Mumbai, Feb. 16 -- The banking hiring cycle has turned, as India's top campuses are feeling the momentum again and premier engineering and business schools are humming. In the hushed corridors of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) campuses and the polished atriums of top business schools, recruiters from private lenders and foreign banks are back in force, testing and interviewing candidates, and handing out offer letters to the best fits.

The placement websites display the names of ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HSBC India, IDFC First Bank, Citibank, Axis Bank and growing list of global wealth‑management names. Banking, financial services and insurance firms have not just returned to campuses, they have arrived with a shar...