Category: Daily Financial Times

People’s Leasing and Finance PLC (PLC) officially ushered in the New Year with a ceremonial event at its Head Office, under the theme: ‘People’s Trust, Empowering People.’

The celebration was graced by People’s Leasing Chairman Professor Ajanta Samarakoon, the Chief Executive Officer/General Manager Sanjeewa Bandaranayake and the members of the Senior Management. In a seamless blend of tradition and technology, the event was broadcast live via internal PEO TV Channel 603, allowing the entire branch network and staff across the island to participate in the morning’s festivities alongside the Head Office team.

People’s Leasing Chairman Professor Ajanta Samarakoon, setting a high benchmark for the year ahead stated: ‘The milestones we reached in 2025 are a testament to what we can achieve when we work as one unified team. Today, People’s Leasing maintains a formidable position in the market, allowing us to provide enhanced benefits to our employees under the strategic guidance of the PLC Board. By upholding the highest standards of Good Governance and ethical conduct, we have created a workplace where our people feel valued and motivated to grow with us long-term. As we look forward, I call upon every one of the PLC to embrace a spirit of hard work and proactive innovation, ensuring PLC remains the absolute best place for our customers to experience financial growth.’

And the Chief Executive Officer/General Manager Sanjeewa Bandaranayake expressed his deep appreciation for the collective effort of the workforce: ‘As we step into 2026, I must first express my heartfelt gratitude to every member of our staff. It is the unwavering commitment and resilience that allowed us to successfully meet our 2025 company goals despite a challenging landscape. As we look forward, I urge the staff to carry that same passion into the New Year. By remaining proactive and dedicated, we will ensure that PLC continues to be the most trusted destination for our customers to receive unparalleled service.’

The event was organised by the PLC Welfare and Sports Club. The atmosphere of camaraderie was felt both at the Head Office and across the digital airwaves, symbolising a unified front for the year ahead.

The ceremony concluded with a collective pledge by the senior management and the entire staff to carry the spirit of empowerment into every customer interaction in 2026.

For nearly three decades, People’s Leasing has contributed significantly to the upliftment of the living standards of the Sri Lankan populace. By expanding its presence to 112 locations across the island, PLC continues to empower Small, Medium, and Large-scale enterprises, reflecting its unwavering contribution to the sustainable development of both the economic and social facets of the country.

Most Asian markets rose Tuesday, tracking the year’s first record on Wall Street as investors racked up AI-linked tech bets, while oil prices steadied after whipsawing following the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Attention is also turning back to US monetary policy and the release of key data this week that could play a role in Federal Reserve interest rate decision-making ahead of its next meeting at the end of the month.

Traders essentially ignored the noise of the surprise US raid on Caracas on Saturday that saw Maduro and his wife spirited away to New York to face drug charges.

While there is still some nervousness about stretched valuations in the tech sector, analysts remain optimistic about the outlook for equities this year, with artificial intelligence still the main game in town.

‘Global equities are likely to keep looking through the geopolitical shock unless it threatens the broader supply chain or tightens financial conditions, because geopolitics has become a persistent feature rather than a surprise,’ Charu Chanana, chief investment strategist at Saxo Markets, wrote in a commentary.

‘Equities can continue grinding higher if earnings expectations, liquidity, and rate expectations remain supportive, especially in tech.’

That mood was reflected on Wall Street, where the Dow ended at a new record, boosted by a rally in tech giants including Amazon and Meta as well as energy giants.

The S and P 500 and Nasdaq also rose, helped by data showing US manufacturing activity contracted for a 10th straight month in December, giving the Fed fresh room to cut rates.

The figures come ahead of jobs data due over the next couple of days, which could give it more justification to ease, even after the central bank suggested last month it could pause its easing.

Hong Kong piled on more than one percent, while Tokyo, Shanghai, Singapore, Wellington, Taipei, Manila and Jakarta were also sharply higher.

Seoul dipped, having soared more than three percent Monday.

South Korean car giant Hyundai was higher but gave up its early surge of more than eight percent that came after it unveiled a prototype of its humanoid robot called Atlas at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The firm said the AI-powered device would start working at a US plant by 2028.

