Reminiscences

‘Forbes Ceylon had unprecedented global investment opportunity’

Ravi LADDUWAHETTY

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Founder Chief Executive Officer of Forbes (Ceylon) Ltd and former Chairman of Forbes and Walker Ltd, Sri Lanka Tea Board, Public Enterprises Reform Commission, Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation Ltd and Bank of Ceylon Chrishantha Priyange Richard Perera reminisces

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A prime investment opportunity with Rs. 1.2 billion at hand for cash- rich local company Forbes Ceylon Ltd in an Indian coffee producing cum marketer was squandered despite being armed with the approvals to invest globally without having to get case by case approvals.

“That was the rise and the fall of Forbes Ceylon Ltd which was floated in a concept by the Sri Lanka born Christopher Ondaatjie whose Ondaatjie Corporation of Canada was also listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, but the investment opportunities which were mulled never bore fruition,” Forbes Ceylon founder CEO Chrishantha told Daily News Reminiscences at his Lake Gardens, Rajagiriya residence.

“My designation as the founder Forbes Ceylon Ltd (FCL) CEO when it became a public listed company was by virtue of my being a longstanding member of the Forbes and Walker Main Board, he said.

Ajit Jayaratne was the then Chairman of Forbes and Walker Ltd, yet a private company and that may be one of the primary reasons behind my being appointed as the Forbes Ceylon CEO being the next most senior Forbes and Walker Director, he said.

Publicly listed

FCL was publicly listed as the merged entity between Forbes and Walker Ltd and the Ondaatjie Corporation. The decision of the merged entity was to maintain the unlisted Forbes and Walker as very much a private company to maintain its tradition past of being a frontline broking company for tea, commodities and shares, one time being the top Sri Lankan corporate to do so.

With the creation of FCL, all the assets of the Forbes and Walker were transferred to wholly owned subsidiaries. There was Forbes Foods which carried in with the food related business including Soy Foods, Forbes Plantations which had the management contracts for Balangoda and Maskeliya Plantations, Forbes Air Services which had the General Sales Agency for Emirates and also Forbes Tourism which also had Tour East.

With the diversity of the business, an Initial Public Offering was floated which brought in Rs. 2.4 billion making Forbes Ceylon the then corporate with the largest issued capital with most of the funds coming from the Christopher Ondaatjie - led Ondaatjie Corporation which also resulted in it becoming the sole shareholder of the privately owned Forbes and Walker, whose Directors also got shares in Ondaatjie Corporation.

The Ondaatjie Corporation which was to acquire the Forbes and Walker and the Forbes Directors buying shares in a foreign company both had lots of formalities in getting the approvals from the Exchange Control Department, Chrishantha said. With the company raising a record Rs. 2.4 billion out of which Rs. 1.2 billion was incurred in the existing business, the remaining Rs. 1.2 billion was available for investment here and overseas making it an unprecedented case where FCL could have invested in any part of the world without case by case approvals from the local authorities, Chrishantha said.

Regional tourism

Two specific areas that the company had been bullish in expanding into the region had been tea and tourism.

Forbes and Walker’s traditional association with tea and Christopher Ondaatjie’s traditional upbringing on a tea plantation were the reasons. Diversification into regional tourism was also mulled with Maldives and the giant Indian subcontinent as well given that acquisitions in Maldives in the pipeline given the competitiveness of the rates.

The operating businesses at Forbes in broking was also the strength of the group and with share trading, any financial related activity was also within the attention of the new FCL management.

“One of the key investments that Christopher Ondaatjie contemplated and the management actively encouraged was an investment in an Indian coffee producer cum marketer. This was almost a done deal. But a withdrawal at the last minute on a final decision by Ondaatjie himself was indeed regretted later,” Chrishantha said. The Indian producer had found other investors and they have really grown by leaps and bounds today.

The rise and fall of FCL came as Ondaatjie Corporation shareholders which was a Public Listed Company on the Toronto Stock Exchange, agitating with the Canadian company being a cash cow itself and with the local Forbes Ceylon not having a proper investment strategy that they had to spell out to their own shareholders.

With Ondaatjie himself deciding to divest the company and wanting to lead a life of leisure, the Corporation that he had controlling shares was sold to a giant named PICO which was later renamed Global Equity Corporation.

Unfortunately, PICO- turned Global Equity Corporation did not have an abiding interest in Sri Lanka or the Forbes and Walker and Forbes Ceylon assets and were wanting to exit. Then the new buyer became Vanik Incorporation Ltd, which also had its own share of problems.

Dovetailing all these developments, Ajit Jayaratne retired as Chairman and Chrishantha took over in 1999. It was also simultaneously that the Merrill Fernando led MJF Group was made to be interested and the company changed hands again.

