Arjuna Mahendran

Former Governor (2015-2016)

Mr. Lakshman Arjuna Mahendran was the thirteenth Governor, assuming duties in  January 2015 and vacating his position in  June 2016.

Mr. Mahendran holds a BA (Hons.) Degree in Economics (1982) and MA Degree (1987) from Balliol College of Oxford University U.K. He joined the Central Bank as a staff officer in 1983 and first served in the Data Processing Department. He pursued his postgraduate studies in 1985 and served in the Economic Research Department upon his return. 

He was released from Central Bank service to work with several institutions. After resigning from the Central Bank in 1995, Mr. Mahendran held various senior positions such as Head of Economic Research for ASEAN and South Asia at SG Securities, Chairman / Director General for the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka where he was the runner-up in Euromoney Strategic Direct Investors’ “CEO Lifetime Achievement Award” in 2003 and Chief Economist – Strategist at Credit Suisse Private Bank. He also worked with Emirates NBD and  HSBC Private Bank, functioning as Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer. 

Mr. Mahendran has also been a regular commentator on CNBC, CNN, and BBC TV channels in addition to sharing his market insights with Bloomberg, The Financial Times, Asian Wall Street Journal and Forbes magazine.