Sydney also dipped despite Australia’s BlueScope Steel rocketing more than 20 percent after saying it is evaluating a US$8.8 billion joint takeover bid by a US rival and a diversified local firm.

Oil prices slipped, having risen 1.7 percent Monday as the impact of developments in Venezuela were being weighed.

While the country sits on about a fifth of the world’s oil reserves, adding to an existing supply glut, observers pointed out that a quick ramp-up of output would be hamstrung by several issues including its creaking infrastructure, low prices and political uncertainty. (Gulf News)

The Ministry of Health and Mass Media announced that the State Pharmaceuticals Manufacturing Corporation (SPMC) achieved its highest-ever drug production in 2025, manufacturing 3,625 million tablets and capsules during the year.

AgriOne Solutions Ltd., a subsidiary of Asiya Siyaka Commodities PLC, has appointed seasoned agri-input industry professional Pasad Weerasekera to its Board of Directors.

With more than 33 years of experience in the agri-input marketing sector, Weerasekera brings extensive expertise spanning from finance, marketing, operations and to strategic leadership. In his new role, he will work closely with AgriOne’s leadership team in strengthening the strategic direction, improve execution and long-term value creation.

Commenting on the appointment, Weerasekera said AgriOne aims to ‘grow a smile among all stakeholders’ by helping farming communities to become much resilient and productive, by strengthening partnerships across the agricultural value chain, and by ensuring the company’s growth is shared through responsible and sustainable business practices.

Weerasekera began his career at the Ceylon Tobacco Company’s fertiliser division. In 1993, he played a key role in establishing CIC Agri Business, serving as Finance Head and contributing to its rise as the market leader. In 2002, he was instrumental in setting up AgStar PLC as Finance Director, later progressing to Chief Operating Officer and subsequently Managing Director, a position he held for over 12 years.

He is a Fellow Member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (UK) and holds the Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) designation too. He is also a member of the Institute of Certified Management Accountants (Sri Lanka), the Institute of Public Accountants (Australia), Chartered Professional Managers (Sri Lanka), and Chartered Practising Accountants (Australia).

AgriOne Solutions was established to enter the agri-input marketing sector, with a focus on improving crop productivity and farmer outcome. The company is owned by Asiya Siyaka Commodities PLC, a leading tea brokering firm and Andaradeniya Tea Estates, a prominent tea producer. AgriOne operates under the theme of ‘Growing Smiles,’ with a mission to enhance crop productivity and contribute to stronger and resilient farming communities.

The second International Conference on Circular Economy and Sustainable Ecosystem (IC2ESE 2025) was successfully held recently at the Open University of Sri Lanka, Nugegoda.

Organised by the Department of Mechanical Engineering, the international conference brought together academics, industry professionals, policymakers, and researchers from Sri Lanka and overseas to discuss transformative circular solutions for a regenerative and resilient world.

The conference was conducted in close alignment with the MSc in Energy for Circular Economy, an international-level master’s program recognised as one of the most in-demand postgraduate programs in South Asia, particularly in Sri Lanka. The program plays a vital role in developing skilled professionals in energy transition, sustainability, and circular economy practices while strengthening the link between academic research and real-world application.

A key objective of the conference was to create a strong academic pathway for students to publish their research findings. IC2ESE 2025 provided undergraduate and postgraduate students, especially those enrolled in the MSc in Energy for Circular Economy, with a valuable opportunity to present and publish peer-reviewed research papers in the official conference proceedings. This initiative supports research-based learning, enhances international exposure, and encourages young researchers to contribute meaningfully to national and global sustainability goals.

Addressing the opening session, Open University of Sri Lanka Vice Chancellor Snr. Professor P.M.C. Thilakarathne emphasised the urgent need to move beyond traditional linear development models in response to escalating climate risks and environmental challenges. The conference agenda included the official launch of the conference proceedings and parallel technical sessions covering material circularity, energy technologies, sustainable transport, corporate innovation, and education.

The conference featured four keynote addresses by distinguished local and international experts. Prof. Jeevan Jayasuriya from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden, highlighted the role of education in shaping responsible citizens for a circular future. Prof. Annukka Santasalo-Aarnio from Aalto University, Finland, focused on circular economy approaches for energy technologies and material recovery. Prof. Cristina Efremov discussed policy alignment and leadership required to bring circular economy transitions to life across industries.

