SL transit hub for Indians
Sri Lanka has become a transit hub for Indians visiting other destinations like West Asia or Singapore for instance, prior to which they need to be quarantined for 14 days. “Some countries accept quarantine in Sri Lanka as an entry requirement to their country, where direct arrival for the origin country is not permitted. This [...]
Former PM: Make Port City game changer, not gaming centre
The Colombo Port City, one of the most significant projects with tremendous potential has to go forward in the right direction as a game changer but not as a betting and gaming centre for money laundering, former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasised. In a phone-interview with the Business Times, Mr Wickremesinghe, four times Prime Minister [...]
SEC on a roll: Sanctions fund raising and shell company frameworks
It is indeed early Christmas for the capital market in the form of new products and frameworks giving a wide choice for investing, deviating from the same old in a bid to entice new investors. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is forging ahead with a host of initiatives as never seen before such as [...]
Iran, Sri Lanka ready to ink MOU
Iran and Sri Lanka have finalised the text of an MOU pertaining to the sale of Ceylon tea in exchange for deducting the debt on fuel imports purchased nearly eight years back. Official sources said that Sri Lanka has already purchased US$250 million worth of fuel about eight years back and this amount will be [...]
Fool proof liquor sticker re-emerges amidst industry protests
The government will go ahead with the fool proof sticker scheme for all imported and local liquor products from July this year amidst industry protests and mounting allegations against the sticker printing deal. The affixing of a sticker with barcodes now confined only for imported liquor bottles and cans will be made compulsory for all [...]
Workers unite!
The once-a-week conversations and shared gossip under the margosa tree were becoming more frequent now as the trio perhaps had many things to talk about vis-à-vis happenings at home during their Avurudu sojourn and the COVID-19 crisis which has seen a surge in cases. On this Thursday morning, the second time this week the trio [...]
Lazy crops and beyond
There are, what are called, ‘lazy crops’ in this country including many fruit and vegetable varieties, as many would testify. They are the crops that you can plant and forget, and then go for the harvest after a couple of months or years, depending on the type of the crop. In other words, you don’t [...]
Palm oil ban blamed on protectionism, BOP balancing act
Sri Lanka has come under a global purview in the wake of the country’s ban on importing and producing palm oil as a number of countries raised concerns over these actions by the government in a move to curb the use of the edible oil. Wayamba University Agriculture and Plantation Faculty, Plantation Management Department Chair [...]
Seylan Bank records Rs. 1bn PAT in 2021 Q1 despite COVID-19 challenges
Seylan Bank has made a steady start in 2021 by posting a Profit After Tax (PAT) of Rs.1 billion in Q1 2021 amidst macro-economic challenges brought in by the COVID-19 pandemic. Interest income recorded a decline due to the lower interest rates and moderate book growth but net interest margin showed a marginal increase over [...]
Jayantha S.B. Rangamuwa appointed chairman of Pan Asia bank
Jayantha S.B. Rangamuwa, a highly acclaimed banker, has been appointed as the new chairman of the Pan Asia Bank with effect from today May 2. Mr. Rangamuwa, deputy chairman since January 2018, is an experienced professional with expertise in management, finance, credit and marketing with over 30 years of senior management exposure having held key [...]
Union Bank reports steady growth with favourable 1Q results
Union Bank ended the first three months of 2021 with a strong performance, reflecting a steady growth momentum and fuelling favourable expectations. Union Bank’s overall revenue for the quarter was Rs.1,521 million and despite the tough operating environment the overall revenue grew by 1 per cent over the comparative quarter, it said in a media [...]
Forex regulations revised to help cross-border transactions
The Central Bank has revised regulations under the Foreign Exchange Act, No. 12 of 2017 (FEA) for further simplification and clarity improvement, “with the objectives of achieving greater efficiency in the conduct of cross-border foreign exchange transactions alongside further facilitating economic activities of the stakeholders through greater convenience of doing business”. These revised foreign exchange [...]
Sri Lanka’s vanaspathi exports to India plummet
Sri Lanka’s vanaspathi export industry (fully or partially hydrogenated vegetable cooking oil) established to cater to the needs of India under the Free Trade Agreement has been adversely affected following the ban imposed on crude palm oil (HS Code1511.10) by the government. Thirteen companies engaged in the production of vanaspathi using palm oil for the [...]
Why are farmers poor?
The gist of Prof. Sirimal Abeyratne’s (SA) article titled “How to keep them poor?” which appeared in the Business Times section on April 25 is that Sri Lanka doesn’t need more than 500,000 farmers to get the output that they produce now. There are 1.5 million paddy parcels cultivated by nearly 2 million farmers producing [...]
