Business

LOLC at the helm of corporate sector due to its impressive performance

Published

6 years ago

2020/08/16

LOLC Group (LOLC), the premier blue chip conglomerate, concluded another financial year on a high note as per the results for the year ended March 31, 2020.

LOLC posted an impressive Rs.19.8 billion Profit after Tax (PAT) for the year in comparison to Rs.19.6 billion PAT in the last year, becoming the most profitable listed entity in Sri Lanka for two consecutive years. In a short span of time, LOLC has truly emerged as a “Sri Lankan global player” having operations in over 10 countries.

While the Group performance was affected by local externalities, such as the Easter Sunday attack, the subdued economic growth and the political instability in FY19/20 that resulted the company to record dips in the net interest income and hikes in impairment charges, LOLC has been able to enjoy its stellar performance largely based on the earnings stemming from its overseas financial operations and the gain on a bargain purchase of Rs. 5.4 billion from the acquisition of the largest sugar production plantation company in Africa. Moving forward, LOLC is well set to realise the financial synergies generated from the PRASAC divestment through realigning the capital position of the Group.

Established 40 years ago, LOLC has spearheaded the Small & Medium Enterprise (SME) lending and microfinance revolution in Sri Lanka and the region. Excelling on a national level, LOLC has now established itself as a leading microfinance institution in the countries which it operates.

With its financial strength and the perfected micro finance business model in the region, the Group is now well-positioned to expand its operations beyond Asia to the African continent where a substantial opportunity lies in serving a large Bottom of the Pyramid population. Overseas expansion has not only offered LOLC diversified revenue streams with increased financial stability, but also has added resilience with a well-spread risk profile.

LOLC already made its debut to Africa by acquiring a microfinance bank in Nigeria in October 2019 and by starting LOLC Finance Zambia as a green field project. In FY 2020/21, LOLC will focus on consolidating its existing businesses while pursuing promising investments in Africa and Asia for long-term value creation.

The Group announced the board’s decision to sell its 70% stake in PRASAC to the South Korean KB Kookmin Bank for a consideration of $603 million in January 2020. LOLC received the relevant regulatory approval in March 2020 and concluded the transaction on April 13, 2020. PRASAC claims $3.3 billion in assets, $2.7 billion in portfolio, $1.8 billion deposits and $133 million Profit before Tax (PBT) for the 12 months ending March 2020.

Despite the sale of PRASAC, LOLC still has a foothold in the fastest growing Southeast Asian country via LOLC Cambodia, the fourth largest Microfinance Institution (MFI) in terms of portfolio size. The company has recorded an impressive performance with a 57% YoY growth of its earnings to conclude the year.

The group owns 97% of LOLC Cambodia that has an asset base surpassing $1 billion, a gross loan portfolio of $857 million, a deposit base of $501 million and a recorded profit of $34.6 million. With its superior process efficiencies and the right product mix, the company now leads the industry in terms of profitability.

Venturing into Myanmar in 2013 as a greenfield operation, LOLC Myanmar Microfinance Company Limited has now become the third largest among the 176 MFIs in the country with an asset base of $109 million, a portfolio of $77.8 million, and a growing deposit book of $13.8 million. LOLC Myanmar has seen an exceptional performance in FY2019/20 with over 94% YoY growth in loan book, total assets and deposits.

In 2017, the Government of Pakistan and the Sultanate of Oman invited LOLC to take up the major shareholding of their joint venture – Pak Oman Microfinance Bank, in recognition of LOLC’s outstanding contribution to the microfinance community. The Group ventured into Indonesia in 2018, acquiring the controlling interest in PT Sarana Sumut Ventura (SSV), expanding its global footprint. SSV is now well-placed to capture the industry potential in a country that has a massive Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) market and over 100 million Bottom of the Pyramid population.

Tapping into other neighbouring emerging markets, LOLC invested in the Philippines through LOLC ASKI Finance and LOLC Bank Philippines (a thrift bank) in 2019. These entities collectively account for $11.8 million loan portfolio. In the year under review, the Group made its first finance sector investment in the African region by acquiring a controlling stake of FinaTrust Microfinance Bank in Nigeria, the country with the largest population in Africa.

