Narayanan joined the Board of Directors in 1996.  Currently Chairman of the Board of ICICI Bank, he has also served as its CEO and on the Boards of Directors of both the Central Bank of India and the Bank of India.

Narayanan earned his Bachelor’s in Commerce with honors from Loyola College, University of Madras.

Narayanan’s contribution to financial institutions is extensive and significant. As the Chairman and member of several committees and task forces created by the Government and the Reserve Bank of India over the years, Narayanan has worked closely on policy formulation at a national level.  He has worked on several assignments for the Asian Development Bank, the IFC and the World Bank and briefly served as Chairman of the Government's Foreign Investment Advisory Board.

During his tenure at ICICI, Narayanan created several new institutions to lay the foundation for the development of the Universal Banking model.  He was also instrumental in setting up ICICI Securities, an Investment Banking company. When the banking licence was thrown open to non-state players, he set up a commercial bank which merged with ICICI to become the first major universal financial institution catering to the diverse needs of all segments of customers.      

Narayanan started the first venture capital company in India in 1987, which has become the leading venture capital company today.  He also pioneered the concept of credit rating in India by setting up CRISIL, India’s leading ratings, research, risk, and policy advisory company.  He is a member of the Indian Institute of Banking and Finance.

Narayanan has been recognized with several prestigious awards over the course of his career.  In 1992, he was named Businessman of the Year by Business India. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Economic Times in 2006 and from Ernst and Young in 2009. The Institute of Company Secretaries honoured him for his contribution to corporate governance in 2007, and he received the Padma Bhushan award from the President of India in 2009 for distinguished service to his country in his field.

In his spare time, Narayanan enjoys playing golf.  He lives in Chennai with his wife.  They have a daughter and a son.