E. B. Creasy bounces back into LMD Top 50

After a conspicuous absence from the LMD Top 50 last year, E. B. Creasy and Co. Ltd. bounced back to 18th place this year again displaying the resilience and tenacity that has seen this 128-year old company through some often interesting and frequently unwelcome changes in policy and world affairs.

The House of E. B. Creasy, founded in 1878, is a long-standing member of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, while its wholly owned subsidiary Darley Butler and Co. Ltd. enjoys the distinction of being one of the three oldest members.

E. B. Creasy, which continues to expand through internal growth of its core businesses of manufacturing, general trading and logistics, is also a highly diversified holding company with interests in hotels, plantation management and chemicals with controlling interests in several quoted companies among them the blue-chips Lankem Ceylon, as well as Laxapana Batteries, Agarapatana and Kotagala Plantations, and Sigiriya Village Hotel.

With strong performance over the last three financial years, recognised in the stock market by a ten-fold increase in share prices in 2005, it was indeed surprising that the E.B. Creasy group did not make the cut for the LMD 50 last year.

However, on deeper examination it was found that, due to delays in the preparation of subsidiaries' accounts, and thereby a delay in the group accounts, their financial information was made available after LMD's cut-off date.

This was the reason for its exclusion, said an executive from the accounts team.