With Chrishantha taking over Forbes Ceylon Ltd as CEO, he was traditionally “divorced” from the tea auctions. Earlier, Plantations Industries Minister Gamini Dissanayake, in seeking some advice from him wanted me to take over as Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tea Board in the late 1980s which he accepted with the approvals of the Forbes Board. After one year, he returned to Forbes.

Trainee Executive

He was invited by the UNP Government to be Chairman of Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation from 2002 to 2003, Public Enterprises Reforms Commission from 2004 till the Government changed. But the shortest assignment that he did was as Chairman of the Bank of Ceylon in the abridged UNP Government, lasting a mere three months as Parliament was dissolved prematurely.

he Bank of Ceylon and PERC were in the same building and all I had to do was to walk across, he said.

Chrishantha joined Forbes as a Trainee Executive at the tender age of 17 leaving Royal College, Colombo prematurely and influenced by father Neville James Richard Perera who was a serving Executive there. The father had assured him of being sent to UK to study to be a Chartered Accountant had the Forbes job failed.

Chrishantha was promoted to the man board at 31 years which he succinctly described as “being in the right place at the right time.”

Chrishantha was an outstanding centre three quarter in the Royal College Under 17 rugby team, athlete and swimmer, but leaving college early deprived him of the Blue and Gold first XV jersey and a possible Prefectship.

However, son Shehan outdid the father playing in the Bradby series encounters against Himesh Gunatilleke’s Trinitians with the only encounters in the entire series scores were tied in both legs for the first time in a 3-3 gridlock in 1992.

In a strange and rare family tradition son Shehan whose second name is also Richard is the member of the fourth generation to carry the same forename with father Chrishantha, grandfather Neville and great grand father before him.

Not fully retired, he now serves on some plantation company boards as Chairman in some and Director in others which he describes as being comfortably busy.

PUM Netherlands Senior Experts pledge more technical assistance

Sarath Malalasekera

The PUM Netherlands Senior Experts Country coordinator for Sri Lanka Jan Kuilman visited Sri Lanka recently to observe the progress in 2008 and to make plans for PUM assistance to Sri Lanka in 2009.

During the past 12 years the PUM Netherlands Senior Experts formerly known as the Netherlands Management Cooperation Program have assisted over 350 Small and Medium industries in Sri Lanka in every sector of Industry and service organisations in Sri Lanka. The program is funded by the Dutch Government and the Federation of Dutch Employers said the Country representative S.P.C. Kumarasinghe.

To support the Government’s drive to develop the industrial sector in Sri Lanka PUM Netherlands Senior Experts decided to add five more Expert visits to Sri Lanka making 25 expert visits for the 2008 program, said Kumarasinghe.

It covered three Cut flower foliage for expert farms, three distribution and marking services, Detergent Industry, Printing Industry, Hotel Management, Bakery Technology, Asparagus Farm, Agro Food processing, Die and Mould Making, Garment Industry, Coconut Oil Extraction, refrigerated Display Cabinet manufacture, Stationery Industry and Fishery Harbour Operation and Management.

Eleven industry personnel at the management level were offered training in the Netherlands, Kumarasinghe said.

The special feature this year was to provide technical assistance to the Ceylon Fisheries Harbour Corporation (CFHC) in fishery harbour operation and management.

Kumarasinghe said that PUM Netherlands Senior Experts will provide advice and training in operation and management of the new Dikowita Fishery Harbour which will be funded by the Government of the Netherlands.

The PUM expert Theo Dekker has visited Sri Lanka for a need assessment visit and two officials of the Ceylon Fishery Harbour Corporation were given the initial training in the Netherlands. Continuous assistance in harbour operation and Management will be provided by PUM Netherlands Senior Experts during the next two years, Kumarasinghe said.

Singaporean cuisine

Witness and partake in a feast of typical Singaporean dishes in one buffet any evening at Long Feng, the elite eatery of Singaporean cuisine at the Trans Asia Colombo from January 22-31, a media release from the hotel said.

Chef Zi Quiang Zan fondly known as Jason will present his new menu with an extravagant food spread.

Cuttlefish with spicy garlic sauce, Spicy prawn with mango salad, Green bean salad with roasted sesame, Homemade Kim chi, Bean curd ball and Seafood cream soup will give you a sensational start before you savour the main dishes such as Crispy chicken in chillie powder, Wok fried lamb in black pepper sauce, Wok fried prawn in Singapore chillie sauce, Singapore style fish curry, Wok fried mixed vegetable in garlic sauce and Seafood fried rice.

Desserts like Kuwy lapis, Peasang goring, Onda onda, Matha jambu and Geylan custard will give you a feeling of a completely satisfying meal.