BNP Paribas has promoted from within to fill the roles of transaction banking chiefs in India and Southeast Asia.

Rupa Balsekar (pictured) will take up the role of head of transaction banking in Southeast Asia on January 1 next year, and will be responsible for teams in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. She replaces Sofia Hammoucha, who left the lender in June this year to become head of transaction banking risk at Standard Chartered in Singapore.

Balsekar joined BNP Paribas in 2007 from the Bank of Nova Scotia and since 2015 has been managing director and head of transaction banking in India.

Shreeram Sethuraman will replace Balsekar as head of transaction banking for India, also effective on January 1, 2023. Sethuraman has been head of BNP Paribas’ financial institutions coverage for India since he joined the French lender from Citi in 2018.

Both will report functionally to Chye Kin Wee, the bank’s head of transaction banking for Asia Pacific, who says India and Southeast Asia “are fast growing and important markets for our corporate clients”.

“Both Rupa and Shreeram bring extensive client experience and product expertise to the transaction banking franchise,” he adds. “Under their leadership, we are confident that they will further the bank’s growth ambition and support our clients’ growth in these local markets and beyond.”