New appointments to People's Merchant Board

Experienced professionals Tushan Wickramasinghe, G Ramanan and Anil P Weerasinghe were appointed to the Board of People's Merchant PLC as Non-Executive Directors, effective from January 6, 2012.

Their varied and extensive business experience and expertise, in financial services are expected to add strength to the institution to support and guide it to the next phase of its strategic business initiatives.

Tushan Wickramasinghe, a graduate of Edith Cowen University, Australia is currently the Chairman of Capital TRUST Holding (Pvt) Ltd and a director in all the companies of the Capital TRUST Group.

He is also the Managing Director of Capital TRUST Securities (Pvt) Ltd and has also served Lanka Orix Leasing Company Ltd as a Director. Further, he is also the Proprietor of Shakthi Institute, which is a reputed educational institute with over 10,000 registered students.

He counts for over 20 years of experience in financial markets including stock brokering, margin trading, wealth management, venture capital, corporate finance, bond trading, leasing and investment in properties.

G Ramanan holds a Chartered CFA, plus an MBA from the University of Chicago - Booth School of Business.

He is an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (UK) and was selected as the CIMA Manager in 2007.

He is a corporate finance specialist with over 18 years of experience in the fields of insurance, banking, fund management, portfolio management, investment banking and corporate finance. At present, he serves as the Managing Director and CEO of Capital TRUST Financial Management and Capital TRUST Wealth Management.

Previously, he was the Chief Executive Officer of HNB Securities, the Head of Investment Banking of HNB.

Anil P Weerasinghe holds a degree in textile technology and carries a wealth of experience in business and banking.

He is a director of many successful companies, which includes Silicon Valley Software Solutions, J P Weerasinghe and Co and J P Weerasinghe Beverages. Formerly, He served as a Director of People's Bank, the Export Development Board and Lanka Cement.

He was also the Senior Deputy General Manager of Hyosung Corp Korea and has worked overseas at Etacol in Hong Kong.

Established 28 years ago, People's Merchant PLC is licensed by the Central Bank as a specialised leasing institution and by the Securities and Exchange Commission as a margin provider.

People's Merchant PLC is involved in leasing, hire purchase, real estate, pawning, trade finance, corporate finance and margin lending.

It is listed on the main board of the Colombo Stock Exchange. The major shareholder of the company is the People's Bank and the Capital TRUST Group is the next major shareholder. Today, People's Merchant PLC serves as a successful model of a dynamic public-private partnership.