Business
Visa celebrates Sinhala & Tamil New Year with special rewards for Sri Lankan Visa cardholders
Visa (NYSE: V), the global leader in digital payments, has announced a special campaign to celebrate Sinhala & Tamil New Year in a more festive manner during this season with a series of offers for their cardholders in Sri Lanka.
The new festive season campaign by Visa will elevate the consumer experience while reinforcing the security and convenience inherent to digital payments. Consumers can now simply tap their Visa cards to pay for their festive purchases and avail offers and discounts at a slew of leading merchant stores across Sri Lanka.
Avanthi Colombage, Country Manager – Sri Lanka and Maldives, Visa said, “As we welcome the Sinhala & Tamil New Year, we are delighted to provide more rewarding, seamless shopping experiences for millions of Visa cardholders in Sri Lanka. Through our extensive network of merchant partners and great offers across retail, dining, hospitality and lifestyle, we aim to deliver the best value for festive purchases. With our country’s rich culture and traditions, this is Visa’s way of celebrating with our cardholders, while ensuring convenience and security whenever and wherever they pay.”
The Sinhala & Tamil New Year is a time of high spends, characterized by increased consumer activity and festivities, and driving purchases in categories such as Dining, Travel and Lifestyle. Capturing this seasonal momentum and festive spirit, Visa is extending a portfolio of promotional offers designed to deliver additional value to Visa cardholders on their purchase during this period, when they tap their credit or debit cards to pay.
Some of the leading national and international merchants where shoppers can avail offers are:
Dining: Chinese Dragon, The Mango Tree, Skrumptious, Arabian Vibes, Mitsi’s Delicacies
Travel: Qatar Airways, Agoda,Visa Luxury Hotel Collection
Lifestyle: Glomark, Stripes & Checks, Spring & Summer, Prasad Fashion, Scope Cinemas
Visa continues to deliver exceptional consumer value with convenient, secure, and rewarding payment experiences. Simultaneously, it drives digital acceptance in the merchant ecosystem through increased card-based transactions.
The initiative also aligns with Visa’s broader mission to accelerate digital transformation in Sri Lanka, promoting financial inclusion and enabling merchants to benefit from increased consumer engagement and purchasing power.
Business
SLT-MOBITEL driving Sri Lanka’s economic resilience through digital infrastructure
Corporate accolades underscore the alignment between its operational excellence and national development
In an era where national competitiveness is intrinsically tied to digital connectivity, strengthening the country’s digital backbone has become an urgent priority. Within this context, the evolving role of Sri Lanka’s leading telecommunications provider, SLT-MOBITEL, offers valuable insight into how technological infrastructure can underpin broader economic resilience.
Telecommunications and digital networks are foundational to economic transformation. By expanding high-speed broadband access, upgrading enterprise cloud capabilities, and bridging the urban-rural connectivity divide, SLT-MOBITEL helps reduce business transaction costs, streamline supply chains, and enable micro, small, and medium enterprises to reach global markets.
Recent corporate accolades further underscore this alignment between operational excellence and national development. SLT-MOBITEL’s triple triumph at the National Business Excellence Awards 2026 – winning in the Infrastructure and Utilities sector, Performance Management, and ICT Services categories – highlights its growing impact. Notably, the recognition of eChannelling’s contributions to digital healthcare reflects a broader strategic pivot toward integrated technology solutions.
“Institutional efficiency of this nature is critical for attracting foreign direct investment, as global partners increasingly assess a country’s digital maturity and systemic stability before committing capital,” noted industry observers.
Moreover, the company’s transition from a conventional telecom utility to a comprehensive digital solutions provider aligns seamlessly with Sri Lanka’s national digitalisation agenda. As the country pursues public sector modernisation, enhanced e-governance, and a competitive knowledge economy, the private sector must step up to deliver secure, scalable, and future-ready networks. Investments in data centres, cybersecurity frameworks, and advanced ICT infrastructure act as strategic buffers, ensuring that Sri Lanka’s economic apparatus remains agile and resilient amid future global uncertainties.
However, industry experts caution that while these achievements are commendable, SLT-MOBITEL still has a considerable distance to cover in fully enabling a truly digital economy.
Business
Port City Colombo strengthens Gulf investment ties at Dubai diplomatic engagement
Port City Colombo (PCC) took a prominent role as Platinum Sponsor at the second edition of Sri Lanka Beyond Your Dreams, a high-level diplomatic and investment engagement hosted by the Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Dubai and the Northern Emirates. The event, held on 2nd September 2026 at the Hilton Dubai Al Habtoor City, brought together over 400 senior UAE-based business leaders, investors, diplomats, and institutional stakeholders, alongside Sri Lanka’s most senior government representatives.
The gathering was graced by Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, as Guest of Honour, and Vijitha Herath, Sri Lanka’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism. A high-level Sri Lankan delegation – including the Secretary to the Prime Minister, the Chairman of the Board of Investment, the Chairman of the Export Development Board, and the Director General of Commerce – underscored the government’s strong commitment to deepening economic diplomacy with the UAE.
In his keynote address, Minister Herath reaffirmed the centuries-old ties between Sri Lanka and the Arab region, emphasising the UAE’s vital role as a key economic partner. He stressed the urgency of finalising a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the UAE, which would establish a robust framework to elevate trade, investment, and bilateral cooperation. Declaring Sri Lanka “open and ready for business,” he positioned Port City Colombo as the physical embodiment of this economic mission – a modern Special Economic Zone (SEZ) with a dedicated legal framework and competitive incentives, offering UAE investors a natural gateway to South Asia while maintaining strong Gulf connectivity.
Business
American Premium Water strikes Gold at Dragons of Sri Lanka 2026
American Premium Water has secured four wins at Dragons of Sri Lanka Awards 2026, including three Gold Dragons and one Black Dragon, marking a significant milestone for the brand following its relaunch last year.
Part of the prestigious Dragons of Asia awards, Dragons of Sri Lanka brings the program’s regional platform to the local market, celebrating creative and effective marketing communications, with entries evaluated on strategic thinking, creativity, execution and impact. Established in 2000, Dragons of Asia is one of Asia’s premier results-driven marketing awards programs.
For American Premium Water, the achievements are particularly significant given that the company’s debut at the Dragons awards has resulted in four Dragons across four categories. In the distinction of Gold Dragons, American Premium Water was recognized across three categories including Product Launch or Re Launch, Cause, Environment or Sustainability and Creative Excellence while the Black Dragon was awarded in recognition of Small Budget.
Competing alongside leading brands and agencies in Sri Lanka, American Premium Water’s four wins demonstrate the strength and effectiveness of its recent work. Winning three Gold Dragons across three distinct categories highlights the breadth of the brand’s achievements, while the Black Dragon for Small Budget further emphasizes its ability to create meaningful impact through focused and efficient investment.
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