Chaaminda Kumarasiri wins CA Business Leader of the Year Award 2026

Top professional, Chaaminda Kumarasiri has won the prestigious CA Business Leader of the Year Award 2026 at the recently held CA Sri Lanka National Conference, recognising his transformational leadership, professional achievements and contribution to entrepreneurship and society.

Presented by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka—CA Sri Lanka, the country’s national accounting body—the award follows a rigorous evaluation of many outstanding candidates. Its criteria encompass leadership and vision, experience in the industry, contribution to the organisation, contribution to the industry and community, achievements and contributions and contribution to the profession.

Kumarasiri’s journey began in an ordinary family in a rural village in the Badulla District. Educated at Walhaputhenna Ananda Central College, he ranked first in the district and fourth island-wide in the Commerce stream at the G.C.E. Advanced Level examination. He graduated with First-Class Honours in Accountancy from the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, earning the Gold Medal as his degree program’s most outstanding student, and subsequently received two Gold Medals for his MBA in Finance at the University of Colombo. He is a Fellow of CA Sri Lanka, ACCA-UK, CMA Sri Lanka and AAT Sri Lanka.

His career spans more than 25 years across audit, banking, healthcare, consulting and governance, with senior leadership roles at Ernst & Young in Sri Lanka and New York, HSBC, Phoenix Ogilvy, Lanka Hospitals and Bank of Ceylon.

In 2016, he stepped away from a lucrative and promising corporate career to establish his consulting practice. He believed supporting SMEs and nurturing entrepreneurship offered the most meaningful way to repay the country that had provided him with a free education. That conviction turned personal gratitude into a commitment to helping others build businesses, create livelihoods and expand opportunities.

Through management consulting, corporate training that has empowered more than 1.5 million individuals locally and internationally, and board and committee responsibilities in several listed companies, he has developed mastery in organsational strategy, governance and people development.

A defining test came in 2025. While serving as an Independent Non-Executive Director, Kumarasiri was unanimously appointed Group Managing Director by the Board of The Lanka Hospitals Corporation PLC amid significant leadership and operational turbulence. Several critical senior management positions were simultaneously vacant.

He assumed responsibility for a round-the-clock large healthcare organisation employing more than 2,000 people, with 88 laboratories and over 1,000 collection centres. Its overlapping responsibilities as a listed company, State-Owned Enterprise and highly regulated healthcare institution demanded rigorous governance, regulatory compliance and accountability alongside patient safety and operational continuity.

Stabilsing such an institution would itself have been a substantial achievement. Kumarasiri accomplished it within approximately one month, then led Lanka Hospitals to the highest revenue and operating profit in its history. This exceptional progression from turbulence to record performance came while maintaining uninterrupted operations, enhancing service quality and upholding robust governance and compliance. The hospital also reached significant operational milestones, including recording the highest number of cardiothoracic surgeries in Sri Lanka’s private healthcare sector.

Under his leadership, Lanka Hospitals received LMD’s Healthcare Equipment and Services Sector Award and “Most Awarded Healthcare Company in Sri Lanka” recognition, Gold at the TAGS Awards, joint winner honours at the National Business Excellence Awards, and Silver at the ARC Awards.

He also conceptualised the organisation’s first comprehensive five-year strategic plan through the HEARTS framework. His leadership supported the introduction of LankaLifeLine, a comprehensive private-sector trauma response service; LankaCare, a dedicated home healthcare service; and the Lanka Platinum Circle. Sustainability governance was strengthened through several initiatives including the adoption of SLFRS S1 and S2 Sustainability Disclosure Standards.

His service to the profession includes two terms on CA Sri Lanka’s Governing Council, chairing key committees and taskforces, and five years representing South Asia on the International Federation of Accountants’ (IFAC) International Panel on Accountancy Education. He also served as Chairman of the ACCA Member Network Panel in Sri Lanka and continues contributing as a mentor, lecturer, speaker and author.

His contributions have been recognised through honours including the ACCA National Advocate of the Year Award 2022 and the CMA Sri Lanka Business Excellence Award 2026.

A prominent contributor to Sri Lanka’s entrepreneurship development ecosystem, Kumarasiri is Founder and President of the Asia Pacific Institute of Money and Entrepreneurship Development. He champions entrepreneurship, SME development and financial literacy, including assistance during the COVID-19 crisis. His contributions extend to national taskforces and committees, including CA Sri Lanka SME Task Force and CMA Sri Lanka SME Development Committee.

Through corporate, professional, academic and national forums; television, radio and digital platforms; and thought leadership articles in national newspapers, leading magazines and journals, he shares his hard-earned knowledge and insights with wider audiences.

The award recognises a career in which achievement carries a wider purpose. Kumarasiri’s journey shows aspiring professionals how education, determination and service can transform humble beginnings into leadership that creates lasting opportunities for others.