The governor of the Reserve Bank of India is the chief executive officer of India's central bank and the ex-officio chair of its Central Board of Directors. Initially it was below the cabinet secretary rank but currently it an equivalent rank to cabinet secretary. Indian Rupee currency notes, issued by the Reserve Bank of India, bear the governor's signature. Since its establishment in 1935 by the government of India, the RBI has been headed by twenty-five governors. The governor of the Reserve Bank of India is a member of the Strategic Policy Group headed by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. It is a crucial wing of the National Security Council.^{[clarification needed]}

The term of office typically runs for three years and can, in some cases,^[vague] be extended for another two years.

The inaugural officeholder was the British banker Sir Osborne Smith, while Sir C. D. Deshmukh was the first native Indian governor. Holding office for over seven years, Sir Benegal Rama Rau was the longest-serving governor, while Amitav Ghosh's 20-day term is the shortest. The bank's fifteenth governor, Dr Manmohan Singh, later became India's thirteenth prime minister. Shaktikanta Das is the twenty-fifth governor of the Reserve Bank of India from 12 December 2018.