Category: Daily Financial Times

Allianz Insurance Lanka Ltd., has entered the next phase of its strategic partnership with Dedigama Group Ltd., reaffirming its commitment to customer convenience, accessibility, and choice.

Following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) recently, dedicated personnel at Dedigama branches countrywide will be available to support interested customers to collect information and premium and facilitate printing of temporary insurance certificates .

This milestone reflects Allianz Lanka’s continued focus on meeting customers where they are, making insurance simpler, more accessible, and centered on customer needs.

Dedigama Group, a diversified conglomerate established in 1950, operates across financial services, jewellery, gem trading and exports, hospitality, plantations, and real estate. The Group maintains a strong islandwide footprint through over 350 pawning outlets, enabling broader access to essential financial services for communities across Sri Lanka.

The partnership launch was attended by Dedigama Group Directors Rashmi Dedigama and Isha Dedigama, and Allianz Insurance Lanka Head of Corporate Sales Malik Peiris, Senior Cluster Manager – Corporate Sales Amila Liyanaarachchi, and Assistant Business Promotion Manager Mihiran Kaushalya Fernando.

This collaboration reinforces Allianz Lanka’s customerfirst philosophy by offering more access points, greater flexibility, and meaningful choice.

The Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (IRCSL) undertook an official visit to Hong Kong recently, with the objective of further strengthening its regulatory capabilities and relations through exposure to internationally recognised best practices and evolving supervisory frameworks.

During the visit, the IRCSL delegation engaged in a series of high-level discussions with the Hong Kong Insurance Authority (HKIA), the regulator overseeing one of Asia’s most advanced insurance markets. The meetings focused on contemporary regulatory approaches and emerging trends shaping the global insurance industry. During the visit, the delegation also engaged with senior representatives from Hong Kong’s Health Bureau, the Hong Kong Actuarial Society, the Hong Kong Federation of Insurers, and the Hong Kong Confederation of Insurance Brokers, to gain broader insights into regulatory, actuarial, health care, and distribution-related developments within the Hong Kong insurance ecosystem.

The IRCSL delegation was led by IRCSL Chairman Dr. Ajith Ravindra De Mel, and included IRCSL Director General Damayanthi Fernando, and IRCSL Assistant Director – Information Technology Dirrel Fernando. During the visit, the IRCSL delegation met with AIA Group President and Group Chief Executive Lee Yuan Siong. They also took time to engage with many senior leadership members of AIA Group to better understand various global best practices and operational standards within AIA, Asia’s leading life insurer.

The insights gained from Hong Kong are expected to support the continued enhancement of supervisory practices, ensuring alignment with global standards while addressing local market dynamics.

The Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (IRCSL) in collaboration with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) conducted an awareness session to the compliance staff of insurance companies regarding Update on National Risk Assessment 2024/25, Private Public Partnership and Feedback on STRs on 12 May 2026 at the Auditorium of Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (IRCSL). The session was attended by 66 participants representing the Compliance Officers and other representatives of the compliance staff of insurance companies. FIU Deputy Director Theja Pathberiya, Head of Supervision Hashini Rangika, Senior Assistant Director Chathurangi Weerakkody, Senior Assistant Director Kasuni Herath and IRCSL Director (Legal and Enforcement) G. Rajan Nirubasingham contributed as resource personnel to the expert panel. The participants of Insurance Companies interactively engaged with the discussions throughout the session.

The one-of-a-kind Prime Marina at Port City has already attracted reservations for over 300 units, crossing the halfway mark even before its ground breaking, its promoters revealed on Friday.

At the opening of the Prime Marina Sales Suite at Port City Colombo, the media was told that the 550-unit luxury residential development has already drawn reservations for 337 units.

The Prime Marina is a $ 57.6 million ultra-luxury waterfront residential project by a joint venture between Prime Melwa Port City Ltd., by Prime Group and Melwa Group. Construction is expected to be completed within four years, with projected revenue estimated at over $ 250 million. The landmark towers feature one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom apartments and exclusive penthouses.

At the opening of the Sales Suite, Prime Lands Group Chairman Premalal Brahmanage and Melwa Conglomerate Director P.P. Anandaraja described the project as a ‘game changer’ in real estate development in Sri Lanka by two respected giant Sri Lankan brands with strength, expertise, long-term commitment, trust, and innovation.

‘This type of expertise, innovation, and strength is needed to deliver an exceptional masterpiece. The project reflects our confidence in the country’s future and our willingness to continue to transform a development that creates lasting economic and social values,’ Brahmanage emphasised.

