Under managing agent MBSL:

TFC attracts over Rs 500 m new deposits

Sanjeevi JAYASURIYA

The Merchant Bank of Sri Lanka re-activated all the business units of The Finance Company (TFC) and was successful in attracting over Rs 500 million new deposits since June last year.

“We have been meeting the obligations of paying interest and part of capital of TFC. Over Rs five billion was paid as interest and also a capital re-payment of over Rs seven billion”, Merchant Bank of Sri Lanka (MBSL) Chairman, Janaka Ratnayake told Daily News Business.

“We have achieved good progress in other financial companies by re-launching and re-commencing activities. We are confident that 2010 can bring back stability to these financial companies,” he said.

“We are looking at a 20 percent overall increase in MBSL group profitability. The MBSL manages four troubled Ceylinco Group financial companies as the managing agent appointed by the Central Bank Monetary Board namely The Finance Co. Ltd, Asian Finance Ltd., Finance and Guarantee - renamed as Island Finance and Ceylinco Investment and Reality with a total liability of over Rs. 40 billion. The progress made in these entities is very encouraging,” he said.

We acquired the MBSL Savings Bank, a specialized savings bank where we intervened at the right time and brought back stability regaining confidence and recommencing activities. We created a positive business climate and the MBSL Savings Bank made a profit over Rs 45 million, and with the 100 percent acquisition of the MBSL Insurance Company also in 2009, from which, after a re-structuring and refining process we are targeting a revenue of Rs one billion this year, he said.

The MBSL Group of Companies comprise a merchant bank, a financial and insurance company, a savings bank and a stock brokering company. The Merchant Bank reached budgeted top and bottom lines and is an indirect Government entity ranked in terms of profit for employees. The Merchant Credit of Sri Lanka, the financial arm of the MBSL Group had a very good year with a revenue increase of 15 percent and a 100 percent increase in profit before tax.