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HDFC Bank's deputy MD Bharucha out-earned CEO Jagdishan in FY26

Kaizad Bharucha took home ₹17.14 crore against Sashidhar Jagdishan's ₹15.13 crore, as performance-linked bonuses and ESOP grants pushed the Deputy MD's pay past the CEO's.

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Finsamudra Desk

13 Jul 2026, 6:45 pm IST · 1 min read

₹17.14 CrBharucha FY26 pay₹15.13 CrJagdishan FY26 pay₹8.59 CrBharucha performance bonus
In almost every corporate hierarchy, the CEO is the highest-paid person in the room. But HDFC Bank’s latest annual report just revealed a fascinating anomaly.
Image: Finsamudra LinkedIn archive

HDFC Bank's latest annual report shows an unusual pay gap at the top: Deputy Managing Director Kaizad Bharucha earned ₹17.14 crore in FY26, more than MD & CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan's ₹15.13 crore.

The gap is explained by Bharucha's variable pay. His performance-linked bonus nearly doubled to ₹8.59 crore, and his ESOP grants rose fivefold to 6.23 lakh shares.

Jagdishan's FY26 was dominated by steering the post-merger integration of the HDFC empire, a long-horizon structural task. Bharucha, meanwhile, ran the wholesale banking engine that delivered immediate P&L results.

The outcome underscores that at HDFC Bank, compensation tracks measurable business execution over corporate title.

Sources

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