‘This not a mere real estate project, it is an economic catalyst that will take Sri Lanka to the world. We call it the global address in Sri Lanka,’ added the Chief of Prime Lands Group, which also has investments and projects in Melbourne, Australia, and Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Prime Marina is architecturally authored by P and T Singapore, a firm whose work defines the standard across the most rigorous real estate markets in the world.

Furthermore, the iconic development involves one of Singapore’s top-tier interior design companies, Index Design Pte Ltd., a globally acclaimed architectural firm, to curate an exceptional interior environment that reflects the highest benchmarks of international design, craftsmanship, and luxury living.

In addition, the landscape architecture is being entrusted to Grant Associates of the UK, an internationally acclaimed landscape architecture practice renowned for creating some of the world’s most iconic and sustainable environments. Their involvement further reinforces the commitment to delivering a development that meets the highest global standards in design and aesthetics.

Prime Group Director Sanmith Tharunya said one of the most impressive aspects of Port City is its master plan design, while 24% of Port City has been designated for residential development.

‘What is truly remarkable is that only 1% of the entire Port City has been allocated towards marina development, and just 3% towards waterfront development-this means that true marina front and waterfront residencies will become the rarest real estate assets, not only in Port City, but in Sri Lanka. While many developments may be built within Port City, only a select few will have direct access to the marina and waterfront lifestyle,’ he said.

‘This is Island Living, a coastal lifestyle precinct, which offers beaches, parks, and recreational spaces in a medium-density residential setting. This is the marina, which is not just another precinct within Port City. It is the crown jewel of the entire master plan,’ he said, suggesting it is the rarest real estate investment opportunity ever created in Sri Lanka.

‘You can build another apartment tower, you can build another office building, but you cannot create another marina waterfront location once the land has been allocated. If Port City is Sri Lanka’s future city, then the marina is the most prestigious address today,’ he added.

‘Prime Marina is not just a building, it is a long-term commitment to elevating Sri Lanka’s global real estate profile location, one of the most critical factors in real estate investment. This location offers exceptional prestige and long-term value appreciation potential. Our residents can also enjoy breathtaking views of the Indian Ocean and the Colombo skyline. It reflects our ambition to create not just a residential tower but a globally benchmarked marina front destination unlike anything Sri Lanka has seen before,’ Tharunya said.

‘This project is expected to create over 1,000 direct jobs and over 5,000 indirect employment opportunities, while generating foreign currency flows exceeding $ 75 million, but most importantly, it will contribute to elevating Sri Lanka’s global real estate profile,’ he added.

Union Bank Mind Marathon, a much-anticipated event amongst corporates, was recently held for the second

consecutive year, bringing together the bank’s corporate customers for a highly engaging and interactive quiz experience. Team Hayleys emerged the winner, having finished as runners-up last year, while Team CL Synergy secured second place and Team Aitken Spence claimed third place. Here, the winning Team Hayleys receives the award from Union Bank Vice President – Corporate Banking Rushira De Silva (right) in the presence of the Union Bank Corporate Banking Team.

The United National Party (UNP) has questioned the accuracy of a recent report produced by a local think tank comparing the number of pieces of legislation passed between the Maithripala Sirisena Government and the Anura Kumara Dissanayake Government in the first 18 months.

In what appears to be an effort to present an image of the current Government working to a legislative agenda, the UNP said the report by Verité Research (https://www.ft.lk/front-page/AKD-overtakes-Sirisena-in-legislative-output-after-slower-start-Verit%C3%A9-finds/44-792850) has focused solely on the quantity rather than the quality of the legislative efforts by the two Governments.

During the Maithripala Sirisena (or Yahapalanaya) Government’s first 18 months, several essential pieces of legislation were enacted. These laws included the ’19th Amendment to the Constitution’ which reduced the powers of the Executive President, which was a key promise during the Presidential Election. The ‘National Medicines Regulatory Authority Act’ was introduced which ensured the safety, quality, efficacy, and affordability of medicines and medical devices consumed by the public.

The ‘Right to Information Act’ was passed by the then Government, which empowered citizens to ensure accountability and transparency over the public sector through providing access to official information.

As part of efforts to protect workers, the ‘National Minimum Wage of Workers Act’ was enacted during this period that introduced a statutory minimum wage for workers across sectors in the country. The ‘Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank Agreement (Ratification) Act’ was passed, which allowed the country to officially join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.

