What comes to your mind when you think of HDFC bank? India’s largest private sector bank; the most-valued bank, a bank which the Reserve Bank of India says is too big to fail. Right? But what is the story behind the scenes? Bank aapki mutthi mein, Loan in 10 seconds, SmartBuy, Payzapp, Eva etc.
How did HDFC Bank embark on its digital journey migrating from a Lifecycle Bank to a LifeStyle Bank? Will it become India’s Netflix or Alibaba in banking?
How did HDFC Boss Deepak Parekh, convince Aditya Puri who was then heading Citibank’s Malaysia operations to come on board as HDFC Bank chief in India in 1994? How has Aditya Puri, MD of HDFC Bank, the Bachchan of Indian Banking as many say, has propelled HDFC Bank to become India’s most valuable bank? He has been at the helm for 25 years – the longest tenure enjoyed by bank CEO globally. Does Aditya Puri achieve the work-life balance? Yes, he leaves his office by 5:30 pm but does he ever mentally go out of office? Will HDFC and HDFC Bank merge? What is Aditya’s legacy? Finally, after Aditya who?
If you are looking for answers to all these questions, grab a copy of “HDFC Bank 2.0: From Dawn to Digital”. The journey of HDFC bank under the leadership of Aditya Puri has been captured in this unique book by Tamal Bandyopadhyay, warts and all.
In entrepreneur and technologist Nandan Nilekani’s own words, the story of HDFC Bank is one of how “a giant bank can take on the nimblest of startups and become a market leader and pioneer… a lesson on how incumbents in various industries can respond to the digital disruption staring at them.”
Books by Tamal Bandyopadhyay
Tamal Bandyopadhyay is one of the most respected business journalists in India. His weekly column, Banker’s Trust, now in Business Standard (and previously in Mint), is widely read for its deep insights into the world of finance and its unerring ability to anticipate major policy moves. You can read his columns at www.bankerstrust.in Tamal has worked with four national business dailies in India, Business Standard, Financial Express, Mint and The Economic Times. Global professional network LinkedIn nominated him as one of the top ten voices in India in 2018.
In 2012 Tamal Bandyopadhyay wrote A Bank for the Buck: The Story of HDFC Bank, which was the story of the birth and growth of India’s most valued Bank till then. HDFC Bank was 18-years old then; now it is 25. And the last few years banking has gone digital addressing the pain points of customers using technology.
In 2014 Aditya Puri visited Silicon Valley in and on his return told the team of HDFC Bank that instead of waiting to be disrupted by fintech companies, they will become a platform facilitating a financial experience. “They all wanted to ride on top of the banking system. I came back and said this is nobody’s preserve. Why would I let somebody else eat my breakfast when I have the product, I have the knowledge, technology belongs to everyone, and I have a customer base. The digital journey, the challenges, the failures, the victories have been brilliantly captured by Tamal Bandyopadhyay in his new book, HDFC Bank 2.0, released on 10 July 2019 in Mumbai.
We were invited to attend the book’s launch in Bangalore on 15 July 2019. It was an opportunity to listen to Aditya Puri, Nandan Nilkeni and Tamal Bandyopadhyay. And, the bonus was an autographed book!
Book Launch of HDFC Bank 2.0 Dawn To Digital
This is Tamal’s fifth book on finance. All four past books have been non-fiction best sellers.
- From Lehman to Demonetization: A Decade of Disruptions, Reforms and Misadventures;
- Bandhan: The Making Of A Bank
- Sahara: The Untold Story (he had to fight an Rs200 crore defamation suit that the Sahara group had slapped on him to stop the publication of the book on shadow banking in India.)
- A Bank for the Buck: The Story of HDFC Bank: Book HDFC Bank 2.0 : From Dawn to Digital is updated version of the book. We would recommend you to get it.
HDFC 2.0 Dawn to Digital
Banking space in India is dramatically changing with the digital drive on the one hand and growing pile of bad loans, on the other. This book narrates the story of how HDFC Bank does ordinary things which yield extraordinary results. The emphasis is not on the financial ratios and data but on the inside story. the nuts and bolts of how things are done. All along, it maintains an informal style of narration which makes it unputdownable. It has pictures.
The book is divided into three parts: The Digital Journey, The Flashback and the Puri Legacy.
It charts the digital journey of the bank, which is still work in progress. In Aug 2015, Nandan Nilekani had said India is witnessing a WhatsApp moment in the finance sector due to emergence of payments banks, e-sign, IMPS, and other technology-related revolutions. How HDFC Bank started an innovation team which came up with products like Chillr, Loans in 10 seconds, Launch in Benaras. How banking is using AI, machine learning, and Internet of Things(IOT) about evolution of EVA (Electronic Virtual Assistant), HDFC Bank chatbot which addresses queries, resolves issues and performs talks. It also talks about the failures like smartwatch banking. The companies HDFC bank worked/works with such as Backwaters, Sensefroth. A delight for the techies and for those who want to understand how technology is changing banking.
The Flashback is about the making of the bank, how it was conceptualized, how the team was built. How Deepak Parekh convinced Aditya to give move from Citibank in Malaysia to HDFC Bank in India? Why HDFC wanted to be in banking space? How Aditya fought to get name HDFC Bank instead of the Bombay International Bank or Everest Bank of India. How Aditya built his Lucky 13 team.
It discusses the business philosophy of the bank and how it is different from the rivals in terms of product innovations, cost of funds, risk management but did hide the incidents of HDFC Bank facing the regulator’s wrath and penalized at times. It dispassionately tells the story of what went wrong, how did the bank get into the mess and the safety valve it creates to avoid such situations.
Behind every successful business is strong leadership. How Aditya Puri led the bank from front leveraging technology and people?Who are the special 13 of Aditya who executed the plans? What is the leadership style of Aditya Puri? What makes Aditya Puri, the longest-serving Managing director (MD) of any bank globally, different from his peers. How does he prioritize? How he does not delegate but empowers? How he builds the relationships? How he manages office politics? But then why do people leave HDFC Bank? About his wife Smiley(how he married her) and his children(actress Amrita Puri of Kai Po Che , Aisha is Aditya Puri’s daughter) And the all-important question After Aditya Who? You will understand why Aditya Puri is called the Bachchan of Banking.
Interviews
The Two interviews below will help you know more about the man Aditya Puri, the earlier book (Bank for Buck) and author Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
CNN News Indian Business Icons: Journey of Aditya Puri Segment on Aditya starts at 9:36
HDFC Bank MD, Aditya Puri and Tamal Bandyopadhyay – Interview on CNBC Awaaz
If you like reading business books, we recommend you to read,HDFC Bank 2.0: From Dawn to Digital”, for the behind-the-scenes story. If you are a techie, then you can read about how technology is influencing the banking products. If you like reading about leaders, this book tells about Aditya Puri’s leadership. A complete package for all.
