After being at the helm of home loan major Housing Development Finance Corp (HDFC) for about 16 years, Deepak Parekh will relinquish his position as CEO on December 31. Keki Mistry, currently the V-C and MD of the mortgage lender, will step in as the CEO, designated as V-C & CEO. However, Parekh, who has been with the institution for 31 years, will continue with HDFC as its non-executive chairman, a release said. HDFC is the holding company for all HDFC group firms, including HDFC Bank.

Over the years, under Parekh’s leadership, HDFC has emerged as one of the most stable mortgage lenders in the country. Even in the face of intense competition from new entrants, who mainly structured their business models around predatory pricing, HDFC maintained a cost-based, customer-oriented approach. HDFC was founded by Parekh’s uncle Hasmukhbhai Parekh in 1977, at a time when the concept of housing finance was nearly non-existent in India.

Under Parekh’s leadership, HDFC has also diversified into various segments within the finance vertical, namely banking, MF, life and general insurances, and real estate venture fund. Parekh, a towering figure in the Indian financial sector and also a social activist, is on the board of several leading corporations. The list include IDFC, GlaxoSmithKline Pharma, Siemens India and Lafarge India.

HDFC will also see two more senior leaders being elevated. Renu Sud Karnad, currently the joint MD, will be MD. And V Srinivasa Rangan, currently senior general manager & chief treasurer, will assume the charge as executive director. All these changes are effective January 1, 2010, the release said. Mistry joined HDFC in 1981 and has been on its board for the last 16 years. He has worked in various positions and now would be responsible for the overall functioning of the home loan major. Sud Karnad too has been with HDFC for 31 years and on the board for the last nine years.

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