consumer Banking, championing digitization and customer trust.
2016–2018	UPI and Aadhaar integration reshape transactions nationwide.	Expands retail banking; pioneers digital onboarding and cross-platform experience.
2020–2023	Pandemic accelerates digital payments; UPI crosses 10 billion monthly.	As Deputy MD, leads Kotak’s consumer digital strategy through a new era.
2025	Safe ePay advocacy and UPI@10 celebrations.	Announces retirement – closing a chapter synced with India’s secure banking journey.

---

🌼 Extending Care Beyond Corporate Corridors

What distinguished Shanti Ekambaram was not just leadership in numbers — but leadership with heart.

Her philanthropy and social involvement have consistently echoed Kotak’s values of inclusion and empowerment.

---

🤝 Social Impact Milestones & Financial Inclusion Evolution

Year / Period	India’s Financial Inclusion / Safe ePay Milestone	Shanti Ekambaram’s Social / NGO Milestone
2006–2008	RBI launches Financial Inclusion Plans for rural banking.	Begins supporting education and livelihood NGOs through Kotak’s CSR initiatives.
2011	Aadhaar introduced – identity layer for inclusion.	Recognized as highest individual woman pledge-raiser at Mumbai Marathon 2011 for Sopan Charitable Trust.
2014–2015	Jan Dhan Yojana & DBT schemes expand banking access.	Champions CSR projects on financial literacy and education under Kotak Foundation.
2016–2018	UPI + Aadhaar ecosystem deepens cashless economy.	Continues support to Sopan and child education NGOs; encourages women’s financial awareness.
2020–2022	Digital literacy campaigns during pandemic for safe ePayments.	Involved in Kotak CSR relief and rehabilitation efforts post-COVID.
2025	India aims for “100% Digital Trust” through Safe ePay advocacy.	Recognized as a philanthropist supporting education & livelihood initiatives nationwide.

---

💳 Safe Leadership = Safe ePayments

Her career and compassion tell the same story — that trust is the core currency of both finance and philanthropy.

Just as a secure ePayment builds confidence between payer and receiver, her leadership and social engagement built confidence between institution and community.

---

🌸 A Graceful Transition

As Ms. Shanti Ekambaram moves into the next phase of her professional and personal journey, her contributions continue to stand as a reference point in India’s evolving financial landscape.

Her work — across banking, leadership, and social development — reflects a consistent commitment to progress built on trust, inclusion, and purpose.

Her legacy within the Kotak Group and the broader banking community will be remembered for fostering both growth and governance — qualities that remain integral to India’s secure and inclusive financial future.

---

✍️ Nayakanti Prashant

Citizen Advocate – Safe ePay Day
💳 April 11 – Safe ePay Day (Proposed)
✨ UPI’s 10th Birthday – April 11, 2026
🌐 The Joy of Safe ePayments

The Citizen Advocate Summary: Declaring April 11 as Safe ePay Day, please explore all related appeals here

🌿💳🧠🌍Appeal  for Safe ePay Day 🌟

📚 References

1️⃣ Nayakanti, P. (2025, Sept 7). National Buy a Book Day and Safe ePay Day Medium
2️⃣ Nayakanti, P. (2025, Aug 13). 218th Lalbagh Flower Show via RV Road Interchange! Blogger
3️⃣ LinkedIn Profile

 

Kotak Mahindra Bank - BBPS real-time integration for recovery of Overdue Loans

 

            Two recent Press Releases by Kotak Mahindra Bank caught my attention.

Press Release 01) Missed an EMI Payment on Your Kotak Loan? Now, Simply Pay Your Overdue EMI Through Your Preferred Payment App @ https://www.kotak.com/content/dam/Kotak/about-us/media-press-releases/2021/media-release-kotak-overdue-loan-repayments-on-payment-apps-742021.pdf

 

Press Release 02) A Simple but Powerful Message – Kotak Home Loans @ 6.65% p.a. Kotak Launches Multi-media Campaign on its ‘Unbelievably Low’ Home Loan Rate  @ https://www.kotak.com/content/dam/Kotak/about-us/media-press-releases/2021/media-release-hl-campaign-6-65.pdf

 

Press Release 02 focuses on Loan disbursements, Press Release 01 focuses on recovery of Loan overdues.

            Both the activities are bread and butter for any lending financial institution. Both are interlinked for the continuous growth of a lending financial institution.

            BBPS has revolutionised the way for collection of Loan EMIs including overdue EMIs.

            There are few parallels for BBPS in other countries. In majority of the countries there is a fragmented approach for collection of loan EMIs.

