In a significant development, the government has appointed Sanjay Malhotra as the 26th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved the appointment on Monday, and Malhotra will take charge as RBI Governor starting Wednesday, December 11, 2024. He will serve a three-year tenure.
Malhotra, a 1990 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the Rajasthan cadre, replaces Shaktikanta Das, whose tenure as RBI Governor concludes on Tuesday. Das, the second-longest serving RBI Governor, was appointed in December 2018 following the resignation of Urjit Patel and later received an extension of his term in 2021.
At 56, Malhotra brings over 33 years of diverse experience in sectors such as finance, taxation, power, information technology, and mining. He is an engineering graduate in Computer Science from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur and holds a Master’s in Public Policy from Princeton University, USA.
Malhotra’s extensive career includes serving as the Secretary (Revenue) in the Ministry of Finance, where he has played a key role in shaping India’s tax policies, both direct and indirect. Prior to this, he was Secretary in the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance, where he worked on various financial reforms and policies at both state and central government levels.
With a wealth of expertise in finance and governance, Malhotra is expected to bring a fresh perspective to RBI’s leadership, continuing to navigate the challenges of managing India’s monetary policy and economic growth.
Meanwhile, Shaktikanta Das, who has been instrumental in stabilizing the market during a period of uncertainty, steps down after a significant tenure. Das took charge of the RBI following the abrupt resignation of Urjit Patel and played a crucial role in restoring market confidence amid a standoff between the RBI and the government regarding surplus transfers.