Category: Banking and Finance

Dec 07, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s private sector credit is slowing but lenders should tighten standards and improve risk management as interest rates continue to rise, the Central Bank has warned. In a report on the island’s financial sector stability, the regulator said private sector credit has grown around 24-26 percent in the first […]

Dec 07, 2007 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Sri Lanka has lifted Union Bank of Colombo’s outlook on its BB + (lka) rating to ‘positive’ from ‘stable’ citing an asset quality improvement. “The recent equity injections and the benefits expected, specifically to profitability and scalability of the bank’s business is reflected in the revision of the […]

Dec 06, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s financial and accounting regulators are developing more reliable ways of valuing trees in forestry firms, the Sri Lanka Accounting Auditing Standards Monitoring Board (SLAASMB) said. “When finalized, the guidelines will provide a reliable basis to value biological assets,” the SLAASMB said. “It will provide preparers, auditors and regulators […]

Dec 05, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Sampath Bank is looking to lend more money in the Maldives with 45 million dollars raised through a syndicated loan arranged by HSBC Bank, officials said. . “We already have a portfolio of about two million dollars in the Maldives,” Samapath Bank chief Anil Amarasuriya said. The bank […]

Dec 03, 2007 (LBO) – Central Finance, one of the biggest Sri Lankan finance companies, said September quarter net profit rose seven percent to 283 million rupees from a year ago. Total income was up 24 percent to 1.6 billion rupees, according to interim results sent to the Colombo Stock Exchange. Net interest income of […]

Dec 03, 2007 (LBO) – Lanka Orix Leasing Company (LOLC) said September quarter net profit fell 48 percent to 86 million rupees from a year ago with a sharp increase in provisioning for bad loans. It also said the company acquired 2,600,000 shares (29.18 percent) of Touchwood Investments Limited and 4,982,953 shares (20 percent) of […]

Nov 28, 2007 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka has assigned a ‘B+(lka)’ National Long-term rating to Sri Lanka’s Vallibel Finance Ltd. (VFL) with a stable outlook. VFL, a small registered finance company with a single office in Colombo, has managed to improve growth and shift to more profitable businesses since it was acquired by Dhammika […]

Nov 24, 2007 (LBO) – After tax profits of Habib Bank in Sri Lanka almost doubled to 118 million rupees for the nine months ended September 2007, published company statements showed. The bank, a branch of the largest bank in Pakistan, posted an income of 285 million rupees for the three quarters ended September, up […]

Nov 23, 2007 (LBO) – People’s Merchant Bank (PMB) net profit for the September quarter fell 13 percent year-on-year to five million rupees, according to interim results sent to the Colombo bourse. Total income increased 26 percent to 90 million rupees in the same period. But net interest income was up only 10 percent to […]

Nov 22, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s PABC Bank said net profit for the September quarter was down five percent year-on-year to 40 million rupees. Interest income rose to 521 million rupees from 342 million rupees in the same period the year before, according to interim result given to the Colombo bourse. Net interest income […]

Nov 22, 2007 (LBO) – The Sri Lanka branch of HSBC has taken a record 1.4 billion rupee hit from bad loans which saw net profits plummeting 56 percent in the first nine months of the year, the bank’s interim accounts showed. HSBC made a specific provision of 1,414 million rupees, up from 120 million […]

Nov 20, 2007 (LBO) – Senkadagala Finance (SF) has seen slower lending and faster growth in higher purchase loans, Fitch Ratings Lanka said, confirming the finance company’s ‘BBB+(lka) investment grade rating. . “The rating reflects SF’s strong profitability and comfortable capitalisation as well as its medium sized asset base and limited revenue and funding diversity,” […]