Atul Kumar Goel has joined Punjab National Bank (PNB) as officer on special duty (OSD) on January 1.

Effective February 1, Goel is slated to take over as the new MD and CEO of the second-largest public sector bank. 

State Bank of India (SBI) deputy managing director Soma Sankara Prasad has replaced Goel as the head of UCO Bank. For the last 38 months, Goel was the boss of UCO Bank.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved Goel to serve as PNB chief till December 31, 2024, or until further orders, whichever is earlier.

Goel is set to replace CH. SS Mallikarjuna Rao, incumbent MD & CEO of PNB, who is due to demit office at the end of January 2022. 

Goel has three decades of professional banking experience in three banks, including Allahabad Bank (now Indian Bank), Union Bank of India and UCO Bank.

A qualified chartered accountant, Goel is also the chairman of Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) for 2021-22. Additionally, he is a director on the board of The New India Assurance Co. Ltd. He is also a member of the governing council and chairman of the executive committee of the Indian Institute of Banking & Finance (IIBF).

During his tenure as head of UCO Bank, Goel was instrumental in the complete turnaround of the bank. After five years of consecutive losses, he brought the bank back to profitability in FY 2020-21. 

Prior to UCO Bank, Goel worked as executive director at Union Bank of India (UBI). He served as director on the boards of Star Union Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. and Union Trustee Company Private Limited. 

Goel began his banking career with Allahabad Bank on March 27,1992, as a chartered accountant in specialist officer in Scale II and got elevated up to the level of general manager. He handled key areas covering a vast spectrum of banking operations, most notably as chief financial officer (CFO). During his tenure at Allahabad Bank, he headed the Mumbai Zone and served as director of All Bank Finance Limited. 

Earlier, he was the chairman of the Standing Committee on Accounting Standards & Taxation and the Standing Committee on Retail Banking of IBA as well.