Get the assistance of a foreign Central Bank to probe NDB issue: Ravi K

By Yohan Perera   

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake should intervene and get the assistance of any foreign Central Bank to carry out a forensic audit to conduct a probe on Rs 13.2 billion fraud at the National Development Bank (NDB), Democratic National Alliance (DNA) MP Ravi Karunanayake said yesterday.   

“The President should get involved in resolving the issue in his capacity as the Minister in charge of Finance. He should seek the assistance of either the Central Bank of India, the Bank of England or even the Central Bank of Singapore,” Mr Karunanayake told Daily Mirror.   

“We have been told that the government has decided to allow the Central Bank to get a forensic audit conducted. How can the Central Bank decide on who would be conducting the forensic audit when it is also an accused party,” he questioned. 

Also, the MP alleged that the scam is continuing as some new banks have complained on suspicious transactions.   

In a decisive regulatory response to a staggering Rs. 13.2 billion internal fraud, it was reported that the Central Bank of Sri Lanka has mandated National Development Bank PLC to undergo a comprehensive forensic audit led by international experts. The regulator has officially announced that the commercial lender, in consultation with the Central Bank, is finalising arrangements to engage a leading international firm to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident.  

The Central Bank stated in its release that it continues to closely monitor the day-to-day developments surrounding the bank. Recent industry updates confirmed that the scale of the financial misconduct remains estimated at approximately Rs. 13.2 billion, representing roughly 1.3 per cent of the bank’s total assets, with no official indication that the overall size of the illicit transactions has expanded.