Graft Block

July 6, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lankan civil society has developed an action plan to counter corruption with help from USAID’s Anti-Corruption Program (ACP), the United States embassy in Colombo said. The embassy says the draft plan identifies priority actions to be taken by various constituencies including government, the private sector, civil society, media, and […]

Light Touch

July 01, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s rule book and compliance based financial regulatory system needs to be changed to one of principle based risk focused system, a top central banker has said. A rule-based intrusive supervision system doesn’t work always, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Ranee Jayamaha, told a forum […]

Broad Sweep

June 27, 2007 (AFP) – About 300 people were detained in Sri Lanka’s capital Wednesday in connection with a foiled bomb attack by suspected Tamil rebels on an oil storage depot, police said.Heavily armed police raided the area in the capital where a 20-kilogram (44-pound) bomb was found on Tuesday inside the fuel tank of […]

Different Jump

June 26, 2007 (AFP) – A Sri Lankan athletics coach participating in an international training programme has disappeared in Italy, a senior official said Tuesday in Colombo.Gayan Malika, a triple jump coach, went missing after flying to Italy for an athletics meet as part of a training programme sponsored by the International Olympic Council, the […]

Split Path

June 20, 2007 (LBO) – Two Colombo-listed firms have opted to split their shares after a new law forced the companies to withdraw an earlier decision to give what was called a ‘bonus share’ to shareholders. One firm, Seylan Merchant, also abandoned a dividend payment after a solvency test specified in the new company law. […]

Blocked Call

June 14, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s highest court halted the sale of shares of the country’s largest fixed access operator to a Malaysian firm Thursday, after a lawmaker filed suit against the deal. Sri Lanka Telecom slid 1.50 to close at 37.00 on Thursday. Japan’s NTT which holds a 35.2 percent stake in Sri […]

Wrong List

WASHINGTON, June 12, 2007 (AFP) – US Middle East allies Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar, as well as key trading partner Malaysia were added Tuesday to a Washington blacklist of countries trafficking in people.Algeria and Guinea were the other additions to the blacklist of the US State Department’s annual “Trafficking in Persons Report,” which analyzed […]

Go Back

June 11, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka has deported over 400 foreign nationals so far this year for overstaying their visas and working in the island illegally, the island’s immigration chief said Monday. Most of the deportees were of South Asian origin and had entered Sri Lanka on tourist visas, Controller of Immigration and Emigration, […]

Clear Rules

June 08, 2007 (LBO) – A top World Bank official Thursday warned of the dangers of governments accepting unsolicited proposals in public-private partnership projects, saying it could lead to controversy and corruption allegations. Governments accepting unsolicited proposals in public-private partnership (PPP) projects should introduce some form of competitive bidding, World Bank Country Director Naoko Ishii […]

Inflated Fines

June 07, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s capital markets watchdog is planning to impose stiffer penalties as part of an overall revamp of key statutes governing the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), a top official said. The authorities have recently introduced a new company law and new corporate governance rules are being made mandatory for listed […]

Trend Setter

June 05, 2007 (LBO) – Richard Pieris, a Sri Lanka listed firm, has declared a cash dividend and a stock distribution under provisions of a new company law that came into effect last month.A bonus also increased the shares in issue without affecting the assets of the company, which has the same effect as a […]

High Standards

June 04, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s new company law should encourage good governance and help deter boardroom abuses that have given the corporate sector a bad name, experts said. This act is easy to understand and reader friendly so you can read and understand your responsibilities, Cabraal said. The new companies act should only […]

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