Credit Suisse’s head of equity research for India, Ashish Gupta, has stepped down after a 14-year stint at the Zurich-based bank.

Today was his last day at Credit Suisse, Gupta told businessline, adding that he will now be on a 90-day “gardening leave.”

Gupta first shot to fame for his 2012 report titled “House of Debt” for Credit Suisse Group AG, which highlighted the early warning signs regarding the ballooning level of delinquent borrowings by large business groups and corporate asset quality issues at Indian banks.

As a result of the report and ensuing discussions, the government, policymakers, and regulator took notice, reviewed the portfolios of banks, and undertook the massive Asset Quality Review in 2015. This pushed the official NPA (non-performing assets) of the country from 2.8 per cent in 2012 to 7.5 per cent in 2016 and a peak of 11.2 per cent in 2018.

Arvind Subramanian, former Chief Economic Advisor to the government of India, had in his 2018 book “Of Counsel: The Challenges of the Modi-Jaitley Economy” called Gupta “one of the few heroes in India’s sordid banking saga,” saying that the scale of mounting bank debt was first quantified and highlighted by the outstanding work of Gupta at Credit Suisse.

Asked if he plans to continue in research, Gupta said he will be announcing his future plans in due course.