To prevent impunity and ensure greater accountability in the country, the ‘Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Act’ was introduced, which provided a framework to ensure the protection of victims and witnesses of criminal offences. Going further, the ‘Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act’ was also enacted, which codified the right of suspects arrested by Police to have access to legal counsel.

In comparison, the UNP said during the first 18 months of the Anura Kumara Dissanayake Presidency, the public has witnessed a significant decline in the quality of legislation enacted.

Having campaigned on a platform of system change, the Government has failed to uphold its electoral pledges. Aside from legislation to remove entitlements of former Presidents and MPs, this Government has failed to present any impactful legislation as compared to former President Sirisena’s first 18 months.

‘It warrants mentioning that during the 26 months of governance by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe, as many as 75 laws were passed. These pieces of legislation were essential to the country’s economic recovery and growth. They included the ’22nd Amendment to the Constitution,’ which once again strengthened the role of Parliament, the ‘Economic Transformation Act’ outlining measures to prevent future mismanagement of the economy, the ‘Central Bank of Sri Lanka Act,’ which ensured the independence of this key financial institution, as well and several other key pieces of financial legislation, including the ‘Public Finance Management Act,” the UNP said.

‘The public has awakened to the inefficiency of this Government, and reports such as the one mentioned above serve only to whitewash a Government which has stagnated since assuming office,’ the UNP alleged.

Sri Lanka was among the earliest developing countries to adopt open economic policies in 1977. Despite many achievements since then, Sri Lanka is yet to realise its economic growth potential. The current government, which came to power in 2024, introduced the Prajashakthi (Community Empowerment) Programme as a flagship project to promote a production economy and eradicate poverty within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). As of May 2026, 13,977 Community Development Councils (CDCs) have been established at the village level. Sri Lanka has 14,008 villages. While existing government and community-led community development interventions often focus on infrastructure (physical capital) and subsidiary programmes, they tend to overlook the integrated role of multiple forms of capital at the village level.

According to mainstream economists, production depends on productivity and resource endowments, including physical, human, and natural capital, as well as technology. Drawing on traditional growth theories, policymakers have invested in capital formation to achieve sustainable economic growth. However, scholars argue that investing in traditional capital formation alone will not enhance community-level sustainability because the community is left behind. Institutional economists emphasise that institutions are vital to economic development. Additionally, sociologists examine various forms of capital to enhance social well-being. These include economic, cultural, and social capital.

Although it is essential to consider all forms of capital formation for comprehensive rural development, many projects and programs are carried out in isolation, thereby hampering the achievement of specific objectives. Because of this fragmentation of capital, we argue that, for sustainable community development, it is vital to adopt a holistic approach that integrates various forms of capital at the community level during project identification, design, and implementation.

Economic growth and poverty

It is clear that low economic growth and poverty are not merely the absence of money but the absence of various forms of capital. When it comes to selecting projects for community empowerment in Sri Lanka, the selection is often influenced by political patronage rather than efficiency, social justice, or equity. However, many argue that project evaluation should go beyond economic efficiency and incorporate justice as fairness, equity, and priority for the least advantaged; legitimacy through participation, consent, and collective agreement; and the expansion of people’s capabilities and real freedoms. However, most CDC projects are unlikely to use any of these criteria for project selection and evaluation.

The writer proposes an Integrated Capital Approach (ICA): a holistic, innovative analytical framework that integrates physical, human, natural, economic, social, cultural, technological and institutional capital to better understand community-level development dynamics. Community-level projects can be identified across these eight capital categories (see figure below).

Once the projects based on the eight capitals mentioned (see graphic) are identified at the community level, they can be evaluated using justice, social contract, and efficiency. These three criteria can be applied when prioritising projects. If the proposed approach is properly implemented, the sustainable community development outcome will lead to sustainable livelihoods, social inclusion and cohesion, environmental resilience, economic opportunities and growth, good governance and accountability, and an empowered community. The writer also believes that the proposed ICA will help overcome the structural challenges facing the Sri Lankan economy, bring it to the next level of development, and help it overcome the middle-income trap. Some might argue that community or village development cannot improve the national economy or reduce poverty. Therefore, our proposed framework does not deny the importance of national institutions. Rather, ICA complements national development by strengthening local productive capacity and resilience.

Finally, we believe that current fragmented development interventions do not generate policy-relevant insights to strengthen community development. If implemented properly, the proposed Integrated Capital Approach (ICA) will be an effective means of localising the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and generating policy-relevant insights to strengthen integrated community development strategies. The ICA is expected to improve the effectiveness of national poverty-alleviation programmes, participatory democracy, and local-level institutions and governance, and to offer a scalable model for localising SDG implementation in Sri Lanka and similar developing-country contexts.

