Special Foreign Investment Deposit Accounts from Commercial Bank
Sri Lanka's benchmark private bank to accept deposits from foreigners
and Sri Lankan expatriates.
The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has become one of the first Sri Lankan
banks to open its vaults to foreigners, enabling them to open bank
accounts following the Central Bank's decision to further liberalize
rules on local banks accepting deposits from persons resident outside
Sri Lanka.
Special Foreign Investment Deposit Accounts (SFIDA) can be opened in
designated Foreign Currencies and Sri Lankan Rupees. SFIDA Deposits are
offered in a variety of investment tenures to suit the requirements of
each customer.
Commercial Bank Slave Island branch |
Citizens of foreign states, Sri Lankan citizens resident outside Sri
Lanka, corporate bodies incorporated outside Sri Lanka and foreign
institutional investors such as country funds, mutual funds and regional
funds can now open SFIDAs with Commercial Bank.
"Through Sri Lanka's largest private sector bank, we would like to
provide great investment opportunities to overseas clients and at the
same time help the country attract Foreign Funds for its' development
activities. Investors would have the comfort of dealing with the Bank
enjoying the highest Credit Rating among all the local private banks."
Commercial Bank's Chief Operating Officer Ravi Dias said in a statement.
The Minimum Initial Deposit required to open a SFIDA is US$ 10,000 or
its equivalent in other designated Foreign Currencies or Sri Lankan
Rupees. All SFIDA accounts are exempted from Income Tax, Withholding of
Income Tax and Debit Tax. Foreign Currency will be accepted in the form
of Travellers' Cheques, Bank Drafts or Currency Notes brought into the
country by the account holder on declaration to Sri Lanka Customs as
applicable during his / her temporary visits to Sri Lanka. Outward
remittances, transfers to other SFIDAs, disbursements of the account
holder in Sri Lanka are possible.
Established in 1969, Commercial Bank is Sri Lanka's leading bank,
with dominant positions in consumer banking, treasury and securities
markets. The Bank owns a network of 166 computer-linked branches,
supermarket banking outlets and service centres and 317 ATMs in Sri
Lanka while its operations in Bangladesh have grown to nine branches.
The Bank has been adjudged Sri Lanka's 'Bank of the Year' six times
by 'The Banker,' a top notch global banking magazine and also been rated
the 'Best Bank in Sri Lanka' for ten consecutive years by the US based
'Global Finance' magazine. In July 2007, the Bank was named the 'Best
Bank' in Sri Lanka by another prestigious international financial
magazine 'Euromoney'. Commercial Bank has been rated AA+(lka) by Fitch
Ratings. |