I reject ads which don’t have a balance of both genders: Federal Bank CMO Murthy

To become one of India’s top five private banks, Federal Bank took a step never heard of in its 93-year-old history – appoint a brand face. At an event in Mumbai on March 5, 2025, the bank announced actress Vidya Balance as its first-ever ambassador.

First thoughts go to the Kerala roots both she and the bank share and while it played a part, managing director KVS Manian (he took charge in September ’24) told the press, “She bridges the north-south divide. We needed it for the brand.” A household name in Kerala, the bank is expanding to the rest of India aiming to “get that national positioning.” 

Also noteworthy is most ads and marketing communication from banks are aimed at men rather than women, and Federal Bank was aware of this when it chose Balan. 

For instance, Kotak Mahindra Bank has Ranveer Singh while IDFC First Bank taps into Amitabh Bachchan’s popularity. MS Dhoni is seen in ads for the State Bank of India, and Aamir Khan has appeared in spots for AU Small Finance Bank. 

43% of Federal Bank employees are women, said MD Manian and chief marketing officer M V S Murthy pointed to the bank’s less than four per cent attrition and said many women who joined the bank as freshers have enjoyed long flourishing careers. However, a press release from the bank said Balan was a very strategic choice to capture the attention across geographies, genders and generations. 

“It'll be digital because I'll have to balance out the budgets across a lot of other media, but I think digital should work for us.” 

CMO Murthy on where the bank's ad with Vidya Balan will play during the 2025 IPL. 

While Balan aims to do what’s said in the release, CMO Murthy after the event told afaqs! he “rejects ads which don't have a balance of both the genders” and he’s not a fan of banking ads which show the proverbial handshake between two suited men or ones that only show men. “When I put out a product, it should appeal to both the genders and not be the traditional old marketing tropes of BFSI,” he remarked. 

Federal Bank, despite appointing Balan, will continue with its “Rishta Aap Se Hai, Sirf App Se Nahi” philosophy from 2023 that doubles down on the human touch of banking services rather than complete dependence on apps. But, is it enough to differentiate itself from rivals who’re marketing their digital products to a young tech-savvy consumer base? 

“We are in the service industry. How much ever apps you have, people at the end of the day want to see people. And hence service is a very very important differentiator,” answers Murthy. 

Ask about the falling levels of celebrity effectiveness and he says it all comes down to how a celebrity walks the talk and what a brand wants to be, for instance, an edgy brand will go for an edgy celebrity. “We want to have somebody who is vibrant, who can speak to men and women together, who can speak to a 16-year-old as well as a 60-year-old.”

The bank is working on its first commercial with Balan and it will most likely premiere during the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL). “It'll be digital because I'll have to balance out the budgets across a lot of other media, but I think digital should work for us.” 

Inquire about the spending budget and he quips, “I am a very happy CMO. I think I've got enough and more to go out and spend and to build the brand.” Push for a figure and he says it is “closer to a three-digit number for the year.”