Brain drain has been an unfortunate reality of our nation. Across every generation, a significant share of Sri Lankans have looked to perceived greener pastures overseas. In the aftermath of the 2022 economic crisis, more than 311,000 Sri Lankans registered to leave for foreign employment, the highest annual outflow on record.

The pattern has not stopped. Almost 48,000 Sri Lankans departed for foreign employment in just the first two months of 2026.

The departures span traditional labour migration but also include professionals from engineering, IT, banking, healthcare and hospitality. The challenges are serious enough that brain drain has rightly become a national conversation, with Government, industry and civil society now focused on how to stem the outflow, retain skilled talent, and rebuild the talent pool that Sri Lanka’s post-crisis recovery so clearly needs.

It is the right conversation. But it is incomplete.

Almost entirely absent from the national discourse is a parallel crisis: the people who stay, and specifically the people who lead Sri Lanka’s largest organisations, are not being developed at the level the country’s ambitions demand. We talk extensively about the talent we are losing. We talk far less about the quality of the leadership that has chosen to remain, and what serious investment in that leadership could unlock.

Sri Lanka has one of South Asia’s most educated populations. We produce graduates in volume. Yet employers across every sector consistently report a mismatch between what the education system delivers and what the economy actually requires. The skills-gap conversation, however, tends to focus on entry-level and mid-level technical capability. What it misses is the gap at the top: the quality of strategic thinking, the reflective capacity, and the decision-making muscle of the people running the country’s most consequential organisations.

Bridging Sri Lanka’s leadership deficit: Survival is not leadership

I have spent 28 years coaching executives and leadership teams across Sri Lanka and internationally, work for which I have had the privilege of being the first Sri Lankan to earn the International Coaching Federation’s Master Certified Coach credential, the only Asian to hold both Fellow Coach and Fellow Mentor accreditation from the International Authority for Professional Coaching and Mentoring in the United Kingdo, I have come to see a pattern that repeats across sectors, company sizes and generations. Sri Lankan business leaders are, by and large, more reactive than reflective. There is a heavy reliance on tacit knowledge, on doing what has always been done, on the assumption that what made the business grow at the outset is what will sustain growth over the long term.

The overwhelming majority of Sri Lankan enterprises either began as, or remain, family-controlled. They carry inherited leadership cultures, and many are now navigating the most precarious moment in any business’s life: the transfer of leadership from founder to son or daughter. The way the founder built the company is rarely the way the next generation should run it, and the structured process for navigating that transition is rarely put in place in time. In listed corporates the symptom is different but the cause is the same. Senior leaders so absorbed by operational demands that the space for genuine strategic thinking has all but disappeared. They are managing complexity without the tools to resolve it.

The 2025 Global Innovation Index, published by the World Intellectual Property Organisation, places Sri Lanka 93rd of 139 economies overall, a respectable position for a country still recovering from a sovereign default. But on business sophistication, the pillar that measures the quality of knowledge workers, innovation linkages and how firms absorb new ideas, we sit at 121st. That is the single dimension where Sri Lanka most under-performs its potential. It is also, unmistakably, the dimension where leadership development has the most direct power to change the outcome. Contrast this with Vietnam, whose appetite for learning and complexity of strategic thinking is unparalleled in our region, or with India, whose leading firms have set the bar for global competitiveness. As a nation, we are very good survivors. But survival is not leadership.

A global discipline Sri Lanka has barely noticed

While we have been preoccupied with these challenges, the rest of the world has been investing heavily in the answer. The most recent ICF Global Coaching Study counts 122,974 professional coaches working across 160 countries, in an industry that generated $ 5.34 billion

in revenue in the past year, almost double its figure from two years earlier.

Leadership and executive coaching is the dominant specialisation. Roughly 70% of Fortune 500 companies use it as a standard tool for developing their senior people. 86% of organisations that invest in coaching recover the cost, and most recover several multiples of it. The global executive coaching and leadership development market is on track, by most credible estimates, to clear the hundred-billion-dollar mark before this decade is out.

This is not a Western luxury. It has become the standard practice of serious organisations in competitive economies. The Vietnamese, Indian and Singaporean firms now outcompeting us in our own region built coaching into their leadership pipelines a generation ago.

