Chief Operating Officer (COO), Key Management Personnel (KMP)

Position:Chief Operating Officer (COO), Key Management Personnel (KMP) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ### Role

Chief Operating Officer (COO), Key Management Personnel (KMP)

Location

BKC, Mumbai

Qualification

Bachelor's Degree from a recognized university is essential. Prefer candidates with MBA/PGDM, CA, CFA, Engineering degree with management qualification, Post qualifications in Finance, Economics, Risk Management and Technology.

Desirable Certifications:

NISM Certifications, Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), Project Management Professional (PMP), FRM (Financial Risk Manager), Certification in Cyber Security, Digital Transformation or Operational Risk.

Experience

Minimum 20 to 25 years of experience is essential with at least 10 years in senior leadership or C-suit roles. Should have proven experience leading large-scale operations in regulated financial institutions.

Preferred candidates with Industry background of Depositories, Market Infrastructure Institutions, Stock Exchanges, Clearing Corporations, Custodian Banks, Securities Services, Capital Market Infrastructure, Large Financial Institutions, Technology-led Financial Services organizations.

Strong preference for candidates who have directly managed depository operations, securities settlement, custody operations, exchange or clearing operations, capital market risk and control environments.

Job Description

Reports to: Executive Director, Critical Operations (Vertical 1.
About NSDL:
NSDL, established in 1996, is India’s oldest and one of the world’s largest depositories. NSDL manages over 80% securities in dematerialised form in India. It provides secure, efficient and cost-effective settlement solutions through robust infrastructure and a nationwide network of depository participants, serving investors, intermediaries and issuers. Its operating environment requires exceptional reliability, regulatory discipline, cyber and operational resilience, strong governance and continuous innovation.

Role Purpose:
The Chief Operating Officer (COO) is a key member of the Executive Leadership Team and will be responsible for the overall operational leadership of NSDL, ensuring reliability, integrity, resilience, scalability, and regulatory compliance of India’s largest depository infrastructure.

The COO shall provide strategic direction and executive oversight across depository operations, issuer services, participant services, risk and operational controls, operational resilience, technology-enabled transformation, business continuity, stakeholder management and delivery of regulatory initiatives.

As a designated Key Managerial Personnel, the COO carries enhanced accountability for sound governance, regulatory compliance, risk oversight, accurate regulatory and management reporting and timely implementation of Board decisions. The COO also serves as a principal interface with the Board and SEBI, coordinates with Board and the Committees on key matters, represents NSDL on regulatory and industry working groups.

The incumbent will play a pivotal role in supporting NSDL's position as a Systemically Important Market Infrastructure Institution (MII), maintaining market confidence, protecting investor interests and enabling innovation in the Indian capital market ecosystem.

The role requires a highly respected industry leader with deep expertise in capital markets, market infrastructure institutions, securities settlement and depository operations, regulatory engagement and large-scale organizational leadership.

Key Accountabilities

Strategic Leadership . Enterprise Management

• Partner with the MD . CEO, Executive Director and Board in defining and executing NSDL's long-term strategic roadmap.

• Translate Board-approved strategies into measurable operating objectives and enterprise-wide execution plans.

• Drive organizational effectiveness, scalability and operational excellence across all business functions.

• Ensure operational readiness for strategic initiatives, market reforms, new services, changes in settlement architecture and major enterprise programmes.

• Analyse requirements for various stakeholders viz., DPs, RTA ,Issuers etc

• Support new business initiatives, market reforms, digital transformation and ecosystem partnerships.

• Act as a strategic advisor to the MD . CEO and Executive Director on operational, regulatory and market infrastructure matters.

Depository Operations Leadership

Provide executive leadership over core depository operations including dematerialisation and rematerialisation services, settlement and related depository processes, corporate action processing, collateral management, account and instruction processing, issuer and participant services, investor response and other critical operational activities.

Ensure high service reliability, operational accuracy, strong control environment, regulatory compliance, exceptional stakeholder experience.

Regulatory Governance . Compliance

Lead operational compliance with Depositories Act, 1996, SEBI (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 2018, SEBI circulars, guidelines and directions, Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, Prevention of Money Laundering requirements, SEBI (LODR) Regulations, data privacy and information security obligations, and other statutory mandates governing NSDL's operations

Key responsibilities include regulatory inspections and supervisory reviews, regulatory submissions and reporting, regulatory remediation programs, Board and Committee reporting, regulatory change management.

Promote a culture in which regulatory obligations and investor / client responsiveness considerations are embedded in day-to-day decisions.

