Trade Finance Association of Bankers holds 26th AGM

The Trade Finance Association of Bankers (TFAB) held its 26th Annual General Meeting (AGM) recently, at Lotus Room, Grand Oriental Hotel, Colombo. 
The TFAB provides an environment for trade practitioners representing all banks to facilitate the exchange of views relating to trade, promote consistency in trade finance practices and to create the required skill set in the industry, supporting trade. The membership comprises of 22 commercial and specialised banks operating in Sri Lanka. The office bearers of the association from various banks are elected every year at its AGM. 

The association is backed by an advisory committee comprising of four senior bankers,  who are former Presidents of the TFAB: A. Kathiravelupillai (Inaugural President of the TFAB and former DGM International of Bank of Ceylon), Michael Peiris (former Head of Trade of Union Bank of Colombo PLC), Nilam Jumat (former AGM Trade Services of Hatton National Bank PLC) and Thushy David (former Director, Head Global Subsidiary Coverage, Head of Trade and Cash Management Sales of Deutsche Bank), all having extensive experience in the international banking business. 

Bank of Ceylon Deputy General Manager Rochelle Fernando was unanimously elected as President of the association for the year 2023/2024. Fernando’s installation was significant as she was the first female to be elected as President of the TFAB. She is a professional banker, with over 25 years of experience at Bank of Ceylon, as she has worked in retail banking, corporate banking, offshore banking and trade finance, with predominant exposure in both export and import segments.

She is a graduate of the University of Colombo, with a Degree in Business Administration, specialising in financial management, an Associate Member of the Institute of Bankers of Sri Lanka and has also successfully completed the Management Development Programme for Key Management Personnel, conducted by the Postgraduate Institute of Management (PIM), University of Sri Jayewardenepura.
She is currently engaged in the implementation of New Trade Finance Software Solution as Programme Manager, Bank of Ceylon. The implementation covers Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Seychelles and Chennai. The system is already live in Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

Apart from her official career, she has rendered her service and expertise as a Resource Person for the Certificate and Advance Certificate Courses on International Trade, conducted by the Export Development Board from 2018 to date. She was also Senior Vice President of the TFAB for the year 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 and she is a life member of the Association of Professional Bankers. 

The following members were elected as office bearers of the TFAB for the year 2023/2024, during the AGM:
President – Bank of Ceylon Deputy General Manager Rochelle Fernando 
Senior Vice President – Hatton National Bank PLC Senior Manager Operations Central Trade Processing Shyam De Silva 
Vice President – DFCC Bank PLC Assistant Vice President Correspondent Banking and Remittances K.R. Naguleswaran 

Secretary-General – Pan Asia Banking Corporation PLC Senior Manager Trade Services Indika Liyanage 
Treasurer – Union Bank of Colombo PLC Senior Manager Trade Operations Kanchana De Silva 
Assistant Secretary – Nations Trust Bank PLC Manager Imports Kasun Muthukuda 
Assistant Treasurer – Sampath Bank PLC Senior Executive Trade Services Tharinda Amarasinghe 
Council Members: Niranjan Dabare – Deutsche Bank AG, Shaariz Zabith – Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, K.K. Susantha – Bank of Ceylon, Susantha Weerasinghe – People’s Bank, Dilan Wijegoonawardena – Seylan Bank PLC, Shehani Peter – Standard Chartered Bank, Harsha Silva – Citibank N.A., Mahesha Hassan – Public Bank, Kumari Bastiansz – Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC, Lakshana Fernando – Amana Bank PLC, Shanaka Weimen – Cargills Bank Limited, Melani Navaratne – National Development Bank PLC and Ramesh Amarasinghe – State Bank of India
Immediate Past President: Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC Chief Manager Exports Lawrian Somanader