AZB & Partners and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas (CAM) are advising on Kotak Mahindra acquiring the retail, private banking and wealth management business in India from German parent Deutsche for an undisclosed amount.
The deal is expected to close in September 2027. The business in India comprises INR290 billion (USD3 billion) in loans, INR160 billion in deposits and INR105 billion in assets under management. It serves around 150,000 customers through a team of around 1,000 employees.“This is one of the most significant M&A deals in the banking sector in recent years, and reflects a broader trend of foreign banks streamlining their India footprint by way of a sale of their high-quality retail franchise to leading Indian private sector banks,” Archit Bhatnagar, CAM partner and transaction team leader, told India Business Law Journal.
“Having been involved across the various stages – from the bid process and due diligence to negotiation and signing – the experience has been both demanding and deeply rewarding. The nature of the business necessitated close collaboration with multiple stakeholders within Kotak [Mahindra] Bank, drew on CAM’s cross-practice expertise spanning corporate, banking and finance, regulatory, antitrust and employment, and required a consistently high degree of regulatory awareness throughout.
“Representing Kotak Mahindra Bank against Deutsche Bank – two highly sophisticated M&A participants, meant that advisers were expected to match the pace and rigour of the principals at every stage, which made the engagement all the more enriching. We look forward to working with the parties towards closing.”
Bhatnagar led the team with support from senior associates Pruthvi Jasani and Utkarsh Jhingan, and associates Saurabh Agnihotri and Tanvi Jain.
Specialist advice was provided by partners Abhijeet Das (strategy), Ranganayakulu Jagarlamudi (Securities and Exchange Board of India regulations), Ankita Ray (employment), Jian Johnson (Reserve Bank of India regulatory matters) and Dhruv Rajain (competition law).
Bhatnagar told IBLJ, “This deal required navigating a complex interplay of various regulatory, operational and commercial considerations.
“What distinguished this deal from others was the need, from day one, to anticipate and address the integration and migration challenges across each of the inter-linked components of the banking business — loans, deposits, depository accounts, distribution of third-party financial products, customer data, physical records and more.”
Additionally, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management and Kotak Alternate Asset Managers, both wholly owned subsidiaries of Kotak Mahindra Bank, have entered into non-binding term sheets with Deutsche Investments India for the referral of clients for portfolio management services and investment advisory, respectively.
AZB & Partners advised Deutsche Bank, with senior partners Gautam Ganjawala and Roxanne Anderson, and partner Karthik Mudaliar leading the team. Senior associates Lokesh Deshwal and Sanghamitra Sengupta, and associates Prithviraj Khanna and Malvika Kedia also assisted.
The transaction is aligned with Deutsche’s global Hausbank strategy, which aims to strengthen the bank’s position as the primary long-term financial partner to corporate, institutional and wealth management clients. As part of this strategy, Deutsche Bank has been streamlining its operations, reallocating capital to higher-growth and higher-return businesses, and integrating its asset management, as well as corporate, investment and private banking capabilities to deliver a more comprehensive client offering.