Board, Committees . Regulatory Engagement

Serve as a senior management interface with SEBI, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, RBI, Market Infrastructure Institutions, Depository Participants, Stock Exchanges, Clearing Corporations, Custodians, Registrars . Transfer Agents, Audit and regulatory bodies.

Present and provide strategic oversight on matters relating to Operations, to the Board of Directors, Audit Committee, Risk Management Committee, Regulatory Oversight Committees and Other Board Committees relating to Operations, Risk, Technology transformation, Governance, Regulatory compliance and Market initiatives.

Operational Risk . Resilience

Accountable for First-line risk management, operational risk governance, operational resilience framework, business continuity management, disaster recovery preparedness, crisis management, cyber resilience readiness, Incident response and recovery. Ensure compliance with resilience expectations applicable to Market Infrastructure Institutions and critical financial infrastructure.

Lead the business response to major operational incidents, ensuring rapid containment, clear command structures, stakeholder communication and restoration of critical services.

Oversee root-cause analysis, lessons learned, recurrence prevention and closure validation for significant incidents and control failures.

Technology . Digital Transformation

Partner closely with the CTO and Chief Information Security Officer to drive technology modernization, strengthen cyber resilience, enhance automation and digitization, enable AI-driven operational efficiencies, improve analytics and management reporting, support new digital products and services, enhance participant and investor experience, lead operational readiness for all major technology implementations.

Market Infrastructure Development

Contribute to industry-wide market reforms, participate in regulatory and industry working groups, support development of new securities market infrastructure capabilities, build partnerships with regulators and ecosystem participants, drive operational preparedness for emerging asset classes and settlement frameworks.

Stakeholder Management

Develop and maintain strong relationships with Regulators, Board members, Depository Participants, Issuers, Institutional investors, Custodians, Banks, Exchanges, Clearing Corporations, Government agencies and Industry associations. Acts as a credible industry representative of NSDL.

Leadership . Talent Development

Build a high-performance culture, develop next-generation leaders, drive succession planning, lead organization capability building, foster collaboration and accountability, promote integrity, transparency and ethical conduct.

Functional Competencies:

• Capital Markets . Domain Expertise - Deep understanding of Indian capital markets, strong knowledge of depository framework, settlement lifecycle expertise, understanding of securities regulations, Market infrastructure ecosystem knowledge, investor protection framework awareness.

• Regulatory . Governance- SEBI regulations, Depositories Act, Companies Act, LODR requirements, Regulatory inspections, Governance frameworks, Compliance management.

• Technology Orientation- Demonstrated ability to partner with technology , digital platforms, Cyber security governance, Operational resilience, Data analytics, Automation and AI applications, Emerging market technologies.

• Risk Management- Enterprise risk management, Operational risk, Business continuity, Crisis management, Internal controls, Regulatory risk.

• Transformation - Proven record of leading operating-model change, digitization, automation, process re-engineering and enterprise change while sustaining day-to-day service performance

• Personal Attributes: Demonstrates integrity, sound judgment, and accountability, with strong communication, leadership, and stakeholder management skills. Drives collaboration, influences across the organization, adapts to change, and fosters a culture of inclusion, respect, and continuous improvement.

Critical Leadership Capabilities:

• Strategic Leadership - Ability to drive enterprise-wide transformation while balancing regulatory obligations and business objectives.

• Executive Presence - Credibility and maturity to engage effectively with regulators, Board members and senior industry stakeholders.

• Change Leadership -Ability to lead large-scale transformation and modernization initiatives.

• People Leadership-Demonstrated track record of developing senior leaders and creating succession pipelines.

• Stakeholder Management - Exceptional relationship-building and influencing capability across a complex ecosystem.

• Judgement . Decision Making- Sound decision-making in high-impact and time-sensitive situations.

• Collaboration - Builds alignment across diverse stakeholders and functional teams.

• Integrity . Ethics -Highest standards of conduct consistent with expectations of a Market Infrastructure Institution.

Appointment . Regulatory Requirements

• Appointment shall be subject to the provisions of SEBI (Depositories and Participants) Regulations, 2018, applicable SEBI circulars and NSDL's internal governance framework.

• The candidate must satisfy applicable "Fit and Proper" criteria and other regulatory requirements prescribed for Key Managerial Personnel.

Application Process Interested candidates may apply in writing along with their CV by email latest by 10th October 2026, to email id coonsdl@abcconsultants.in
Note: Meeting eligibility criteria does not guarantee shortlisting. For exceptional candidates, eligibility criteria may be relaxed at the discretion of Nomination and Remuneration Committee and the Governing Board.

Email

coonsdl@abcconsultants.in