Orient Finance reaches Rs. 2 b mark in deposits

Wednesday, 30 July 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Orient Finance PLC achieved another milestone by surpassing the Rs. 2 billion threshold in deposits during the first week of July. Having reached Rs. 1 billion in deposits a mere six months ago, doubling the deposit base to trigger one billion within a remarkably short span is indeed commendable. Established as a specialised leasing company in 2003 with leasing, hire purchase and debt factoring as its core businesses, the company broadened its product range to include fixed deposits and gold loans, subsequent to being licensed by the Central Bank as a Finance Company under the Finance Business Act No. 42 of 2011 in June 2012. Thus, the full product suite of the company now consists of leasing and hire purchase, debt factoring, gold loans, and acceptance of fixed deposits. The company is also listed on the Diri Savi Board of the Colombo Stock Exchange, with a BBB- (stable outlook) investor grade rating from Lanka Rating Agency.

Functioning in the capacity of Assistant General Manager – Fund Mobilisation, Geethika Wickramasinghe, who has been in charge of the unit since its inception, attributes this success to the commitment of the Deposit Mobilising unit, aptly supported by regional managers as well as branch managers and the stability that the company has established over a decade of service. Further, she believes that this achievement is a reflection of the confidence the depositors have placed in the stability of the company. OFP operates 23 fully-fledged branches and customer convenience centres located in Ampara, Anuradhapura, Avissawella, Colombo, Galle, Gampaha, Kalutara, Kandy, Kegalle, Kochchikade, Kurunegala, Matara, Welisara, Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Vavuniya, Batticaloa, Horana, Ratnapura, Negombo, Nugegoda, Chilaw and Avissawella. Orient Finance PLC is backed by the knowledge and experience of a dynamic management team and a Board of Directors consisting of leading professionals. The Board of Directors of the company consists of Dr. Dayanath Jayasuriya PC as Chairman, Prakash Schaffter, Ramesh Schaffter, Ananda Atukorala, Lakshmi Gunetilake, Anil Tittawella PC and Sarath Wikramanayake as Directors. Suresh Amerasekera functions as the Chief Executive Officer.