Corporate

Union Bank profits up by 72%

5Union Bank has recorded a remarkable growth in its profitability for the year ended 31st December, 2008 with pre-tax profits increasing by 84% and post-tax profits posting a growth of 72%, compared to 2007.

These results were possible largely due to substantial increases in the Bank's earnings by way of interest and non-interest income.

Net interest income increased by 50% whilst non-interest income comprising of commission and fee income and foreign exchange earnings improved by 19% YOY.

The return on assets (ROA) shows a commendable 0.94% pre-tax, as against the preceding year's comparative figure of 0.63%.

The Bank also made admirable progress in enhancing its Deposits and Advances portfolio during 2008. Total Customer Deposits grew by 17%, while Advances increased by 26% YOY. These growth statistics compare well with the industry growth averages.

The Bank was also successful in attracting additional capital during the year, and successfully met the minimum regulatory capital requirements required by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

The Bank has a network of 14 well established Branches located in the city of Colombo, as well as its suburbs such as Nugegoda, Moratuwa, Ja-Ela and in other key locations namely Negombo, Kandy, Kurunegala and Matara, through which an extensive range of personal and corporate banking facilities and other financial services such as pawning and leasing are extended.

The Bank since its inception, has been a leader in IT driven banking solutions and branches are linked through a real time on line network. Web based products such as bank roaming, internet banking as well as telephone banking are some of the facilities on offer to its customers.

In addition to its own network of ATMs, customers of Union Bank also enjoy the benefit of having access to Sampath Bank's islandwide network of ATMs numbering approx. 160 at present for their local cash withdrawal requirements.

Further, in view of the `Cirrus' connectivity, customers are also able to withdraw from over a Million `Cirrus' enabled ATMs locally as well as worldwide.

Union Bank's attractive and innovative deposit products include the `Piyawara' Minors Savings Scheme, the `Weekly Interest' Fixed Deposit Scheme and the recently introduced `UB Ultra Saver' Account which gives the highest return on Savings with the convenience of flexible withdrawals through the ATM network.

The Bank also offers a unique cheque clearing facility which provides its customers the convenience of depositing their cheques for collection at any of the branches of the Bank upto 4 p.m. daily.

The Bank focuses largely on lending to the Small and Medium Enterprises Sector (SME) and offers a full range of lending products including Leasing Facilities.

Its personal credit facilities include competitively priced Pawning Services.

The Bank's highly respected Board of Directors headed by Ajita de Zoysa, Chairman, consists of several commercial and investment banking professionals, leading legal personalities and successful entrepreneurs, as well as a member of the Royal Family of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The Bank's Senior Management was further consolidated recently with the engagement of several high calibre professionals in the fields of Human Resources, International Business Development, Corporate Finance and Information Technology.

To chart a new direction for the future, the Bank engaged the renowned business consultancy firm MTI Consulting to develop a Strategic Plan.

This plan will position the Bank as a niche player in the industry focusing on flexible and deliverable solutions coupled with speed and efficiency in pursuit of its thrust to be one of the key players in commercial banking within the next 5 years.

Amana Takaful records a billion in GWP

Amana Takaful Insurance recorded its first year of premium income above Rs. 1 billion in 2008 together with a significant improvement to the bottom line, fittingly celebrating its 10th year of operations in Sri Lanka. As the pioneer and leader of the Takaful concept that embodies mutuality and ethics, this milestone demonstrates the acceptance and development of the Takaful concept in Sri Lanka. "Ranked among the top eight players in the General Insurance sector and ranked ninth place in the Life Insurance sector in Sri Lanka is a significant achievement for us at Amana Takaful Insurance. Despite many adversities, both local and global, we have recorded above industry average growth since our inception. Topping the Rs. 1 billion mark is our biggest achievement to date and we will continue to grow from strength to strength," said Tyeab Akbarally, Chairman, Amana Takaful Insurance.

Gross Written Premium (GWP) grew by 26.56 percent to record Rs. 1,024 million, which is well above the industry average. Life insurance showed major growth where GWP grew by 44 percent to reach Rs. 188 million. General Insurance recorded a growth of 23 percent to achieve a GWP of Rs. 835 million. Total assets grew by 14.87 percent to reach Rs. 1,053 million in 2008 as against Rs. 917 million in 2007. The company also achieved a significant improvement over 2007 in its bottom line to reduce its Operating Loss by 65.7 percent. Prudent underwriting and improved investment income contributed mainly to this, showing much promise for Amana Takaful Insurance. "Though our investment income grew significantly, one of our main challenges remain to be the dearth of Islamic investment opportunities in the country. Whilst conventional insurance companies in Sri Lanka largely benefit from the high returns on investment, as a Takaful operator, our investment opportunities are limited.

Fitch assigns 'F1 (Ika)' LOLC's paper issue

LOLC's (Lanka ORIX Leasing Company PLC) proposed commercial paper issue was rated 'F1 (lka)' by Fitch Rating, indicating the strongest capacity for timely payment.

"The rating reflects the absence of an adverse shift in the maturities of LOLC's interest bearing assets and liabilities, and the company's relatively good access to bank borrowings," Fitch said in a statement.

The proposed issuance of the commercial paper for which an F1 rating is assigned to LOLC, reflects that the company has the lowest default risk relative to all others within the country.

LOLC, a premier Total Financial Solutions Provider in Sri Lanka pioneered the concept of Leasing and Factoring to the Country which immensely contributed towards the development of the SME sector.

Being a leading financial services conglomerate in the country the LOLC Group offers a range of financial solutions such as Factoring and Working Capital, Insurance and Fixed Deposits & Savings,

CDB appoints Independent Directors

The Ceylinco Development Bank (CDB) has appointed two independent directors, Harindranath Gunawardena and Namal Chrishantha Gomes, in facilitating the process of reconstituting its Board of Directors. Harindranath Gunawardena is at present the Managing Director of Harmon Solutions (Pvt) Ltd, a Management Consultancy and Process Re-engineering company.

Namal Chrishantha Gomes is the Founder and President Partner of Gomes and Company (Chartered Accountants).

The appointment of Independent Directors will further strengthen the CDB's Board of Directors and will enable the independent directors to head the Sub-Committees of the Board.