Safe Bet

Nations Trust Bank has secured a SL A- national rating from Fitch Ratings Lanka for its long-term unsecured senior debt.SL A- long-term rating denotes a low expectation of credit risk.The capacity for timely payment of financial commitments is considered strong. rn rnThis capacity may, nevertheless, be more vulnerable to changes in circumstances or in economic […]

Making It Work

rnrnrnrnrnrnNew Page 1rnrnrnrnrn Sources said Bank of Ceylon,rnNSB, Commercial Bank and John Keells Holdings are keen to invest.rn The government is currentlyrnlooking at disposing its entire stake in Peoples Bank as a single unit, asrnagainst the earlier decision of splitting it into three units.rn However, Peoples Banksrnheavy Non-Performing Loans (NPL) portfolio would be transferred into […]

Index Link

The treasury of Sri Lankas first development bank snapped up bulk of a two index linked commercial paper issues this week, betting that the stock market would not move up in the next three months.The two Rs. 50 mn issues by LOLC and Mercantile Leasing closed Tuesday, when the All Share Price Index (ASPI) of […]

Spurring Growth

A Sri Lankan contingent flying to China on August 08, will look to obtain technology transfers and investment partnerships for the local rubber and tea industries. The delegation lead by Primer Ranil Wickramasinghe will sign four key agreements to cover starting with one on closer economic co-operation, an agreement to avoid double taxation, and an […]

Revenue Options

The Accounting Watchdog plans to charge a cess from firms it audits accounts, beginning next year.rnrnrnrnrnrnNew Page 1rnrnrnrnrn Plansrnare also underway to direct auditors to ensure firms doing over Rs. 5 mn sales arnyear, file their accounts with the regulator.rn ThernSri Lanka Accounting & Auditing Standards Monitoring Board (SLAAMB) Act,rnsays the watchdog can run on […]

Skyward Mobility

SriLankan Airlines tied mobile usage to its frequent flyer rewards programme endash Skywards, tying up with local mobile operator Dialog GSM. The partnership will offer Skywards members reduced rentals and free services along with other special privileges in using the mobile network including frequent flyer miles calculated on the total spend.rn rnSriLankan officials say the […]

Trickling In

The first tranche of Japans commitment at the Tokyo donor conference rolled into the country today through a grant of Rs. 1.198 billion for a water supply project in the South.Considered a much needed project for the drought stricken south, the funds will give over 28,655 people access to pipe borne water, while enhancing the […]

Split Options

Telecom operators have provisionally consented to split transit operation revenue in a 40:60 basis to replace the present 20:80 ratio.However, the new ratio will not be implemented despite a majority of operators consenting to the revision.rn rnThe telecom watchdog will attempt to obtain unilateral approval from all players before implementing the new revenue sharing rate, […]

More Exploring

Central Bank withdrew its appeal in the Supreme Court, against the order given by the Court of Appeal on the Pramuka case on Monday.The Appeal court issued a writ of mandamus directing the Central Bank to explore options other than liquidation to resolve the Pramuka Savings & Development Banks problems.rn rnThe depositors lawyers complained to […]

Quick Drip

Cutting out the hassle in claiming medical bills, Eagle Insurance on Monday launched a cashless hospital bill payment system. The cashless payment system, a product of Medilink, India will pay for hospitalisation at the time of checkout rivalling the present system where patients pay cash and claim expenses from the insurer later.rn rnApollo, Asiri, Nawaloka […]

Sharpening Skills

The Asian Development Bank is helping Sri Lanka to reduce the mismatch between worker skills and labour market demands, through a US$ 600,000 technical assistance (TA) grant to prepare a human resources investment project.The grant is from the Japan Special Fund, financed by the Government of Japan.rn rnThe TA will study the technical education and […]

’85

Mobile service providers expressed concern last week over Mobitel announcement about its plans to launch a digital network.Other players fear that the company would use SLT infrastructure to get an undue advantage.Mobitel is fully owned by SLT.rn rnIndustry players say that anti competitive rules are key to make sure that all deals between Mobitel and […]

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