16 | FORBES ASIA JUNE 2018
FORBES ASIA
A CHAT WITH K.V. KAMATH
Indian Banker
in Shanghai
Heading a Brics lender, K.V. Kamath sees ties growing between its biggest backers.
K.V. KAMATH is one of India’s
most respected inanciers, having
run ICICI Bank till 2009 and
serving as its nonexecutive chair-
man through 2015. By then he
was also prominent on the Infosys
board.
His career took a turn in 2015,
however, when he became the irst
president at the New Development
Bank, a multilateral lender in
Shanghai set up by the govern-
ments of Brazil, Russia, India,
China and South Africa—col-
lectively the Brics countries. In an
interview with Forbes China at
the bank’s headquarters, Kamath,
now 70, says he inds long-distant
India and China showing “great
interest in wanting to work
together.”
FORBES CHINA: How do you
see the economic relationship
between these two in the future?
K.V. KAMATH: he direction
of this relationship is set by the
leadership of these two coun-
tries, and the frequent visits
by the prime minister of India
and the president of China positively drive
this. For example, whenever the Consulate
General of India here in Shanghai has an
event to introduce economic opportunities
in India to a group of Chinese businesses,
there is great interest. ... Many Chinese
companies have set up shop and manufac-
turing facilities in India, and those brands
will be visible in India.
With the eforts that are being made by
India on metro networks within cities and
other infrastructure projects that are now
the priority for the country, we will see win-
win situations. Of course, this is already
happening in India, in part in the coal sec-
tor as a signiicant portion of the coal-ired
plants set up in the last ten years came from
China. he same thing is happening now in
solar, in the renewable energy ield. Some of
this is clearly visible, and some of it happen-
ing quietly under the surface.How do you see Indian companies getting
further involved in China?he irst to move from India
into China have been the
Indian tech companies. I think
that part of the relationship will
grow. hey are large employers,
so they are welcomed to various
cities. hat continues, and that
itself will drive commerce and
trade. he economic relation-
ship will then be built on a very
strong foundation.India and China are both
enjoying a period of very
dynamic entrepreneurship.
How can your bank facilitate
the intermingling of some of
that energy?
As our private sector lend-
ing starts taking shape in the
future, we will push on this
entrepreneurship front between
China and India. In the next
three years, there is going to be
a signiicant relationship in the
internet and services sectors.To what extent are you work-
ing to help countries align
with the China’s Belt & Road
initiative?
he bank is mandated to mobilize
resources for infrastructure and sustain-
able development projects in Brics and
other emerging economies and develop-
ing countries, complementing the eforts
of multilateral and regional inancial
institutions for global growth and de-
velopment. As we get to projects which
are in this direction, we would consider
them. However, as of now, we don’t have
any projects in this direction.FBY RUSSELL FLANNERY
Kamath’s accomplishments earned him our high praise in 2007.