Today, with the financial sector representation in eight countries along with promising investments in Asia and Africa in the coming years, LOLC has successfully established itself as a strong global financial conglomerate. With this standing, the Group is poised to be a global financial catalyst with a multi-currency, multi-geographic microfinance and SME platform in the future.

In spite of the challenging and unexpected external shocks, LOLC Finance PLC (LOFC) continued to hold its market leadership position amongst the Non-Banking Financial Institutions (NBFIs) in the country with an asset base of Rs.192 billion, a portfolio of Rs.134 billion and deposits of Rs. 99 billion. The company posted Rs. 3.9 billion PAT in the year under review. LOFC as the leading impact lender, holds the largest pool of Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), guiding their respective development goals for Sri Lanka.

The capital and the wide array of technical assistance provided by these DFIs through LOFC have transformed the grass root levels of the economy. Continuing the Group’s legacy of expanding strategic international alliances, LOFC signed a loan agreement with Swedfund, the Swedish Government’s Development Finance Institution to promote financial inclusion and gender equality.

In a statement about the annual performance of the Group, Group Managing Director/CEO Kapila Jayawardena said, “2019/20 has been a difficult year due to externalities affecting most industries, but we are pleased with our strong performance this year, with a Group PAT of Rs. 19.8 billion which is largely contributed by our strategic foreign ventures. With this standing, we are proud to be the most profitable listed entity for the second consecutive year. With a timely global expansion strategy, well diversified revenue streams and a dynamic workforce in place, we will ambitiously look forward to stride ahead with consistent performance during these turbulent times.”

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Business

ADB-funded Thalaiyadi plant serves as blueprint for vulnerable dry zones in Sri Lanka

Published

4 hours ago

2026/08/31

Thilina Walpola

Thalaiyadi SWRO desalination plant Photo Credit: ADB

Sri Lanka should adopt a diversified water-security strategy, says chief engineer

By Sanath Nanayakkare

For generations, the Jaffna Peninsula has relied almost entirely on an underground freshwater lens. With no major perennial rivers to lean on, the region has long walked a tightrope between water scarcity, seasonal droughts, and a creeping groundwater salinity that has challenged communities across the North. Today, however, a monumental shift is underway along the windswept Vadamaradchi coast.

To understand how Sri Lanka is rewriting its water security playbook, one need only look to the Thalaiyadi Seawater Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) Plant.

V. Vijayakanth, Chief Engineer of the Jaffna Kilinochchi Water Supply and Sanitation Project (JKWSSP), recently explained the engineering marvels, environmental safeguards, and long-term vision driving this landmark infrastructure project.

“Building a multi-million-gallon desalination plant on an open, deep-sea coastline facing the Indian Ocean was no small feat,” he said.

Vijayakanth noted that the project required extensive marine, geotechnical, and ecological investigations before a single pipe was laid.

“The scale of the marine installation was striking: an intake and outfall system featuring roughly 1,300 metres of large-diameter pipeline, buried two metres beneath the seabed in water depths reaching up to 12 metres. Because ocean work is strictly dictated by nature, the team had to mobilise an excavator-mounted barge from India and execute a complex offshore operation within a very tight window before the onset of the monsoon.”

“One of the greatest historical hurdles of reverse osmosis technology has been its heavy appetite for electricity. To keep operational costs in check, the Thalaiyady plant integrates state-of-the-art isobaric pressure-exchanger energy recovery systems. These devices capture hydraulic energy from the high-pressure brine reject stream and transfer it directly back to the incoming seawater feed – recovering roughly 95% of available energy and slashing power requirements.”

“Environmental stewardship was equally central to the design. To prevent high-salinity discharge from harming the marine ecosystem, the plant utilizes an offshore outfall equipped with specialized diffusers positioned more than 500 metres from the shore. This ensures rapid mixing within a tightly monitored zone, safeguarding local marine life,” he said.

