Category: Banking and Finance

Oct 06, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s The Finance Company is to issue 100 million non-voting shares at 20 rupees each to deposit holders to convert into equity part of their deposits which were blocked after the firm suffered a run, a statement said. The shares will be issued to fixed deposit holders to convert […]

Oct 04, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lankans investing in unregulated investment schemes face higher risks and should not expect government bailouts if their investments go sour, the banking regulator has warned. Central bank governor Nivard Cabraal said the regulator has repeatedly warned the public of the risk of investing money in unregulated institutions and publicised […]

Oct 01, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Citizens Development and Business Finance, a firm 35 percent owned by Ceylinco Insurance is listing itself to comply with a central bank direction and pave the way for raising capital in the future, officials said. CDB is listing on the ‘diri savi’ board of the Colombo Stock Exchange […]

Oct 01, 2010 (LBO) – The World Bank is giving a 57. 4 million US dollar to Sri Lanka to finance small and medium sized business affected by a global downturn and is also giving a partial credit guarantee to banks using the credit line to lend. “The banks can independently access the line of […]

Sept 30, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) branch has been rated at ‘AAA’ by RAM Ratings Lanka, with the assessment driven mainly by the credit profile of the parent Standard Chartered Bank Plc, the rating agency said. It has also been given a ‘P1’ short term rating on RAM’s rating scale. […]

Sept 30, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank has decided to reduce the general provision on performing loans of banks to 0.5 percent by December 31, 2011 from the current one percent, governor Nivard Cabraal said. “We believe our economy does not now need provisioning as high as one percent and it will be […]

Sept 30, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Central Bank said it will introduce a deposit insurance scheme from October 1 that will help protect small depositors and reduce government liability if a financial institution collapses. Central Bank Governor Nivard Cabraal said that under the scheme, depositors will be compensated up to a maximum of 200,000 […]

Sept 29, 2010 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka has confirmed DFCC Bank’s (DFCC) National Long-term rating at ‘AA(lka)’ with a stable outlook, a statement said. The agency has also affirmed DFCC’s senior debentures at ‘AA(lka)’ and subordinated debentures at ‘AA-(lka)’. “DFCC’s ratings are driven by its strong capitalisation supported by ongoing high profitability,” the rating […]

Sept 29, 2010 (LBO) – The Finance Company, a Sri Lankan finance company recovering after a run, is to raise 1. 6 billion rupees in fresh capital by attracting new investors and convert deposits into shares, a statement said. The Finance Company is recovering and had reduced losses to 431 million rupees in the June […]

Sept 27, 2010 (LBO) – RAM Ratings Lanka has confirmed the long term rating of ˜A’ for Lankaputhra Development Bank (LDB) but lowered its outlook to negative from stable on a rise in bad loans, a statement said. The long- and short-term financial institution ratings, confirmed at A and P1, are largely upheld by the […]

Sept 23, 2010 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s SMB Leasing has struck a deal with Lanka Ashok Leyland, the local unit of the Indian vehicle manufacturer, to distribute its vehicles in the former north-east war zone, a statement said. Under the agreement SMB Leasing is to be the sole agent for Lanka Ashok Leyland in Sri […]

Sept 23, 2010 (LBO) – Fitch Ratings Lanka said it has raised the outlook on Sri Lanka’s Sampath Bank (SB) ˜AA−(lka)’ national longterm rating to positive from stable, indicating a potential for an upgrade in the next 1224 months. “This is based on structural improvements that have occurred within the bank since early 2009, across […]