Ashok Kumar Gautam, the first Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of India International Bullion Exchange IFSC Ltd., has resigned after leading the country's first international bullion exchange at GIFT City for more than four years. Gautam joined IIBX in February 2022, ahead of the exchange's launch by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in July 2022. During his tenure, he led the operational rollout of the exchange and helped establish the ecosystem for international bullion trading from GIFT City. The CEO is currently serving a three-month notice period that will end in November, citing personal reasons for stepping down. As per The Hindu BusinessLine, Gautam did not respond to calls or messages seeking comment, while the exchange also did not respond to queries.
The departure raises fresh questions about the future of the exchange, which has struggled to scale up since its inception. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, the bourse took nearly three years to surpass the 100-ton mark in cumulative gold trading. This represents a fraction of the roughly 700 tons the South Asian nation imports every year through other channels that include banks. Trading volumes had slowed to a trickle before recovering briefly in April this year, after administrative bottlenecks and tax uncertainty left the bullion exchange as the only channel for importing gold into the country. As per Business Standard, created to provide India with a formal bullion importing channel, the bourse has struggled to gain traction in one of the world's largest gold markets.
During Gautam's tenure, IIBX onboarded leading bullion dealers and jewellers, introduced trading through Bullion Depository Receipts (BDRs), operationalised authorised vaulting facilities and developed a framework for responsible bullion sourcing aligned with global standards. The exchange is based in India's international financial hub at GIFT-City near Ahmedabad in the western state of Gujarat. Its founding owners include India's top market infrastructure institutions, such as the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd., BSE Ltd., and National Securities Depository Ltd., and is regulated by the International Financial Services Centres Authority. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, IIBX continues to engage with government and industry groups to boost participation.
Before joining IIBX, Gautam spent over 36 years in banking and financial markets, holding senior positions at IDBI Bank, Axis Bank and State Bank of India. He brings extensive experience across treasury, bullion, international banking and financial markets to his role as the first MD & CEO of India's international bullion exchange. His departure marks the end of a significant chapter in India's bullion trading infrastructure development, as the exchange represents the country's formal entry into international bullion trading through GIFT City.
