Category: Banking and Finance

May 31, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Commercial Leasing Company will raise 700 million rupees through a senior unsecured debenture which has been rated ‘A-(lka)’ with a ‘stable’ outlook, Fitch Ratings Lanka said. The balance was working capital loans secured by vehicle mortgages (9 percent of advances) and debt factoring (15 percent). Fitch said loan […]

May 28, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s People’s Leasing Company, a unit of state-run People’s Bank is planning to raise 500 million rupees from a 4-year debenture which has been rated ‘A-(lka)’ Fitch Ratings Lanka said. “The proceeds from the issue will be utilised to fund the growth of PLC’s lease, hire purchase, and loan […]

May 28, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Deutsche Bank unit’s March 2010 quarter profits were flat at 235.2 million rupees on lower net interest income balanced by higher exchange income, published accounts showed. Deutsche Bank’s Sri Lanka unit’s gross assets grew 13 percent to 27 billion rupees. Deutsche Bank’s March quarter interest income fell 21 […]

May 25, 2010 (LBO) – Six new bank branches are to be opened next month in Sri Lanka’s northern province which is recovering from the effects of war, the Central Bank said. “Six new bank branches will be opened in the Northern Province on June 07 to facilitate economic activities in the area,” it said […]

May 24, 2010 (LBO) – Loans to private borrowers from Sri Lanka’s commercial banks grew 23 billion rupees in March, the biggest monthly gain since credit started to grow last September, official data shows. Central bank credit to government, which surged 30 billion in February, fell back to 100 billion rupees in March. Sri Lanka’s […]

May 24, 2010 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka has upgraded the ratings of two regional development banks (RDBs) and confirmed those of four others as their financial health improved or remained stable, it said in a statement. The rating on Kandurata Development Bank (KDB) was upgraded to ‘BBB+(lka)’ from ‘BBB(lka)’; and outlook revised to stable, […]

May 21, 2010 (LBO) – Inward remittances handled by Sri Lanka’s Bank of Ceylon (BOC) rose 22.7 percent in April 2010 despite other private commercial banks eating into its market share, a senior official said. “We see that our inward remittances are growing because people are sending hard currencies for savings and investments,” Gamini Wickramasinghe, […]

May 20, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s HDFC Bank’s profits for the March 2010 quarter soared to 224 million rupees turning around from a loss of 52 million a year earlier, as the firm recovered defaulted loans backed by pension fund balances. HDFC provided 40 million rupees for loan losses in the quarter up from […]

May 18, 2010 (LBO) – Ram Ratings Lanka said it had confirmed the ‘BB’- long term rating and NP short term rating of Sri Lanka’s Multi Finance Company Limited (MFL) and withdrawn it at the firm’s request. “On a related note, MFL’s performance has remained weak, burdened by hefty overheads.” Ram said while a one-off […]

May 18, 2010 (LBO) – Central Finance Company Limited (CFCL) group March quarter profits dipped 11 percent to 298.2 million rupees due to a steep jump in tax costs from a year ago, a stock exchange filing said. For the full year profits had dipped 7.1 percent to 1.0 billion rupees, its accounts showed. In […]

May 17, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Bank of Ceylon March quarter profits fell 13.2 percent to 664.7 million rupees from a year ago on lower foreign exchange income, while interest margins widened from lower interest expenses, its accounts showed. In the March quarter the group made a general provision of 334.4 million rupees, up […]

May 16, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Commercial Bank of Ceylon said group profits grew 24 percent in the March 2010 quarter to 1,107 million rupees from a year earlier as interest margins improved and loan loss provisions fell. Amid low loan growth the group’s government securities held-to-maturity portfolio rose to 106 billion rupees from […]