A key highlight of IC2ESE 2025 was the keynote address delivered by senior corporate leader of the Wijeya Newspapers Ltd., Group and Sri Lanka Association of Printers President Eng. Janaka Rathnakumara. His keynote, titled ‘From Linear to Circular: Advancing Sri Lanka’s Manufacturing Toward a Greener Future,’ underscored the urgent need for Sri Lanka’s manufacturing sector to transition from the traditional ‘take-make-dispose’ model to circular production systems.

He emphasised that circular manufacturing-through improved design, resource efficiency, product life extension, and material recovery-can enhance industrial competitiveness, reduce waste and emissions, and support Sri Lanka’s Nationally Determined Contributions and Sustainable Development Goals. Highlighting the importance of policy support, business leadership, finance mechanisms, and cross-sector collaboration, he called for collective action to accelerate Sri Lanka’s journey toward a low-carbon, resilient, and regenerative industrial economy.

The Secondary Bond market saw rates initially drop on the belly end of the yield curve specifically on the 2029-2030 tenors. This was accompanied by more aggressive bids across the yield curve and secondary market two-way prices quoted lower. However, towards the latter part of the day the 2027-2028 tenors saw a sell off which caused rates to increase on the short end of the yield curve, on the back of profit taking pressure. Nevertheless, the medium-to-long end of the yield curve remained stable. This resulted in a flattening of the yield curve overall. Activity and transaction volumes were seen at healthy levels boosted by several block trades.

On the shorter end where rates picked up the 15.12.26 and 01.05.27 maturities traded at the rate of 8.50% and 8.95% respectively. The 01.05.28, 01.07.28 and 15.10.28 maturities were seen trading up the range of 9.14%-9.20%, 9.22% and at the rate of 9.26% respectively.

On the belly to the long end where rates remained broadly anchored, the 15.12.29 traded lower down the range of 9.73%-9.71%, the 15.05.30 at the rate of 9.76% and the 01.07.30 maturity down the range of 9.80%-9.78% respectively. The 01.10.32 and 15.09.34 maturities traded at the rate of 10.35% and 10.70% respectively and the 15.06.35 maturity at the rate of 10.75%-10.76%.

This comes ahead of today’s scheduled weekly Treasury Bill auction. The auction will have on offer a total amount of Rs. 100 billion. The auction will comprise of Rs. 20 billion in 91-day bills, Rs. 50 billion in 182-day bills, and Rs. 30 billion in 364-day bills. The offered amount is in line with the maturing volume, which is estimated at around Rs. 97.73 billion.

For context, at the weekly Treasury Bill auction held last Wednesday (31 December), weighted average yields recorded an upwards movement across the board for a second consecutive week. Accordingly, the weighted average yield on the 91-day Bill rose by 19 basis points to 7.74%, the 182-day by 32 basis points to 8.27%, and the 364-day by 26 basis points to 8.45% respectively. Total funds raised amounted to Rs. 57.39 billion against an offered amount of Rs. 120 billion, translating to a 47.83% subscription ratio.

The total secondary market Treasury Bond/Bill transacted volume for 6 January was Rs. 14.71 billion.

In money markets, the net liquidity surplus increased steadily for the fourth consecutive day to Rs. 175.21 billion yesterday. An amount of Rs. 200.21 billion was deposited at Central Bank’s SDFR (Standing Deposit Facility Rate) of 7.25%, while an amount of Rs. 25 billion was withdrawn from the Central Bank’s SLFR (Standard Lending Facility Rate) of 8.25%. The weighted average rates on overnight call money and Repo stood at 8.00% and 8.03% respectively.

Dialog Axiata PLC, Sri Lanka’s #1 connectivity provider, has committed LKR 420 million in support of the Government’s Rebuilding Sri Lanka initiative, aimed at accelerating recovery in the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah. The commitment will support critical recovery efforts across healthcare and education benefiting communities in affected regions. These include the restoration and upgrading of essential hospital infrastructure and the refurbishment of ICT facilities in affected schools, in collaboration with relevant authorities.

