Prime Finance maintains profitable growth momentum

Group Chairman Brahmanage Premalal	Chairman Mangala Goonathilake

Prime Finance Plc during 2018/19 financial year has increased its total operating income to Rs. 693 million during the year, reflecting an increase of 114% compared to the last year. The company recorded a total profit before tax of Rs. 272 million. 

Executive Director Sandamini Perera

CEO Rasika Kaluarachchi

The company’s total asset base depicted a remarkable growth of 55% closing the year at Rs. 5.7 billion. Growth of earnings per share and net assets per share stands at 518% and 20% respectively. Return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE) are 3.1% and 16% respectively, keeping on par with industry averages. Core capital to risk weighted assets (Tier I) is 27% and total capital to risk weighted assets (Tier I and II) is 28%. 

The company said that the results achieved in the financial year 2018/19 could be viewed as highly creditable. Given the backdrop in which the performance of the finance sector should be evaluated, the remarkable growth and profitability numbers of Prime Finance PLC are no doubt quite extraordinary. This year too, in keeping with the management’s philosophy, the emphasis was on building more value to the benefit of all stakeholders.

During the year, the company was steered towards sustainable growth whilst relentlessly focusing on operational efficiencies. This enabled the company to demonstrate a remarkable financial performance amidst a challenging business environment.  

One of the key contributory factors behind this noteworthy success is the unique and sustainable business model which is being enormously backed by the parent company – Prime Lands Ltd., which is the market leader in Sri Lanka for real estate development. Financing the existing customers of Prime Group to purchase real estate is one of the most lucrative products where the group synergies are advantageously exploited. 

The recently conferred investment grade rating of BBB- (Stable Outlook) by ICRA Lanka Ltd. was also a blessing, establishing further trust among funding institutions and customers as they all have kept their faith with the company, which had its positive impact in turn, in getting the business volumes expanded.

Adopting the best governance practices as usual is one of the cornerstones of Prime Finance PLC towards balancing the performance in relation to the sustainability while safeguarding and creating maximum value for all the stakeholders throughout. 

Prime Finance PLC is fully geared to serve its ever-growing clientele with an extensive, comprehensive and individualised array of services under one stop-shop concept in order to meet all financial needs – be it a fixed deposit, business loan, leasing, educational loan, housing loan, real estate, etc.

The CEO said: “We do not want to become the market leader but to be one of the most stable, modern and efficient companies to satisfy the multi-faceted needs of each of our valuable customers with an unparalleled convenience to them, whose confidence and patronage we value greatly.” Prime Finance PLC is powered by Prime Group, the largest conglomerate in the real estate/residencies industry. The Prime Group was awarded the ‘Best Property Developer in 2018,’ rated as one of the ‘25 Great Work Places in Sri Lanka 2018’ for the fourth consecutive year and selected as one of ‘Asia’s 100 Greatest Brands’.