Manjula new Deputy Chairperson at First Capital; Dilshan made MD/CEO

Deputy Chairperson Manjula Mathews

First Capital MD and CEO Dilshan Wirasekara

First Capital Holdings PLC, a member of the Janashakthi Group, yesterday announced that Manjula Mathews has been appointed as the Deputy Chairperson to its Board and Dilshan Wirasekara the current Director/CEO has been promoted to Managing Director/CEO.

Previously the Managing Director post was held by Dinesh Schaffter who passed away recently.

Mathews, a Fellow Member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (UK) and an Alumnus of the University of Cambridge (UK), counts over three decades of experience in finance, marketing, and general management both in Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom. She formerly served as First Capital’s Managing Director (2007-2014) and subsequently assumed duties as the Group’s Executive Chairperson (2014 – 2017).

She is currently a Director of Janashakthi Ltd., the parent company of the listed entities First Capital Holdings PLC, Janashakthi Insurance PLC, Orient Finance PLC, and others.

Earlier this year Manjula was appointed to the Board of Habitat for Humanity International and is currently Board Chair of Habitat for Humanity, Sri Lanka. She also serves as a Custodian of the Alzheimer’s Association of Sri Lanka.

Dilshan Wirasekara who has been with First Capital since 2013 is an experienced investment banker with a career spanning over 27 years, comprising diversified expertise in financial services including banking, treasury and investment management, capital market strategy and corporate finance advisory services.

He is an Alumnus of INSEAD, having successfully completed his Executive Professional Education at INSEAD Business School in Fontainebleau, France, and an Alumnus of AOTS, Tokyo, Japan. Dilshan assumed duties as the Chairman of the Colombo Stock Exchange in June 2022.

The appointments follow the untimely passing of Dinesh Schaffter who served as First Capital’s Managing Director since 2014.  

Strengthened by these changes to its Board of Directors, First Capital looks ahead with the vision of improving lives of all Sri Lankans through financial solutions and a mission of leading the way in innovative solutions to manage risk and create wealth. The company will continue building scale and relevance through an evolving digital platform with enhanced digital capabilities, enabling the business to transform client experiences and drive operational efficiency.

With the latest changes, the Board of Directors of First Capital Holdings PLC comprises Chairman Nishan Fernando, Deputy Chairperson Manjula Mathews, Managing Director/CEO Dilshan Wirasekara, Ramesh Schaffter, Minette Perera, Chandana de Silva and Dr. Nishan de Mel.