Fino Payments Bank MD Rishi Gupta resigns after 20 years

What's new with Fino Payments Bank Ltd.

• Founding MD Rishi Gupta resigned on Thursday, citing a desire to pursue other interests.
• The board extended the tenure of Ketan Merchant as interim chief for up to three months.
• Gupta faces ongoing scrutiny following his arrest and subsequent bail in a GST investigation.

Why this matters for Fino Payments Bank Ltd.

Gupta was the primary architect of Fino's profitability and its recent small finance bank approval. His departure, closely trailing a tax-related arrest, creates a leadership void at a point when the bank needs stable oversight to execute its transformation.

What we're watching

• Progress on the RBI's small finance bank conversion requirements.
• Any further findings from the GST investigation involving the former MD.
• Stability of the leadership team as the board searches for a permanent successor.

The full read

Rishi Gupta, the founder and managing director of Fino Payments Bank, resigned on Thursday after two decades in charge. He leaves just weeks after an arrest and subsequent bail related to a GST investigation. While the board previously cleared him as fit and proper, his exit introduces immediate leadership uncertainty for a company valued at **₹1,014 crore**.

He is gone.

Fino remains at a critical juncture, having recently secured an in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India to become a small finance bank while Ketan Merchant acts as interim head for the next three months. The departure of the visionary leader behind the bank's profitability and its complex transition strategy creates a significant gap that is difficult to ignore. Investors are left to navigate this transition without the executive who secured the bank's current regulatory standing. The immediate test is whether the company can maintain its operational rhythm while losing its most familiar face.