'Allocated ₹633 cr for ECL provisions'

IBALDEV PRAKASH is the first MD & CEO of Jammu & Kashmir Bank after the post of chairman and managing director was split. Prakash talks about the strategies that were put in place to improve governance and compliance in an interview with Manojit Saha in Mumbai.

You took charge of the bank on December 30, 2021. What are the steps you initiated to address the governance issues?

This journey over the past two and a half years has been remarkably engaging and incredibly interesting for me. When I took over, we faced numerous challenges in the areas of governance, staff morale, business operations, and compliance. We tackled each issue methodically, collaborating with our teams to brainstorm solutions and address each challenge systematically. I believe governance was our biggest challenge, but with the active support of our promoters and shareholders, our board is now fully professionalised. We have also made significant strides in the bank's digital journey, reaching a level we are proud of. Similarly, compliance-related concerns have also been addressed. Institutionalizing a system of robust monitoring with regular reviews has helped the bank to achieve its targeted goals & numbers. I strongly believe that governance and compliance go hand in hand and without a strong governance structure in place, compliance is impossible to achieve. Itis also crucial to have a regular review system in place to ensure ongoing " compliance.