Arundhati Bhattacharya [File photo]

Birthplace: India

Notable facts: Bhattacharya's bank has 15,946 branches across India. In 2014, she was listed as the world's 36th most powerful woman by Forbes.

FP said that while the money of a few corrupts America's politics, the money of many corrupts India's. In her role as chair of the State Bank of India, overseeing $400 billion in assets, Arundhati Bhattacharya is aiming to bring greater discipline to the country's banking system. A tried-and-true pre-election tactic for Indian politicians is to promise to waive repayments on billions of dollars in farm loans in an effort to win the votes of the rural poor. The practice discourages farmers from repaying their loans, leading to more bad debt and macroeconomic inefficiencies: if banks must waive bad loans, it hampers their ability to price risk. To fight this scourge, in July, Bhattacharya called out the newly elected leaders of the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana for their proposed policies on debt forgiveness. She has also suggested (politely) that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government turn away from waiver policies. Yes, she admits, this would benefit her bank—but it would greatly benefit India as well.