1 bn to its Tier II capital ratio through a debt instrument or preference shares, to improve its total capital ratio to 11 percent from current 9.53 percent.
rnldblquote We have been through hard times, but never like this before dblquote , HNB quote s Managing Director Rienzie Wijetilleke said summing up last year quote s performance.
rnrnWijetilleke attributed the poor performance to a drop in the interest margin, which was caused by the high interest regime that prevailed early last year.
rnrnldblquote There was a major shift in our low cost deposit base towards high interest brackets during the year. This increased our interest expenditure significantly during the year
dblquote , Wijetillake said.
rnrnInterest expenditure rose 36 percent or Rs. 1.9 bn to Rs. 7.2 bn, which surpassed the 19 percent growth in turnover recorded during the year to post a Rs.
525 mn drop in net interest income.
rnrnldblquote Just like most banks in Sri Lanka, we carry a maturity