Euromoney hails Combank as Best Bank in Sri Lanka in 2018

Commercial Bank CEO designate S. Renganathan (centre) with the Euromoney award

The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has been adjudged the Best Bank in Sri Lanka in 2018 by Euromoney, one of the world’s leading financial magazines, at its Asia Awards for Excellence presented recently in Hong Kong. 

This is the fifth time that Commercial Bank has been honoured with this award. The prestigious Euromoney accolade is based on detailed submissions from market participants and extensive year-round research into the banking and capital markets in the region by the magazine’s editors, journalists and research team.

According to Euromoney, the Asia Awards are seen as the benchmark for the leading firms in financial services in the region, and are fiercely contested across numerous markets and categories. The evaluation by Euromoney covers banks in all major countries in Asia, Middle East, Europe, Africa, North and Latin America, the Caribbean as well as the Nordic and Baltic regions. Euromoney honours institutions that demonstrate leadership, innovation and momentum in the markets in which they excel and presents a number of awards to the Asian region’s banks and securities houses.

Among the aspects examined for the awards are qualitative and quantitative criteria such as market position, volume of business transacted, new product development, management system, credit ratings, efficiency ratios and annual key performance indicators. The award for the Best Bank in Sri Lanka in 2018 was accepted by Commercial Bank’s Chief Operating Officer S. Renganathan at the presentation ceremony at Island Shangri La Hotel, Hong Kong. Leading figures from banking and capital markets across Asia were present to hear the announcement of Euromoney’s Asia Awards for Excellence 2018. The Euromoney Best Bank award comes hot on the heels of Commercial Bank becoming the only bank in Sri Lanka to be ranked among the World’s Top 1000 Banks for the eighth consecutive year, as well as the receipt of five other international awards – four from Asia Banking and Finance and one from FinanceAsia. 

For the Financial year 2017, Commercial Bank reported total assets of Rs. 1.143 trillion, gross income of Rs. 115.6 billion, net profit of Rs. 16.5 billion, a deposits base of Rs. 850.1 billion and total loans and receivables of Rs. 754.7 billion. The bank also paid Rs. 11.5 billion in taxes to the government, lent Rs. 131.8 billion to SMEs, which includes loans to commercial agriculture, dairy, farming and industrial activities, channelled 10.56% of the country’s imports and 18.58% of its exports in 2017, and was the Sri Lankan bank with the largest footprint in Asia.

In terms of Capital Adequacy Ratios, the Bank’s Total Tier 1 capital ratio (with capital buffers) at 12.11% as at 31st December 2017 was well above the 7.75% required under Basel III. The Total Capital Ratio of 15.75% at the end of 2017 was comfortably above the Basel III requirement of 11.75%.

Among other aspects considered in the choice of Commercial Bank as the ‘Best Bank in Sri Lanka’ were the Bank’s launch of ‘Biz Club’ – an entrepreneurs networking forum; ‘Bank on Wheels’ to provide basic over-the-counter banking facilities to customers living outside city limits; ‘Divisaru’ a special savings account to support micro entrepreneurs; the Bank’s 16 Agri and Micro Finance Units in rural areas with 20 officers to educate, lend and assist in repayment of loans granted for Micro scale businesses and agriculture; a personal loans application facility online; a hybrid leasing product; the pioneer debit card with Chip & PIN technology in the country; ‘Loan on FD’ facility, and a host of other new products and services. The Bank’s corporate social responsibility projects ranging from promoting IT education with the donation of 175 fully fledged IT laboratories benefitting 200,000 students, support to a ‘Smart Schools’ project in 65 school in the Western Province, the provision of critical care equipment and infrastructure facilities to over 65 government hospitals, and other community projects undertaken by the Bank’s CSR Trust were also considered in the selection process. Founded by Sir Patrick Sergeant in 1969, Euromoney is read by 140,000 of the world’s top financial decision makers in more than 100 countries, making it the prime magazine of the wholesale financial world, its institutions and its users.