Category: Banking and Finance

A consortium of state institutions led by the Bank of Ceylon (BoC) has expressed interest in taking over undercapitalised Peoples Bank. The National Savings Bank (NSB) and the Employees Trust Fund (ETF) together with BoC have expressed interest in Peoples Bank according to highly placed sources.rn rnConglomerate John Keells Holdings is also said to be […]

The two state pension funds, the EPF and the ETF are going to be merged next year in a bid to draw on synergies between the two.A consultant is expected to be appointed by the end of this month to look at how best to merge the funds that together will manage over Rs.320 bn.rn […]

MERC Bank is hoping to expand its loan book by leveraging on DFCC Banks balance sheet.DFCC Bank, which acquired a 90 percent slice in the trouble MERC Bank for Rs.600 mn, says they can recoup their investment within the next 18 months.rn rnldblquote We are looking at MERC increasing its loan book by about three […]

NDB Banks post tax profits surged 46 percent for the first six months of 2003 and said it was on target to merge with National Development Bank (NDB) by the end of this year.rnrnrnrnrnrnFinancial Highlights for the six months ending June 30rnrnrnrnrn The long-awaited mergerrnwith its parent NDB is now awaiting a firm nod from […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

The Central Bank has commissioned audit consultants E&Y to do a valuation on six rural development banks up for privatisation.E&Ys mandate includes coming up with a restructuring model, a three-year financial forecast, recommending future changes for its management and set the tone to prepare an information memorandum for private management.rn rnAround 47 percent stake in […]

Members of the Employees Provident Fund are using the State Mortgage Investment Bank as a conduit for premature withdrawal of their EPF balances.SMIB has the statutory authority to give housing loans against member balances of the EPF and collect defaulted instalments from the EPF.rn rnNearly 17,925 or a massive 32.65% SMIB borrowers had defaulted by […]