The commitment was formalised at a meeting held at the Prime Minister’s Office, in the presence of Hon. Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka; Hon. Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, Minister of Health and Mass Media; Hon. Eranga Weeraratne, Deputy Minister of Digital Economy; Secretaries to the relevant Ministries; senior Government officials; and senior representatives of Dialog. The discussions focused on the collaborative framework for the implementation of the proposed education and healthcare initiatives in alignment with national priorities.

In the healthcare sector, Dialog will partner with the Ministry of Health to support the restoration and upgrading of critical hospital infrastructure at Chilaw District General Hospital, Divisional Hospital Kotmale, Divisional Hospital Madulkele, and Base Hospital Puttalam. In the education sector, Dialog will work with the Ministry of Education to refurbish computer laboratories in over 20 cyclone-affected schools, restoring ICT infrastructure and connectivity to support continued learning.

Commenting on the initiative, Hon. Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, said, ‘Public-private partnerships play a critical role in advancing national priorities, particularly during periods of recovery following a disaster of this scale. The Government appreciates Dialog’s strong commitment to the Rebuilding Sri Lanka initiative, which will support the restoration of essential services and strengthen preparedness for the future. As Minister of Education, I also recognise the importance of restoring digital access and learning continuity for students affected by the cyclone. Such collaborations are vital to ensuring meaningful, long-term outcomes for affected communities.’

Hon. Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, Minister of Health and Mass Media, stated, ‘Strengthening healthcare infrastructure following a disaster is critical to ensuring uninterrupted care for affected communities. Dialog’s support towards restoring and upgrading key hospital facilities will contribute meaningfully to improving resilience within the public health system.’

Supun Weerasinghe, Director / Group Chief Executive of Dialog Axiata PLC, said, ‘Cyclone Ditwah has had a profound impact on communities across the country, leaving many Sri Lankans facing significant challenges. Through this commitment, we are focused on restoring critical healthcare services and rebuilding digital access for students, while supporting national recovery efforts aligned with Government priorities.’

During and immediately following Cyclone Ditwah, Dialog supported over 8 million customers across its services through the provision of free voice, SMS, and mobile data, emergency home broadband data quotas, and complimentary access to select Dialog Television channels. This support enabled individuals, families, and communities in affected areas to maintain essential communication and access timely information when it was most critical.

This commitment builds on Dialog’s long-standing role in supporting national recovery during times of crisis. Following major landslides and floods in 2016-2017, Dialog implemented the Senehe Siyapatha initiative, under which villages in Aranayake, Kotapola and Ehaliyagoda were built to support families displaced by natural disasters. In 2019, in response to the Easter Sunday attacks, Dialog established the Rally to Care fund to provide long-term educational and psychosocial support to affected children and families. During the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2021), Dialog contributed to strengthening Sri Lanka’s healthcare response through the establishment of fully equipped Intensive Care Units at Negombo and Homagama hospitals.

More recently, during the 2022 economic crisis, Dialog supported the development and nationwide rollout of the National Fuel Pass system, a Government-recognised initiative that enabled allocation-based fuel distribution and continues to be supported free of charge in collaboration with relevant authorities. Amid the same period, Dialog also initiated Manudham Mehewera, a nationwide food security initiative supporting vulnerable families across the country.

The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Chairman Buddhika Hewawasam on Monday announced that it will launch a comprehensive tourism leakage survey towards the end of this month to accurately assess how much of tourist spending remains within the domestic economy.

Speaking at a media briefing at the Tourism Ministry, Hewawasam said the survey will examine how much of the revised average daily tourist spending of $ 148 actually stays in Sri Lanka.

The announcement builds on Sri Lanka’s largest-ever tourism research initiative unveiled on 27 November 2025, titled ‘From Data to Decisions: Strengthening Tourism Through Evidence and Collaboration.’

The year-long national airport exit survey, conducted from July 2024 to June 2025 by SLTDA with support from Australia’s Market Development Facility (MDF), provided detailed insights into traveller motivations, demographics and spending behaviour.

The SLTDA had been depending on spending estimates drawn from a 2018 survey, but its updated assessment from August 2025 has prompted a sharp reduction in its per-day spending figure from $ 171 to $ 148.

