World Bank appoints Indian national Anshula Kant as MD and CFO

INDIAN national Anshula Kant has been appointed as managing director (MD) and chief financial officer (CFO) of the World Bank.

The World Bank Group president David Malpass announced the top level appointment on Friday (12).

Kant is currently a managing director of the State Bank of India (SBI), where she previously served as a chief financial officer.

Kant’s start date will be announced shortly.

Commenting on the latest appointment Malpass said: “I am very pleased to appoint Anshula Kant as World Bank Group Managing Director and CFO. Anshula brings more than 35 years of expertise in finance, banking, and innovative use of technology through her work as CFO of the State Bank of India.

“She’s excelled at a diverse array of leadership challenges including risk, treasury, funding, regulatory compliance and operations...”

As managing director and chief financial officer, Kant will be responsible for financial and risk management of the World Bank Group, reporting to the president.

Among other key management duties, her work will include oversight of financial reporting, risk management, and working closely with the World Bank CEO.

As CFO of SBI, Kant managed $38 billion of revenues and total assets of $500bn. Stewarding the organisation, she greatly improved the capital base and focused on the long-term sustainability of SBI within her mandate.

She has been a managing director and member of the board since September 2018.

With direct responsibility for the SBI’s risk, compliance, and stressed asset portfolio, Kant led the creation of investment opportunities while empowering risk management throughout the bank. She held several positions across the organization and helped navigate a diverse array of leadership challenges.

Kant, a native of India, is a post-graduate in Economics from Delhi School of Economics.