Category: Banking and Finance
Time for home-grown solutions is over; Seek international support immediately: Harsha
The country is in complete disarray today. Fuel is rationed at pumps, daily power cuts across the island, shortage of dollars to import essentials including medicine, food is to be rationed next, a current Parliamentarian and former Minister said. “Collapse is imminent if we continue to go this way, it is almost similar to a […]
HNB Group profit after tax increased to Rs.20Bn, up 47-pct YoY
Hatton National Bank PLC (HNB) solidified its position as one of the most sustainable and strongest banks recording a well-rounded performance in 2021. Group Profit After Tax (PAT) increased to Rs 20 Bn, representing a growth of 47% YoY while Bank PAT improved to Rs 17.3 Bn as economic activity picked up during the year. […]
Re-exportation of final 45 containers of waste material
Under the BASEL Convention, it is a direct violation to import waste between two countries, and as a result, under the initiative of the Central Environmental Authority and the Sri Lanka Customs, action has been taken to re-export the remaining 45 containers containing waste material to the UK today, the 21st of February 2022. The […]
Commercial Credit joins hands with Western Union
Commercial Credit and Finance PLC, one of Sri Lanka’s premier non-bank financial institutions, recently joined hands with MMBL Money Master (brand name of MMBL Money Transfer (Pvt) Ltd), a joint venture between Mercantile Merchant Bank and Aitken Spence PLC, the largest representative in Sri Lanka for Western Union money transfers. This timely partnership will enable […]
‘ Asset Quality Under Pressure as Relief Measures End: Fitch Ratings
Sri Lankan banks are likely to face continued asset-quality pressure in 2022 as rising macroeconomic stresses stemming from the sovereign credit profile pose a threat to borrowers’ repayment capacity, alongside the conclusion of most relief measures in 2021, says Fitch Ratings. Fitch-rated banks’ stage 3 (impaired) loans ratio has remained broadly unchanged since 2019 (9M21: […]
Teejay Lanka 9-month revenue up 64-pct to Rs 36.1Bn
Improved demand from the region and enhanced capacity have helped Teejay Lanka PLC to post Group revenue of Rs 36.1 billion for the nine months ending 31st December 2021 and record strong topline growth of 64% over the corresponding period of the previous year. A period described by Chairman Mr Bill Lam as less disrupted […]
”; Outlook negative
Fitch Ratings has downgraded Singer Finance (Lanka) PLC’s (SFL) National Long-Term Rating to ‘A(lka)’ from ‘A+(lka)’. The Outlook is Negative. The agency has also downgraded SFL’s outstanding senior unsecured debt to ‘A(lka)’ from ‘A+(lka)’, and its outstanding subordinated unsecured debentures to ‘BBB+(lka)’ from ‘A-(lka)’. KEY RATING DRIVERS NATIONAL RATING The downgrade on SFL’s rating is […]
Consolidation of Non-Bank Financial Institutions on track; Rs 12.6bn fresh capital introduced: CBSL
The Non-Bank Financial Institutions sector has witnessed a significant improvement in compliance with regulatory capital requirements and has recorded the lowest non-compliance levels during recent times, Sri Lanka’s Central Bank said. According to the Central Bank, the following 9 companies have already introduced fresh capital of Rs 12.56 billion to meet regulatory capital requirements. Sarvodaya […]
Opinion: Repay foreign debt or finance essential imports
By Chair of our Academic Programme and former Economic Adviser at the World Bank, Dr. Sarath Rajapatirana, and our Senior Research Fellow, and former Director of CBSL, Dr. Roshan Perera The available foreign reserves of the country can be used to either repay foreign creditors or to finance imports of essential goods and services required […]
ComBank’s automated machine network dispensed Rs 91.8Bn in Dec & Rs 848.4Bn in 2021
The automated cash dispensing network of the Commercial Bank of Ceylon which comprises of ATMs and Cash Recycler Machines (CRMs) dispensed a mammoth Rs 91.872 billion in December, as Sri Lankans celebrated the festive season and prepared for 2022. On 31st December, the network dispensed Rs 4.234 billion, a single-day figure surpassed only by the […]
Opinion: Government heavy-handedness to blame for our currency woes
By Vinuja Singharachchige: Much is being said nowadays about the pressures the Sri Lankan Rupee is facing, but it is important that we understand the mechanics and greater economic context. Currency crises have been common in our modern history with countries facing sudden devaluations to the point where we can predict the patterns. There was […]
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written by Migara Rodrigo Sri Lanka has a whopping 527 state-owned enterprises[1] (SOEs). The 55 SOEs classified as “strategically important” alone employ 10% of the public sector workforce[2], or about 1.9% of all workers. Such a large number of SOEs are not the norm globally[3]; many other countries (such as India) have been reducing their […]