‘This will be a leakage survey to determine how many dollars out of the $ 148 remain in Sri Lanka,’ Hewawasam said, stressing the importance of understanding the real economic benefits generated by tourism.

In tourism economics, leakage refers to the portion of visitor spending that flows out of the host country rather than circulating locally. This typically occurs through imports of food and beverages, repatriation of profits by foreign-owned hotels and airlines, payments to overseas marketing agents, and remittances by foreign workers. While some level of leakage is unavoidable in an open economy, excessive leakage significantly reduces tourism’s contribution to local incomes, employment and development.

He said the upcoming survey will systematically measure these outflows by analysing supply chains, ownership structures, import dependence and spending patterns.

For tourism-dependent countries such as Sri Lanka, such assessments are seen as critical to accurately evaluating net economic gains, shaping policies to reduce leakage, strengthening competitiveness and promoting more sustainable and inclusive tourism growth.

As per the latest survey, using stratified random sampling, the study surveyed 11,731 inbound tourists across all major source markets and 5,000 outbound Sri Lankan travellers, ensuring equal participation opportunities.

SLTDA and MDF said the methodology significantly enhanced the reliability and credibility of the findings, making it one of the most robust tourism datasets produced in recent years.

As per the existing 2025 survey, the pending patterns varied significantly by travel style. Independent travellers spent an average of $ 148.26 per day, spreading expenditure across local eateries, transport providers and community-based experiences, with Russian tourists leading spending among non-packaged visitors. Package tourists generated higher value, spending $ 214.90 per day, dominated by the UK market and older travellers above 60 who favoured structured and secure travel arrangements.

‘The forthcoming leakage survey is expected to further refine Sri Lanka’s understanding of tourism’s real economic contribution and guide strategies to maximise local value retention,’ Hewawasam added.

Sri Lanka’s economic recovery is now threatened not only by past crises, but by a growing governance vacuum in how financial distress is resolved. At present, the fate of thousands of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), many affected by terrorism, pandemics, economic collapse, and natural disasters, rests almost entirely with individual commercial banks. This concentration of power, exercised through unilateral parate action, carries serious risks for fairness, transparency, and long-term economic stability.

In no mature financial system should the determination of business viability, recovery options, and asset disposal be left solely to creditor institutions with direct financial and commercial interests. Yet in Sri Lanka, there is no effective independent oversight body empowered to assess whether enforcement action is proportionate, justified, or in the broader national interest.

This is a dangerous omission.

The absence of oversight

SMEs in tourism, agriculture-linked services, manufacturing, and regional enterprises did not fail in isolation. Their distress is the result of nationally recognised shocks-the Easter Sunday attacks, COVID-19 shutdowns, currency collapse, extreme interest rate volatility, and repeated climate-related disruptions. These are systemic events. Systemic problems require systemic solutions, not fragmented decisions taken bank by bank.

Allowing each commercial bank to independently declare a borrower ‘non-viable’ and proceed with parate execution creates wide scope for inconsistency, arbitrariness, and abuse. Two similar enterprises, affected by identical external shocks, can receive entirely different outcomes depending on the bank involved. Such unpredictability undermines confidence in the financial system and discourages future investment.

More critically, the absence of oversight opens the door to outcomes that are economically and ethically questionable. Distressed assets such as hotels, factories, land, and operating businesses, are often auctioned during weak market conditions, at values far below replacement or long-term earning potential. In such an environment, there is a real risk that interested parties can acquire strategic assets at discounted prices through the banking system, while original investors, employees, and entire rural economies bear the cost.

When businesses collapse in this manner, the damage extends well beyond shareholders. Jobs are lost, supply chains are broken, villages dependent on tourism or agriculture lose income, and regional development stalls. This is not merely a borrower-bank issue; it is a socio-economic failure.

For this reason, the Central Bank and the Government cannot remain passive observers. Their role is not to protect bad borrowers, but to ensure that enforcement mechanisms do not destroy viable economic capacity or facilitate asset stripping under the guise of recovery.

The need for an independent statutory oversight mechanism

Sri Lanka urgently requires an independent, statutory mechanism-such as a Financial Distress Review Commission or strengthened Ombudsman framework-with representation from the Central Bank, Treasury, legal experts, industry specialists, and independent professionals. This body should be mandated to review cases involving calamity-affected SMEs above defined thresholds before parate action is permitted.