Sri Lanka has barely participated. The International Coaching Federation reports 55 active credentialed coaches in our country of 22 million. India has 1,183. Singapore, with a population a third of ours, has 1,161. The irony is difficult to miss. Sri Lankan organisations will pay substantial fees to bring in foreign consultants for strategic advice from overseas, while neglecting a locally available, internationally credentialed discipline designed specifically to elevate leadership capability at the highest level. We outsource strategy willingly. We have been slower to invest in the strategic capacity of our own leaders.

An evidence-based, personalised approach to executive coaching

Part of the slowness comes from a fundamental misunderstanding of what executive coaching actually involves at the highest level. It is not motivational speaking. It is not an afternoon seminar on delegation and time management.

A rigorous coaching engagement begins with data. A 360-degree review captures how peers, supervisors and direct reports actually experience the leader. Psychometric profiling, properly conducted by a certified evaluator, reveals how the individual operates under pressure, weighs decisions and processes complexity. The coach then immerses themselves in the business itself: the numbers, the strategy, the competitive landscape, the organisational structure.

Only with that foundation does the real work begin. It is the careful surfacing of assumptions the leader has stopped questioning. It is the reframing of problems that have been allowed to ossify. It is the connecting of daily execution to strategic ambition, and the patient building of the leader’s capacity to think at a higher elevation. It often involves asking questions that no board member, no shareholder, and no executive team can ask without consequence. That is precisely the value of a credentialed external coach. The room is safe, the conversation is confidential, and the leader is treated as someone whose thinking is worth examining, not only whose decisions are worth reporting.

This is also why the Master Certified Coach credential, the highest the ICF awards, requires a rogeruse coursework and coaching practice and is held by fewer than five per cent of credentialed coaches worldwide. The discipline cannot be shortcut, and it cannot be performed without skill, judgement and ethical depth that take years to build.

The real investment Sri Lanka needs

I have seen what becomes possible when leadership teams commit to this process. I have worked with organisations where coached leadership reframed an existential challenge, broke their strategy down to executable elements, and achieved performance targets the market had quietly written off as out of reach. I have worked with founders who navigated long-postponed succession transitions with clarity and care. I have worked with chief executives who took relentless operational pressure and converted it into strategic alignment for their teams. In each case, the trajectory of the business changed not because of a new system or a new technology, but because the people leading it learned to think differently.

Sri Lanka cannot afford to focus exclusively on the talent leaving our shores while neglecting the capability of the leaders who remain. They are the ones who will determine whether the post-crisis recovery becomes sustained, broad-based growth or simply a return to familiar patterns.

As the global coaching profession continues its rapid expansion, the question worth asking is why a country that prides itself on its human capital has been so slow to embrace the one discipline specifically designed to develop that capital at the highest level. The expertise exists here. The international standards are met here. International Coaching Week is as good a moment as any to begin treating leadership development as the strategic priority it is, and to discover what becomes possible when Sri Lanka’s most senior decision-makers commit to it.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised down Sri Lanka’s economic outlook and approved temporary adjustments to its reform program in response to the economic fallout from the Middle East conflict and Cyclone Ditwah, while maintaining the program’s long-term fiscal and debt sustainability objectives.

The IMF Executive Board last week completed the combined Fifth and Sixth Reviews under Sri Lanka’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF), enabling an immediate disbursement of SDR 508 million, equivalent to approximately $ 695 million, and bringing total IMF financing under the program to about $ 2.4 billion.

The Fund said gains achieved under Sri Lanka’s reform program had enabled the authorities to respond to successive shocks while preserving economic resilience.

However, it noted that the Middle East conflict has significantly worsened the country’s external outlook through higher fuel import costs, weaker tourism receipts, pressure on the balance of payments, and softer external demand.

According to the IMF’s revised baseline projections, Sri Lanka’s economic growth is now expected to slow to 3% in 2026 from the 4% forecast prior to the conflict.

End-year inflation has been revised up to 6.1% from 5%, while projected gross official reserves at end-2026 have been reduced to $ 8.645 billion from the $ 9.506 billion anticipated before the conflict. Tourism earnings are now projected at $ 2.5 billion compared with the previous estimate of $ 3.1 billion, while the current account excluding primary income is forecast at 1.8% of GDP, down from 2.8% previously.

The IMF said the conflict has particular significance for Sri Lanka given the country’s dependence on the Middle East region. The report noted that around half of Sri Lanka’s petroleum imports originate from the region, while the Middle East accounts for about 40% of remittance inflows and serves as a major aviation hub for travel to Sri Lanka.

