Goldman Sachs Names Gowri Sekar as First Woman Partner in India

By: Women Entrepreneurs Review Team | Monday, 9 November 2026

Goldman Sachs has appointed Gowri Sekar as its first woman partner based in India, marking a significant milestone in the leadership representation of women in the country's financial and technology sectors.

Gowri, a managing director and technology fellow at the US investment bank, has been selected as part of its 2026 global partner class. She will assume the partnership role from January 1, 2027, following nearly two decades of service at the firm.

Gowri currently serves as Global Head of Product Data Engineering and Asia-Pacific Lead for AI Strategy for Data Engineering at Goldman Sachs. She has held several leadership positions across data and controllers engineering, working with teams in multiple international offices, including New York. She began her career at the investment bank as an analyst in Bengaluru and gradually progressed into senior technology leadership roles.

Key Highlights:

• Gowri Sekar becomes Goldman Sachs' first woman partner in India after nearly 20 years with the firm
• Goldman Sachs promotes 109 employees globally to its 2026 partner class, including 14 Indians
• Gowri currently leads Product Data Engineering globally and AI strategy for data engineering in Asia-Pacific

Alongside Gowri, Goldman Gowri has also promoted Ashoke Sharma to partner in India. Sharma serves as Global Head of Operations Engineering within Global Banking and Markets Public and Head of GBM Engineering in India. He has been associated with the firm for 12 years and has held leadership responsibilities across its engineering operations.

These recent appointments form part of the largest promotions of partners at Goldman Sachs since 2010. The bank has designated 109 employees from around the world for its partner class of 2026 compared to 95 in the last period in 2024. The new partners will become a part of the firm's equity from January 1, 2027, at the beginning of the next financial year.

Of those newly enlisted as partners, 62 are located in the Americas and 20 in Asia. The list also includes 14 professionals from India working in various global offices, including Gowri and Sharma from the Bengaluru office. Appointing more Indian professionals indicates how more employees are contributing to the bank's international operations.

According to Goldman Sachs Chairman and CEO David Solomon, this year’s partner class illustrates the bank’s dedication to forming a team of leaders who actively work for the benefit of the firm.

India continues to be a significant location for Goldman Gowri to conduct its technological and business operations. The company has over 8,000 employees across offices in Bangalore, Mumbai, and Hyderabad, with roughly 45% of them working in engineering positions. The Bangalore technology division of the bank is instrumental in supporting global business operations as well as offering engineering solutions.

Furthermore, Goldman Sachs promoted 49 Indians to higher positions in 2025, establishing the largest group of promotions to managing director posts across the country. The appointment of Gowri signals an important milestone in his career and indicates the increasing presence of Indian tech executives in top positions in worldwide financial institutions.