Such a mechanism would assess whether distress arises from external shocks, whether restructuring options have been genuinely exhausted, whether valuations reflect fair and normalised conditions, and whether enforcement serves both financial prudence and national economic interest. Its role would not be to override banks arbitrarily, but to introduce balance, transparency, and accountability into a process currently dominated by unilateral discretion.

International experience shows that economies recover faster when viable enterprises are preserved, not dismantled. Regulatory oversight during periods of systemic stress is not market distortion; it is market protection.

If Sri Lanka allows unchecked enforcement to continue, it risks replacing productive entrepreneurship with speculative asset transfers, eroding trust in both banking and governance institutions. Recovery cannot be built on fear, uncertainty, and perceived injustice.

The Central Bank and the Government must act not to weaken banks, but to protect the integrity of the financial system and the real economy it is meant to serve.

With the tourist season underway, the battle between the conventional tuk-tuk drivers and riders using ride-hailing platforms like Uber and PickMe has reached unprecedented and alarming heights with confrontations being featured in prime-time news bulletins as well as newspaper headlines. Due to the widespread ownership of smartphones in the island, the demand for mobile app-based hires has increased tremendously, which has adversely affected the livelihoods of traditional three-wheel drivers.

Ride-hailing services have become extremely popular as they offer more transparency with up-front and predictable pricing apart from GPS tracking while providing greater safety for commuters and travellers. Importantly, their charges are much cheaper than the rates requested by conventional taxi drivers. Once passengers who use ride-hailing services end their trips, they are given the opportunity to rate the respective drivers in terms of a wide range of measures. Hence, riders consciously take precautions to drive their vehicles safely, knowing that recklessness could result in them receiving poor ratings from clients which could eventually lead to them being blacklisted from the ride-hailing app. Customers can also reach out to the customer service centres of the ride-hailing apps if they want to dispute the travelling fares in addition to making complaints against drivers whose behaviours they found unethical and intolerable.

In contrast, traditional taxi drivers are frequently accused of overcharging passengers and often come across as rowdy and unpleasant. In certain parts of the country, three-wheel drivers are addicted to drugs and request unreasonable amounts from passengers to maintain their harmful lifestyles. It is also felt some of these conventional taxi drivers are involved in nefarious activities such as drug trading and distribution, working with the underworld apart from facilitating prostitution rings. At the height of the 2022 economic crisis, tuk-tuk drivers faced the wrath of the general public for overstocking fuel and selling them at black market prices. Furthermore, most of the taxi drivers used to request exorbitant fares during the period of the country’s worst economic crisis, capitalising on the dearth of vehicles in roads.

Traditional taxi drivers have also been the bane on the Sri Lanka’s tourism industry over the years. On numerous occasions, there have been reports of foreign travellers experiencing harassment and exploitation at the hands of taxi drivers. It was recently revealed that in the tourist hotspot of Sigiriya, although an app-based hire to Pidurangala costs only Rs. 270, a conventional taxi ride charges Rs. 800. In such a scenario, the presence of an internationally accepted ride-hailing platform like Uber provides comfort to tourists who come to Sri Lanka. In fact, many tourism advisory websites recommend tourists to avoid conventional taxis and instead use apps like Pickme and Uber. The emergence of ride-hailing platforms has also enabled motor bike riders to earn income by transporting passengers for the first time in the country. Motor bike-based rides are much cheaper than three-wheel rides and the entry of the two-wheel vehicle has eaten into the income sources of the three-wheel riders, further compounding the anger of tuk-tuk drivers.

The resentment of taxi drivers towards Pickme and Uber could develop into a political headache for the Government. Many of these conventional taxi drivers were at the forefront of supporting the NPP at the previous two national elections, and they represent a significant vote base.

Nevertheless, ride-hailing apps have become extremely popular among the passengers and any effort to curtail their activities would attract a considerable backlash from the public. The Police must take decisive action to prevent the recurrence of incidents of few organised tuk-tuk drivers threatening and intimidating riders who use ride-hailing platforms.