Commercial Bank in milestone remittance agreement with Doha Bank

Sri Lankans living and working in Qatar who bank with Doha Bank can now electronically transfer funds from those accounts to their accounts at the Commercial Bank of Ceylon, following a milestone agreement between the two banks.

The agreement also facilitates effecting of remittances online to beneficiaries who have accounts at other banks in Sri Lanka. Beneficiaries can collect their remittance money in cash from any of 214 branches and service points of Commercial Bank of Ceylon, of which 35 locations are open 365 days of the year, and one location near the international airport operates 24/7.  

The signing ceremony at the Doha Bank Tower at West Bay was attended by, among others, Doha Bank (International Banking) Head Chris Fellner and Commercial Bank’s Assistant General Manager Operations Palitha Perera and Senior Manager e Banking Pradeep Banduwansa.

The Gulf Times newspaper of 18 March quotes Fellner as saying: “The tie-up will provide an opportunity to extend our services to the Sri Lankan community in Qatar by meeting their banking and remittance requirements. Similar facilities will soon be available from Doha Bank branches in UAE and Kuwait.”

Commenting on the agreement, Perera said: “This association is a commitment of the bank to provide a cost effective service to Sri Lankan nationals who live in Qatar. The arrangement will enable us to provide our customers convenient and secure services by expanding our remittance network from GCC Countries to Sri Lanka.”

The only Sri Lankan Bank listed in the World’s Top 1,000 Banks, the Commercial Bank of Ceylon has been adjudged ‘Best Bank in Sri Lanka’ for 13 consecutive years by ‘Global Finance’ Magazine and has won multiple awards as the country’s best bank from ‘The Banker,’ ‘FinanceAsia,’ ‘Euromoney’ and ‘Trade Finance’ magazines.