ComBank raises remittance stakes with ‘Gedarata Thégi’

Sri Lanka’s benchmark private sector bank is offering recipients of remittances the chance to win a veritable treasure trove of 101 gifts – a car, four scooters, 12 LED TVs and 84 cash prizes in its exciting ‘Gedarata Thégi’ (Gifts for the Home) promotion unveiled on 18th January.

HSBC to shift staff from Britain to Paris after Brexit

REUTERS: HSBC will move staff responsible for generating around a fifth of its UK-based trading revenue to Paris following Britain’s exit from the European Union, Chief Executive Stuart Gulliver said yesterday.

AICPA urges S. Africa’s audit regulator to reject mandatory audit firm rotation

The Association of International Certified Professional Accountants (AICPA) has voiced its strong opposition to a plan by South Africa’s Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA) to implement mandatory audit firm rotation (MAFR).  

NDB offers balance transfer option at minimum 2.5%

Credit cards have now become a common mode of transaction for many, and are becoming increasingly dependent on more than one credit card. 

Bureaucracy seen among key reasons for poor export performance

Sri Lanka’s complacent bureaucracy has caused exporters to give up or move their businesses to other countries, which has mainly accounted for the country’s abysmal export performance, the Colombo-based think tank Verité Research said, yesterday.

Sri Lanka borrows US $ 125mn from WB to modernize agriculture

Sri Lanka has borrowed US $ 125 million from the World Bank (WB) to modernize its agriculture sector, as the country aims to make the sector more efficient and attractive as a modern business,

SriLankan Cargo sets new record for cargo handling

SriLankan Cargo, the freight handling arm of SriLankan Airlines, set a new record for the amount of cargo handled at the Cargo Centre of Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) with a massive total of 239,636 tonnes in 2016, a remarkable growth of 12.88 percent over the 212,277 tonnes in the previous year.

Lankan delegation holds discussion with WEF Exec. Chairman

The Sri Lankan delegation in Davos, Switzerland, led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, met with World Economic Forum (WEF) Founder and Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab yesterday. The picture shows Wickremesinghe,

Power regulator allows instalment payments for new electricity connections

The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL), the electricity sector regulator, has introduced a guideline

EDEX Expo 2017 to kick off tomorrow

 Sri Lanka’s largest education exhibition and job fair – EDEX Expo – will be held from January 20 to 22, 2017, at the BMICH Colombo and on January 27 and 28, 2017 at Kandy City Centre  (KCC), Kandy. 

StanChart includes SL in Jan. 24 Global Research Briefing

Standard Chartered’s Global Research Team has included Sri Lanka as part of its Global Research Briefing circuit, and will conduct a closed-door exclusive session entitled ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ for the bank’s clients on Tuesday, January 24, 2017. 

Hendricks Tea outlet opening brings quality aromas to Kiribathgoda

Amid a splash of colours and quality aromas, Hendricks Tea, one of Sri Lanka’s leading brands that produces finest and freshest Ceylon Tea, launched its newest outlet in Kiribathgoda, in a bid to popularize itsfinest teas at reasonable prices. The new outlet in is located in Kandy Road, Kiribathgoda.  

UTE uses Six Sigma to work with corporate clients

Many companies around the world adopt the Six Sigma Methodology in an effort to improve any area. 

Renuka Foods expands range with wafer sticks launch

POP has been a household name in Sri Lanka for over a decade with a range of mouth-watering snacks that has excited the taste buds of Sri Lankans across all corners. 

