Lalith Kotelawala
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29 October 1938
Lalith Kotelawala | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jeewaka Lalith Bhupendra Kotelawala 29 October 1938 |
| Died | 21 October 2023 (aged 84) Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| Other names | Lalith Kotelawala |
| Alma mater | Royal College Colombo |
| Title | Deshamanya |
| Spouse | Sicille Kotelawala |
| Parent(s) | Justin Kotelawala, Millicent Kotelawala |
| Relatives | John Kotelawala Sam Peter Christopher Fernando |
Deshmanya Jeewaka Lalith Bhupendra Kotelawala (29 October 1938 – 21 October 2023) was a Sri Lankan businessman, who was the chairman of Ceylinco Consolidated and also was the founding chairman of Seylan Bank.[1] He was listed in the 2007 Sri Lanka Richest List.[2] He was remanded for the misappropriation of 26 billion rupees of investments from the failed Golden Key Credit Card Company .[3][4][5]
Lalith Kotelawala was born to Senator Justin Kotelawala, a Ceylonese politician and businessman, and Millicent Kotelawala nee de Silva, daughter of Sir Arthur Marcelles de Silva, a leading surgeon. He was educated at Royal College, Colombo and studied chartered accountancy in the UK.[6] He was the nephew of Sir John Kotelawala, the third prime minister of Ceylon.[7]
Career
Taking over Ceylinco Consolidated from his father in the 1960s, Kotelawala expanded the group into new fields including banking, non-banking finance, investment banking, housing and property development, travel and leisure, communication and information technology, education and healthcare and microfinance.[8] He also founded a peace initiative in Sri Lanka, three years after being wounded in a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam attack in 1996.[9][10]