Unilever Sri Lanka holds its first virtual scientific symposium
A scientific symposium themed ‘Science in the Service of Consumer Protection’ was held recently, with the intention of creating a platform for local and global experts in the field, to exchange multidisciplinary scientific expertise on methods to ensure the safety and sustainability of the fast-growing cosmetic categories. Organised by Unilever Sri Lanka, the symposium sought [...]
World Bank approves $80.5 m additional financing for vaccines
WASHINGTON—The World Bank on Wednesday approved US$80.5 million additional financing to help Sri Lanka access and distribute fairly COVID-19 vaccines and to strengthen the country’s vaccination system and pandemic response. This additional finance builds on the $217.56 million- Sri Lanka COVID-19 Emergency Response and Pandemic Preparedness Project, which was approved in April 2020. This new [...]
REM Solar provides cutting edge renewable energy solutions
REM Solar, a customised Solar PV provider dedicated to delivering cutting-edge solutions for enhancing energy efficiency and generating renewable energy, offers customer-centric service and tailor-made solutions to those looking to invest in securing a sustainable future. As part of its vision to fulfil Sri Lanka’s energy requirements, REM Solar is an industry player with over [...]
World Bank predicts economy to bounce back in Sri Lanka
The World Bank forecasts a bouncing back in Sri Lanka’s economic activity with up- and down-side risks in financial vulnerabilities despite heavy toll of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was highlighted in the Sri Lanka Development Update (SLDU) released recently by the World Bank with a special focus on economic and poverty impact of the coronavirus [...]
SL banks start priority sector lending for MSMEs
Sri Lankan banks are to start directed lending to priority sectors in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises according to a new direction by the Central Bank (CB). The CB, in a circular, said it has brought Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) under the priority sector category of the licensed banks directing more credit flow [...]
Stringent regulations to control pesticide imports
Stringent regulations are to be enforced soon to control pesticide imports into the country in a maximum possible manner with the aim of minimising its undesirable effects including irregularities, corruption and waste of much needed foreign exchange, official sources disclosed. Integrated Pest Management Techniques (IMP) and good agricultural practices are to be introduced to farmers [...]
Sri Lanka micro and small enterprises strapped for cash
The problems encountered by Sri Lanka’s micro sectors during the pandemic was access to finance as they lack knowledge in having a dialogue with the financial sector. Micro sectors are also ignorant of technology when accessing finance with poor records of credit ratings with banking institutions. Technology is an important tool for micro enterprises to [...]
Ideal Six app to enhance work of local councils
Ideal Six, a homegrown innovative mobile app development company, is offering modern waste management solutions and other such services to urban councils via its digital platform, thus creating the perfect link between local councils and the people. From digital alerts and notifications, to complaint management, payment assistance and file management, the Ideal Six platform provides [...]
Four-party agreement to launch SL Transit Card
The Ministry of Transport and the Central Bank, in a groundbreaking move towards revolutionising the transport sector, played lead roles to get the key stakeholders to sign a four-party agreement to introduce Sri Lanka Transit Card (SLTC) recently. The SLTC initiative, which had been on the drawing board for many years will finally come to [...]
Dr. Jayantha Dharmadasa honoured with the prestigious Public Service Star Award of Singapore
Dr. Jayantha Dharmadasa, Singapore’s Honorary Consul-General in Sri Lanka and Chairman Nawaloka Hospitals was recently awarded the prestigious Public Service Star in recognition of his impactful and immense contribution to the people of Singapore. He was conferred with the honour by the President of The Republic of Singapore, Madam Halimah Yacob, at the Singapore National [...]
SLT-Mobitel and Epic Technology Launch ‘Helaviru’
SLT-MOBITEL and Epic Technology Group recently announced the launch of the “Helaviru: Agro-Produce and Commodities Trading Exchange”, a cloud-based digital marketplace that facilitates seamless trading and exchange of Agro-Produce and Commodities among diverse stakeholders in Sri Lanka. ‘Helaviru’ will enable farmers and growers to sell their produce in a timely manner at a reasonable price [...]
Unions increasingly have more role to play in pandemic
At a time when the world of work is moving towards a shorter working day, Sri Lanka is illegally increasing the hours of work with no additional compensation for the extra hour put in, totally disregarding its own labour laws, says the Ceylon Federation of Labour (CFL). In a message to mark May Day (which [...]