Category: Banking and Finance

Starting Up June 30, 2014 (LBO) – Cargills Bank Plc, Sri Lanka’s newest commercial bank promoted by listed Cargills (Ceylon) Plc and CT Holdings opened for business Monday. The bank was issued a provisional license shortly before the Central Bank started a process to consolidate the banking sector. Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal said as […]

June 24, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s DFCC Bank is to sell 5.0 billion rupees in debt with the lender’s long term domestic rating confirmed at ‘AA(lka)’ with a stable outlook. Its international rating was also confirmed at ‘B+’ with a stable outlook. Fitch said it had given a ‘AA-(lka)(EXP)’ rating to a proposed 5.0 […]

June 24, 2014 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings said a ‘B+’ rating of Sri Lanka’s National Development Bank has been confirmed with a ‘stable’ outlook. Fitch also confirmed its foreign currency rating of ‘B+/Stable’ and withdrew a ‘B+(EXP)’ rating given to a proposed dollar bond sale which has since been abandoned. NDB is in merger discussions […]

June 24, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s National Bank Plc raised 75 million US dollars with backed by the International Finance Corporation adding to 125 million dollars raised in March, officials said. The proceeds will be used to finance up to 50,000 micro and small scale enterprises. The IFC itself gave 20 million US dollars […]

June 23, 2014 (LBO) – Upali Dharmadasa, managing director of Sri Lanka’s Nawaloka group has been appointed a director of Seylan Bank Plc.Dharmadasa has 32 years in corporate management, and is also chairman of Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation, the bank said in a statement. He is Managing Director of Nawaloka Piling, Nawaloka Timber Stores, Nawaloka […]

June 18, 2014 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings said an ‘A-(lka)’ national fund credit rating given to Ceylon Income Fund in Sri Lanka has been confirmed. The negative modifier in the fund’s ‘A-(lka)’ National Fund Credit Rating reflects Fitch’s view that the fund is moderately concentrated with a top-five issuer concentration of around 56% of the […]

June 6, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s DFCC says it has seen a sharp rise in credit demand with new approvals rising to 34.6 billion rupees from 23.4 billion rupees a year earlier, though draw downs are just picking up.DFCC Bank group which has assets of 177 billion rupees said amid a rise of all […]

June 02, 2014 (LBO) – A credit to guarantee to encourage banks to lend more against gold may help reduce the build-up of bad loans, but pawning loans are not risk-free as currently categorized in Sri Lanka, Fitch Ratings said.Non-performing loans in Sri Lanka’s banking system had risen to 5.6 percent of total loans by […]

May 28, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s banks are lending money to industry and services, but the total loan stock is not growing fast because of contracting gold loans, Deputy Central Bank Governor Ananda Silva said. The Central Bank gave a partial credit guarantee to banks to lend against gold, which is expected to boost […]

May 27, 2014 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank, said it had given a liquidity facility to The Finance Company, and has also changed the board under a new restructuring plan. Chairman M P Jayawardena and C Rosa had said they were not available re-appointment, the statement said. The Finance was a member of Sri […]

May 23, 2014 (LBO) – A credit guarantee scheme announced by Sri Lanka for banks lending against gold is positive for banks which have been hit by defaults, Moody’s, a rating agency said.Moody’s said underwriting standards fell in Sri Lanka after 2009 and banks were advancing as much as 80 to 95 percent of loan-to-values […]

May 22, 2014 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings which confirmed an ‘AA-(lka)’ rating of Hatton National Bank, Sri Lanka’s fourth largest commercial lender by assets said the it had boosted loans to larger firms.“HNB’s loan book is shifting towards larger, mid-sized corporates from its previous focus on retail and SME sectors, which, while adding to diversification, […]