Karaveddi Water Supply Scheme

The impact of the plant is already tangible on the ground. Producing water that meets rigorous national quality standards (SLS 614:2013), the facility feeds into a vast transmission network linked to elevated service reservoirs. These tanks regulate hydraulic pressure across sprawling distribution routes, bringing relief to areas historically plagued by hard, brackish water.

V. Vijayakanth, Chief Engineer of Jaffna Kilinochchi Water Supply and Sanitation Project (JKWSSP)

Currently, about 1,600 households in the Karaveddi Zone are actively connected to the desalinated supply, with water flowing across a regional network stretching from Kodikamam and Jaffna City down to distant island communities like Delft, Kayts and Punguduthivu.

The peninsula’s total daily drinking water demand hovers around 50,000 cubic metres for a population of roughly 600,000. Operating at full capacity, the Thalaiyadi plant yields 24,000 cubic metres per day – meeting nearly half of the region’s current needs.

Yet, planners are already looking decades ahead. Driven by economic development, tourism, and proposed industrial zones like Kankesanthurai, projected potable water requirements for domestic, commercial, and industrial needs are expected to climb from 95,000 cubic metres per day in 2025 to 135,000 by 2045, and 175,000 by 2065. Meeting this future trajectory will require a diversified national strategy combining desalination with surface-water preservation and rainwater harvesting.

When asked whether Sri Lanka should lean exclusively on seawater conversion amid intensifying climate volatility, Vijayakanth emphasised the need for a balanced approach: “Sri Lanka should adopt a diversified water-security strategy, prioritising sustainable surface-water development, groundwater protection, rainwater harvesting, water conservation, treated wastewater reuse and catchment protection. Desalination can complement these sources as a valuable climate-resilient and drought-proof option where appropriate.”

Backed by financial and technical collaboration from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the project has given the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) invaluable expertise in advanced desalination management. Crucially, a two-year hands-on training program is ensuring that local technical staff master everything from membrane upkeep to preventive maintenance.

As climate variability accelerates, Thalaiyadi serves as a vital proof-of-concept. While energy-intensive desalination cannot replace conventional freshwater sources everywhere, Vijayakanth emphasises that it stands as an indispensable, drought-proof shield for Sri Lanka’s vulnerable dry zones – turning the ocean itself into a secure foundation for the nation’s future.

Business

Tropic Of Linen takes new form at The Shoppes at City of Dreams

Published

4 hours ago

2026/08/31

Thilina Walpola

From left: Tropic Of Linen Founders Minha Akram and Shukran Salih

Sri Lankan fashion label Tropic Of Linen recently opened the doors to its second boutique, located at The Shoppes at City of Dreams.

For over a decade, linen has formed the core of the brand’s inspiration and business ethos. Its textures, movement, and natural irregularities carry through the striking interior of Tropic Of Linen’s newly opened second store. Large sculptural forms in wind-worn sandstone sit against softer curves, while a grand olive tree anchors the heart of the store, reaching up toward a skylight and giving life to the entire space.

Drawing on her background in fine art and design, co-founder Minha Akram envisioned a layered, sensory interior intended to draw people into the world of Tropic Of Linen and invite them to linger.

Business

ANC Education celebrates ‘Class of 2026’ at graduation ceremony in Colombo

Published

4 hours ago

2026/08/31

Thilina Walpola

The ceremony marked both a conclusion and a new beginning, with ANC celebrating student progress and future success

ANC Education held its 2026 graduation ceremony at BMICH, Colombo, celebrating graduates across multiple programmes. The cohort included 53 BBA graduates from Northwood University, 22 Psychological Sciences graduates from Northern Arizona University, 320 Pearson BTEC HND graduates, and 29 BTEC Level 7 graduates, alongside foundation, diploma, and transfer pathway students. Senior representatives from partner institutions attended.

Best Performer Awards recognised outstanding academic achievement. The event honoured years of hard work and support from families and educators. Since 2002, ANC has provided local and international pathways. Graduates now pursue careers, further studies, or international opportunities.