            The benefits of BBPS are many and it is very welcome that the numbers of the Billers on the BBPS platform is on the increase.

Q: Why the Press Release 01 is important?

            Kotak Mahindra Bank has real-time integration between BBPS and its Loans module. What the BBPS displays as Amount Due for a particular loan, is the real-time amount. There is no time lag i.e Start of Day balance, or 1-day old balance, or holidays not calculated etc.

            This is a great innovation that drastically reduces customer friction. 100 % assurance for customers, that only the correct overdues are being repaid.

            Customers can choose to pay the full displayed due amounts or part amount. There is no necessity that only the full due amount has to be paid.

            This reduces the pressure on the loan borrowers to pay the full amount. The borrower can repay in small amounts as and when required.

            The payments made via the BBPS channel will reflect in real time in the respective loan accounts.

            This means repayments made on holidays and after banking hours will reflect immediately in the loan account. The issue of delayed accounting is history now.

            BBPS channel is open 24*7, 365 days a year.   

 

Quote

Details of any EMIs that are past the due date will be displayed and the payment will reflect in the

customer’s loan account on a real-time basis.

This repayment facility is available on all KMBL terms loans such as Personal Loan, Home Loan,

Consumer Durable Loan, Business Loan, Gold Loan, Loan against Property as well as Commercial

Vehicle Loan, Tractor Finance Loan, Construction Equipment Loan etc.

Unquote

            At present, Kotak Mahindra Bank offers a real-time facility for overdue EMIs only and not for regular EMIs. Lots more system integration is required for a real-time facility for regular EMIs.

A start is made, and the day is not far off when there will be a real-time facility for regular EMIs. This will be another game-changer for the loan recovery process in India.  

 

Q: What are overdue loans?

Ans: Overdue loans are loans in which borrowers have missed to repay a particular EMI.

Q: What is the traditional collection process of overdue loans?

Ans: NACH(Debit), NEFT, Cash, 3^rd party aggregators

Q: What are the drawbacks of the traditional collection process of overdue loans?

Ans: DB 01) High collection costs

DB 02) Delayed reflection of repayment in the loan account

DB 03) Difficult to see the total missed EMIs amount          

DB 04) Difficult to repay part amounts

DB 05) Difficulty in interpreting narration in customer’s accounts at a later date

 

The BBPS channel can be deployed for collection of overdues in the following loan segments i.e Home Loans & LAP, PL, BL, and Consumer Durables, Credit Cards, CV/CE, Agriculture Division and Tractor Finance

 

Disclaimer: These are my personal views only. The bottom line is Mission #LessCashNotCashLess. Nothing More - Nothing Less

 

Reference Articles:

https://www.bharatbillpay.com/ - Pay anytime and from anywhere

This Bank Allows EMI Payment Via Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm Wallets: How Will This Work?

 

NPCI’s Bharat BillPay, en route to a billion transactions, is set to be the next payments disruption

Kotak mahindra bank has gone live on imps using account no and ifs Code

            One unique feature of Kotak Mahindra Bank, is that it does not have an independent internet site. Rather, Kotak Mahindra Bank website is a part of Kotak.com

The dedicated internet page tells us more about Kotak Bank’s IMPS offering.  

The special offers internet page is a very useful tool for Kotaks’ customers to enjoy the best of Kotaks’ offers on its debit cards, credit cards and netc@rd. Netc@rd  is a single use limited validity online card created by Kotak customer, from his/her  bank account, at the time of online shopping and cannot be used after your first payment.

Ah, you might be interested in Subbus’ tv advertisements, on the theme, ‘lets money simple’. View them to lift your blues.

Who will be the major client of Yes Bank IMPS-MPS?

IMPS-Merchant Payment Service pilot launch with Yes Bank

            Yes Bank was one of the banks who were in the Pilot Launch of IMPS in November 2010. Taking this tradition forward, Yes Bank has also joined the Pioneer Club for the IMPS Merchant Payment Service.

            Yes Bank joined the IMPS Merchant Payment Service last month i.e August 2012. With this, Yes Bank would now be able to offer this new ePayment mode to their ‘Cash Management Services’ clients.

IMPS-MPS will be beneficial for Accounts Receivables more than Accounts Payables teams.

            HSBC, State Bank of India, Canara Bank, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Union Bank of India are the banks which are already online with IMPS-MPS.

            State Bank of India’s’ major client is IRCTC. HSBC’s major client is Reliance Mutual Fund. With reference to other banks, at present, no information is available in the public domain.