Nihal Fonseka and Dr. Dushni Weerakoon resign from CBSL Monetary Board

June, 1, 2020

Two members of the Monetary Board of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL), Nihal Fonseka and Dr. Dushni Weerakoon, have submitted their resignation with effect from 31 May 2020.

This is to enable the reconstitution of the Monetary Board on the request of the Government. 

Former Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) Chairman and veteran banker Nihal Fonseka was appointed to the Monetary Board in July 2016, while Dr. Weerakoon who is the Executive Director of Institute of Policy Studies, was appointed as recently as July 2019.

The Central Bank has a unique legal structure where the Monetary Board is conferred with the corporate status and vested with all powers, functions and duties. As the governing body, the Monetary Board is responsible for making all policy decisions and for the management, operation and administration of the Central Bank.

The Monetary Board of the Central Bank consists of five (5) members.

The Governor 
The Secretary to the Ministry of Finance (ex-officio) 
Three (3) non – executive members 

The Governor is the Chairman of the Monetary Board and also functions as the Chief Executive Officer of the Central Bank. The Governor and the non-executive Board members are appointed by the President, on the recommendation of the Minister of Finance. The term of office of the Governor and the non–executive Board members is six (6) years.

The quorum for Monetary Board meetings is three (3) members. The concurrence of three (3) members is required for decisions of the Monetary Board to be valid. However, in cases where a unanimous decision is required, the concurrence of all five (5) members is necessary.

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