ComBank raises Rs. 12 b as debentures are snapped up on opening day

The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has raised Rs. 12 billion in capital with its debenture issue closing after over subscription on its opening day on Tuesday 12 December.

The Bank offered an initial issue of 60 million Basel III compliant - Tier 2 listed rated unsecured subordinated redeemable debentures with a non-viability conversion feature, at the par value of Rs. 100 each, to raise Rs. 6 billion, with an option to issue up to another 60 million debentures to raise an additional Rs. 6 billion at the discretion of the Bank in the event of an over subscription of the initial issue.

The Bank said the issue is intended to further strengthen its Tier II capital base, raise funds for the expansion of its lending portfolio, and bridge maturity mismatches in the assets and liabilities portfolio of the Bank.

Commercial Bank Managing Director/CEO Sanath Manatunge said: “We are heartened by the response of institutional and individual investors to the investment opportunity offered by the Bank. Commercial Bank has displayed remarkable resilience as well as foresight in its response to the economic challenges impacting the market, and our growth trajectory is well planned. We welcome the confidence of investors in the future potential of the Bank, as evidenced by the response to our latest debenture issue.” 

For the nine months ending September the Commercial Bank Group reported gross income of Rs. 255.963 billion, total operating income of Rs. 86.45 billion, profit before tax of 

Rs. 25.031 billion and profit after tax of Rs. 14.764 billion, with total assets reaching 

Rs. 2.526 trillion, loans and advances totalling Rs. 1.239 trillion and total deposits exceeding Rs 2.038 trillion as at 30 September.