Vision Care expands with five new branch openings

With a core focus on expanding Vision Care’s range of optical services to a wider majority of areas covering all major districts in the country, the eye care solutions provider has embarked on yet another feat of branch expansion with their newest branches opened in Gampaha, Kuliyapitiya, 

Hameedia greets the New Year with a dynamic approach and strategic changes to its leadership

On the first day of 2017, Sri Lanka’s leading menswear specialist, Hameedia, embarked on the new year by gathering at the factory premises to focus on their personal

Alann Lopez takes up appointment as OMG Sri Lanka’s COO in the New Year

The Omnicom Media Group of Sri Lanka celebrated the New Year with the appointment of a new Chief Operations Officer. Made up of 50% method and 50% madness

Sri Lanka is paying past bills, planning for the future

2015 was a major turning point for Sri Lanka as a nation. It was a year that saw the Sri Lankan people reject a corrupt and authoritarian regime led by Mahinda Rajapaksa and move decisively towards democracy and communal reconciliation. 

An insight into new auditors’ report

Before deliberating on the new auditors’ report, it is important to know the sequence of events that created the necessity to bring in changes to the auditors’ report. At the outset, it is worthy of noting that ‘auditing’ has become the mostly misunderstood profession in the eyes of the public. It seems gone were the days the auditor was seen as a watch dog rather than a blood hound.  

Peopalizing governance – Acute need of the hour

So, almost 70 years on since our independence we are now discussing the need to return sovereign power back to the grassroots, thus it has taken us all this time to realize that bit-by-bit, the power to govern ourselves has been carefully and continuously removed from us; notwithstanding Article 3 of the constitution that proclaims that sovereignty of this republic lies in us, its people and is inalienable.

2017: Year of the connected customer

We are now squarely in the age of the customer. Customers are more empowered and choose how and where they want to engage the brands they buy products or services from. 

Sri Lanka’s overall PMI expands during December festive season

Expansions in Sri Lanka’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) this December showed that both manufacturing and services sectors have performed well during the festive season, according to the Central Bank. 

Bairaha to invest additional Rs.239mn in feed manufacturing and storage facility project

Bairaha Farms PLC (BFP) yesterday announced additional investments amounting to Rs.239 million to the ongoing construction of its animal feed manufacturing and storage facility.

Tobacco giant BAT buys out US firm Reynolds in mega-deal

AFP: British American Tobacco agreed yesterday to pay almost US $50 billion for control of US peer Reynolds American in a move which targets the lucrative United States market and the fast-growing e-cigarette sector.

Tourist arrivals to Maldives up 15% in November recording highest YoY growth

Tourist arrivals to Maldives rose by 15.9 percent in November, recording its highest year-on-year (YoY) growth in 2016 to 104, 572 as the arrivals from all major regions picked up from a year ago but the visitors from China, its largest sourcing market  continued to falter, the data released by the Maldivian Department of Immigration and Emigration showed. 

Rupee marginally higher on banks’ dollar sales

REUTERS: The Sri Lankan rupee traded marginally higher yesterday in light volume as foreign banks sold dollars, but the market expects the currency to weaken after the Central Bank allowed flexibility in the exchange rate, dealers said.

Asia drives rise in 2016 world tourism numbers: UN

AFP: The number of international tourists rose by four percent worldwide to 1.2 billion in 2016 as Asians travelled more, but security fears hit visitor arrivals in Europe, the World Tourism Organization (WTO) said yesterday.

Lankan delegation in Davos says several trade pacts will be finalized by June

Sri Lanka will finalize trade agreements with India, China and Singapore by June this year, the Sri Lankan delegation attending the World Economic Forum said yesterday. 

World’s leading open source provider upbeat on Lankan prospects

As Sri Lanka attempts to gain momentum in transforming its economy with the help of digitisation, the world’s leading open source provider, Red Hat yesterday expressed confidence in its entrance to the IT landscape boosting the growth pace and efficiency of state and private enterprises.

CICRA Campus launches first Bachelor of Cyber Security degree

In partnership with Australia’s top ranked Deakin University, CICRA Campus, the pioneering cyber security training provider, is introducing the first ever Bachelor of Cyber Security degree to Sri Lanka. “Parents should consider a cyber security degree for their ambitious child as an alternative to simply following a general IT degree. Cyber security profession is growing rapidly Sri Lanka and globally,” says Boshan Dayaratne, Gr