ICICI Bank’s shares were trading flat on Thursday after the bank forcefully refuted reports suggesting CEO and MD Sandeep Bakhshi desired to leave his position.

What Happened: The bank dismissed a report published by The Morning Context as “baseless” and a “figment of imagination”, which had claimed Bakhshi sought release from his roles as MD and CEO due to a personal emergency. Additionally, the article noted the Reserve Bank of India’s opposition to Bakhshi’s departure.

“It appears that this rumour is being spread with an ulterior motive and malicious intent in order to harm the Bank and its stakeholders,” the bank added in its clarification to exchanges.

In September last year, the RBI approved Bakhshi’s reappointment as MD & CEO, following earlier shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting.

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These rumours surfaced just a week after the bank reported strong earnings for Q4 FY24. ICICI Bank recorded a 17.4% increase in profit for the fourth quarter, despite higher funding costs affecting the bottom line. The bank declared a standalone net profit of ₹10,707.53 crore for the quarter ending March 31, up from ₹9,121.87 crore in the same quarter the previous year, surpassing the average analyst expectation of ₹10,465 crore.

The bank reported a net interest income of ₹19,092.8 crore for the quarter, an 8.1% increase from ₹17,675.79 crore a year earlier, exceeding the analyst forecast of ₹18,981.14 crore.

Price Action: ICICI Bank shares were trading 0.078% lower at ₹1,149.50 on Thursday, shortly after the bourses opened up for trading.

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