Standard Chartered Bank signs up with YBSL

Partnership to provide finance and support to microenterprises, SMEs in Jaffna

In a move to provide instant seed capital and business literacy to women entrepreneurs in the Jaffna District, Standard Chartered Bank signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with Youth Business Sri Lanka (YBSL), a project of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC).

From left Harin Malwatte, CEO CCC, Dr Anura Ekanayake, Chairman CCC, Anirvan Ghosh-Dastidar, CEO Standard Chartered Bank, Aruni Goonetilleke, Country Chief Risk Officer, Standard Chartered Bank

The MOA, signed by Standard Chartered Bank’s Chief Executive Anirvan Ghosh-Dastidar and CCC Chairman Dr. Anura Ekanayake, will ensure speedy expedition of seed capital to micro enterprises while building capacity on basic business skills.

The credit scheme, managed by YBSL, will help entrepreneurs disadvantaged through lack of access to capital and enhance their businesses while start-ups will gain from the several workshops and seminars jointly organised with the Jaffna Chamber of Commerce.

Ghosh-Dastidar said the bank was happy to partner YBSL: “Microfinance is a key area for development of entrepreneurship, essential for Sri Lanka’s overall economic development. We look forward to working closely with the chamber in making a generation of young entrepreneurs self-reliant.”

Volunteering for the cause will be some of Standard Chartered Bank’s financial experts, who as resource people will provide basic business counselling. Areas covered will be financial management, trade opportunities, banking perspectives.

YBSL provides concessionary credit to disadvantaged young entrepreneurs to start up or enhance an existing business as a means of improving livelihoods and to enter the mainstream of development activities through networking and social inclusion.

Standard Chartered has been operating in Sri Lanka for over 152 years and is one of the leading banks in the country. The bank operates 11 branches (including Sri Lanka’s first all women’s branch) and 12 ATMs in Sri Lanka.  It employs over 600 staff in Sri Lanka, of whom over 47% are females, and of whom 31% are in senior management roles. Standard Chartered Bank was awarded Global Bank of the Year and Bank of the Year Asia in December 2010 by Banker UK.

In Sri Lanka, Standard Chartered Bank has been committed to giving back to its community in areas such as HIV and AIDS workplace awareness and plays a leading role in financing curable blindness.