Deepak Parekh further talked about the HDFC-HDFC Bank merger that was completed in
July 2023. Talking to Chanda Kochhar, he said that the union was mainly driven by
regulatory pressure.
In a candid conversation on Chanda Kochhar’s YouTube channel, veteran banker Deepak
Parekh revealed a fascinating piece of financial history: years ago, ICICI Bank, under
Kochhar’s leadership, had proposed a merger with HDFC Ltd. It was a bold idea at the time
HDFC was a standalone mortgage powerhouse, and ICICI Bank was looking to expand its
retail lending footprint. Parekh, known for his measured decision-making, appreciated the
ambition behind the proposal but ultimately felt the timing and structure weren’t right.
The regulatory environment back then made such a merger challenging. HDFC was still a
non-banking finance company (NBFC), and merging it with a commercial bank raised a host
of governance and compliance questions.
Parekh explained that the complexities, especiallyaround insurance and other subsidiary businesses, made the deal unworkable. Fast forward to 2023, and the tables turned. With increasing pressure from the Reserve Bank of India for large NBFCs to consolidate with banks, HDFC itself took the step to merge with
HDFC Bank. This time, the move aligned better with the regulatory mood and the long-term
vision of building a stronger, more unified financial entity.
Looking back, Parekh’s recollection isn’t just an industry anecdote it’s a reflection of how
ideas in finance sometimes need the right moment to flourish. While ICICI Bank’s proposal
didn’t materialize, it hinted at a direction the financial world was already heading toward.
And in many ways, that vision was realized just not in the way originally imagined.
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