Central Finance announces stepping down of longstanding MD

• Eranjith Wijenaike will retire in July but will remain on the Board as Non-Independent Non-Executive Director
• Deputy Managing Director/Deputy CEO A.K. Gunaratne to succeed

Central Finance Plc has announced the retirement of longstanding Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer/Executive Director Eranjith Wijenaike from July to be succeeded by incumbent deputy A.K. Gunaratne as CEO.

Gunaratne, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants of UK was appointed to the Board of Directors of Central Finance Company PLC as Director (Group Co-Ordination) on 20 February 2002 and functions as Deputy Managing Director / Deputy CEO with effect from 1 July 2020. 

Prior to his appointment to the Board of Directors of the Company in February 2002, he has worked with Ernst & Young for over 10 years and as Chief Financial Officer of Union Bank of Ceylon PLC. He oversees the functions of Strategic Planning, Finance, Deposits, Branches, Risk Management and Information Technology operations of the Company. 

He functioned as a Non- Executive Director of Nations Trust Bank PLC from May 2005 to October 2012 and as the Non-Executive Chairman of the Bank from November 2012 to April 2014 and serves as a Non-Executive Director of Tea Smallholder Factories PLC, Central Industries PLC and several other unquoted companies within the Group. He also serves as a Council Member of the Finance Houses Association of Sri Lanka.

Eranjith Wijenaike has served on the Board since 1 April 1983.  He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce and Postgraduate Diploma in Banking and Financial Management.