RDB ventures into NE

by Lalin FERNANDOPULLE

The Regional Development Bank (RDB) which is focused on rural livelihood development plans to open 15 branches in the North and the East this year.

General Manager/CEO, Ratnasiri Siriwardena said that RDB has identified land and has commenced work on the project which is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.

He said work on sites at Vauniya, Mannar and Chenkaladi is in progress and added that many of the regional branches will begin operations soon.

RDB a licensed specialised development bank was set up to upgrade the scocio-economic standard of rural and semi rural communities by inculcating the saving habit among children and providing financial assistance to families to begin income generating employment.

"RDB has currently 3.5 million customers and it plans to increase the customer base to 4.5 million by end of this year", Siriwardena said.

Regional Rural Development Bank (RRDB) which was set up in 1985 as a regional development bank was amalgamated from 17 banks into six banks viz Rajarata, Kandurata, Ruhuna, Uva, Sabaragamuwa and Wayamba bank in 1998.

The six regional banks were amalgamated last year to enhance the capital base and form a strong financial organisation for regional development.

The bank currently has 254 branches islandwide and a deposit base of Rs. 39 billion and a loan portfolio of Rs. 38 billion of which over 60 percent has been granted to agriculture and agri-based industries and SME sector industries such as dairy, poultry and fisheries.

Siriwardena said unlike commercial banks that serve large-scale business organisations, the RDB is focused on supporting regional and rural SME entrepreneurs.

"Microfinancing plays a pivotal role in rural development and the RDB supports this endeavour through its livelihood development programs", he said.

The RDB opened its Western province office at Miriswatte Gampaha on February 11. The bank has obtained approval to commence foreign currency encashment and hopes to start money exchange operations within the next two months.

The RDB came under heavy criticism at the amalgamation last year for not being based in the provinces as a regional bank. The bank's headoffice is based in Colombo.