Deepan Bafna steps up as director at Citi India

MUMBAI: Citi India has tapped a familiar hand to steer one of its most dynamic businesses. Deepan Bafna has been elevated to director, taking the reins of the bank’s local currency credit trading desk in Mumbai.

In his new role, Bafna will oversee trading across investment-grade and high-yield credit bonds, along with key rates products such as government bonds and interest rate swaps. The brief is clear and unapologetically market-facing: generate absolute trading profits while navigating India’s fast-evolving credit landscape.

But this is not just about buying and selling bonds. Bafna will also lead Citi India’s structured credit financing efforts, spanning bonds, securities financing transactions, credit derivatives and loans. A key part of his mandate is to keep the product cupboard fresh, introducing new credit structures that deepen Citi’s onshore franchise and sharpen its competitive edge.

The promotion caps a steady rise at Citi, where Bafna joined as vice president in late 2022 and quickly became a key figure in local currency credit and financing. Before that, he spent over six years at HDFC Bank, managing proprietary credit books, trading government securities and overseeing corporate bond portfolios across the rating spectrum.

His career began in the insurance and asset management world, with fixed income roles at ICICI Lombard, before expanding into market making, trading and portfolio strategy. Along the way, Bafna has built a reputation for blending macro insight with hands-on trading instincts.

With India’s credit markets growing deeper and more complex, Citi’s choice signals a bet on experience, range and an appetite for innovation. For Bafna, it is a bigger seat at a faster table, where spreads, structures and split-second decisions set the pace.