Reflecting the economic impact of the shocks, the IMF endorsed the Government’s decision to activate the escape clause under the Public Financial Management Act and temporarily ease fiscal policy in 2026. The Fund noted that Sri Lanka recorded a primary surplus of 5.4% of GDP in 2025, significantly exceeding program expectations, and said a lower primary balance target had been adopted for 2026. The program is expected to return to its medium-term fiscal anchor of a 2.3% primary surplus from 2027 onwards.

The Government has also introduced a temporary support package valued at Rs. 91.8 billion comprising fuel subsidies, electricity subsidies, fertiliser assistance, fisheries support, and an Aswesuma cash transfer. The package is capped at Rs. 100 billion, financed through Budget reallocations and scheduled to expire by September 2026. The IMF described the temporary fiscal easing as an appropriate response to cushion vulnerable households and support recovery while preserving debt sustainability.

The review also reflects a slower pace of reserve accumulation than previously envisaged. The IMF said the end-March indicative target on net international reserves was narrowly missed due to a slowdown in foreign exchange purchases following the Middle East conflict, changes in the composition of reserves, and valuation effects.

Despite the weaker outlook, program performance was assessed as broadly strong. The IMF said all end-December 2025 quantitative performance criteria and indicative targets were met except for the criterion relating to new external payment arrears. Fiscal revenue and primary balance targets were exceeded by substantial margins.

The sole waiver approved by the IMF relates to a cybercrime incident that resulted in a missed external debt payment of approximately $ 2.5 million to the Australian Government. The Fund said authorities requested a waiver of non-observance on the basis that the breach was minor and corrective measures had been implemented, including strengthened payment procedures and the rollout of a new debt management information system. IMF staff supported the waiver request.

The IMF also noted that new and modified quantitative targets and structural benchmarks have been introduced through February 2027, reflecting the changed economic environment and the need to accommodate the impact of the external shocks.

While allowing temporary flexibility, the Fund stressed that the program’s core policy framework remains intact. Fiscal consolidation is expected to resume from 2027, reserve accumulation will continue, exchange rate flexibility will be maintained, and energy pricing is expected to remain aligned with cost-recovery principles. The IMF said the final year of the program would focus on consolidating gains achieved since the crisis and strengthening the foundations for sustainable growth.

For investors and policymakers, the review signals that the IMF is willing to accommodate temporary external shocks through revised projections and limited fiscal flexibility, but remains committed to preserving the broader macroeconomic adjustment and debt sustainability framework underpinning Sri Lanka’s recovery.

US President Donald Trump on Friday signed Executive Order ‘Strengthening Customs Enforcement,’ empowering US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with a comprehensive set of tools to safeguard American consumers, businesses, and revenue while increasing transparency and compliance across international supply chains.

‘CBP stands ready to enforce this Executive Order,’ said CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott. ‘Importing into the US has for too long been treated as a right and not a privilege. CBP will execute the priorities in this Executive Order and, by doing so, we will fortify our trading border just as we have done with our physical border.’

‘This Executive Order helps CBP better detect when bad trade actors try to break the rules,’ said CBP Office of Trade Executive Assistant Commissioner Susan Thomas. ‘These are major advances in protecting our revenue and increasing supply chain transparency-both critical to ensuring fairness for everyone and safeguarding our nation’s economic and national security.’

Among its key provisions, the Executive Order requires importers, whether domestic or foreign, to meet the same standards for transparency and accountability. As directed by the Order, importers are required to provide more detailed information about their ownership, business operations, and supply chain, and must maintain good standing with CBP to continue importing. Customs brokers will also be held to higher standards and be required to conduct greater due diligence of their importers.

‘The Executive Order provides CBP with critical new tools and authorities to combat nefarious actors attempting to exploit our trade and cargo systems,’ said CBP Office of Field Operations Executive Assistant Commissioner Diane Sabatino. ‘Our officers and import specialists are now better equipped to identify, interdict, and penalise those who threaten our economic security and national interests through illicit trade practices.’

In addition, foreign importers are now subject to heightened import restrictions to protect the American public and revenue owed to the US. To further strengthen enforcement, bond rules are also being updated to set new minimums and leverage against risk. This ensures all importers are financially responsible for their activities, supports CBP’s ability to collect penalties for violations, and prevents companies from exploiting outdated requirements.

Importers must also maintain good standing with CBP and risk losing their importing privileges if they fail to comply with US Customs and trade laws.

These changes advance the America First Trade Policy and strengthen Customs enforcement by enhancing supply chain security, creating a level playing field for businesses that follow the rules, and protecting American consumers.