All four MDs in race to be SBI chief

Given the buzz around State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya soon donning the hat of chief of market watchdog Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) next month, talk of who will possibly succeed her at the banking behemoth is also doing the rounds. Current Sebi Chairman U K Sinha's term ends on February 17. All four managing directors at the lender are expected to be called for selection, executives say.

In the normal course, Bhattacharya's term at SBI would run till the end of October. The next chairman at the country's largest lender could enjoy a four-year tenure and the chairman after the next would have a five-year stint.

Of the four, one is set to retire in July; yet, he'll be called for selection. The same practice was followed while selecting the successor to Pratip Chaudhury in 2013. S Viswanathan, then one of the MDs with a short residual service, was called for selection.

The government modified rules of selection of the SBI chairman in 2013, and did away with the provision of requirement of residual service for eligibility. The retirement age was also relaxed.