Category: Banking and Finance

May 24, 2008 (LBO) – Fitch Sri Lanka has confirmed a ‘BBB-(lka)’ rating of Ceylease Financial Services (CFSL), a unit of state-run Bank of Ceylon, with a ‘stable’ outlook but said interest costs and bad loans were rising. Fitch says the comparatively high net NPL to equity ratios are partly due to the company’s relatively […]

May 23, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s People’s Leasing is getting 10 million US dollars from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) which it can start lending within the next 30 days, a top official said. People’s Leasing inked a deal Friday with the ADB to lend to the small and medium enterprises in the island. […]

May 23, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Commercial Bank says it will pay 12 percent interest a year on a savings account, if it is opened with a minimum balance of 50,000 rupees. Other than maintaining a minimum balance of 50,000 rupees, the account, branded ‘Commercial Bank Super Saver’ has no restrictions on the number […]

May 17, 2008 (LBO) – Fitch Sri Lanka has placed the ‘A-(lka)’ rated Commercial Leasing Company on credit watch after Lanka Orix Leasing Company (LOLC) gained 67 percent control of the firm. CLC was started in 1988 by Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC, Chemanex Limited, and Singer (Sri Lanka) Limited (‘A+(lka)’/Negative). It has a network […]

May 16, 2008 (LBO) – A mortgage backed security issued by Sri Lanka’s HDFC Bank retained its enhanced credit, three notches higher than the issuer, as Fitch Ratings Lanka confirmed an ‘AA-(lka)’ rating on the securities. However, loans overdue for 6-months increased marginally to 2.4 percent from 2.0 percent and defaulted loans over 12 months […]

May 15, 2008 (LBO) – Bartleet Finance, part of Sri Lanka’s Bartleet group, is considering setting up a branch in northern Jaffna and expanding in rural areas where officials say there is much potential. Managing director Susantha Fernando said the firm faced difficulties this year because of soaring interest rates but believes rates have now […]

May 15, 2008 (LBO) – RAM Ratings has confirmed Merchant Bank of Sri Lanka’s (MBSL) long-term local rating of AA- with a stable outlook, saying the rating is supported by state-run Bank of Ceylon, its parent. RAM also confirmed MBSL’s short term rating of P1 and the AA rating assigned to unlisted debentures of 300 […]

May 14, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state-run Bank of Ceylon has seen margins squeezed in 2007 amidst directed lending and rising funding costs, but has pushed up fee income and cut bad loans in the period. In 2007 group revenue rose 40 percent to 52.3 billion rupees while interest income rose 56 percent to […]

May 07, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Nations Trust Bank (NTB) group profits grew 41 percent to 144.2 million rupees in the March quarter with total revenue growing by half, interim results filed with the stock exchange showed. Group revenue was up 50 percent to 2,991 million rupees and interest expense grew 58 percent to […]

May 06, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Commercial Bank’s group profits grew 11.4 percent to 1,024 million rupees in the March quarter with revenue growing 37.7 percent, accounts filed with the stock exchange showed. Group revenue was up 37.7 percent to 10.2 billion rupees and interest expense grew 49.7 percent to 5.89 billion while net […]

April 30, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s inflation hit an all-time high of 25.0 percent in the 12-months to April 2008 on a new index to measure consumer prices in Colombo, while an older index showed an increase of 29.9 percent, the government’s statistics office said. . The new Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI-N) grew […]

April 28, 2008 (LBO) – Sri Lankan finance companies should reduce maturity mis-matches between their assets and liabilities an official said. When interest rates go up the value of fixed rate assets come down, said Naomal Goonewardena, partner, Nithya Partners. He was speaking on the legal responsibilities of directors of finance firms at a seminar […]