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David Pieris launches Pearl Bay – a unique leisure destination

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David Pieris Group leisure cluster formally opened Pearl Bay at Bandaragama. This unique leisure offering brings together Sri Lanka’s first water park, built and certified to European Health and Safety Standards and an FIA/CIK certified leisure and professional karting track. The facility has four key zones, SplashBay (water slides), SpeedBay (leisure karting), TargetBay (air rifle shooting range) and YumBay (restaurants) as well as relaxation and activity areas for the entire family. The Park will open to public on 26th January and tickets can be purchased on-line from today at www.thepearlbay.com

SplashBay – the water-based zone comprises of four towers and sixteen slides of different thrill levels. The waterpark includes a gravity drop slide of 88 m, a loophole slide of 120 m, a 40 m matt racer slide and a separate kiddies area consisting of a four-slide water play structure.

No expenses were spared when designing and building this facility with customer experience and safety being paramount. The slides were manufactured and commissioned by Arihant Industrial Corporation Limited and after extensive testing the facility was awarded “Fit for Use Certification.” Subsequently, TÜV Nord, an international not for profit certification organisation sent their team to carry out extensive onsite inspection and ensure compliance to European safety standards. Pearl Bay which also incorporates the karting facility previously known as the Sri Lanka Karting Circuit, is spread over 23 acres. The idyllic location surrounded by trees and bordered by a body of water provides “another world” a mere 30 minutes from Colombo and in proximity to the Southern Highway. The location is also available for events of any size from corporate to individual celebrations, with purpose-built entertainment areas and an in-house events team to cater to any requirement.



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LOLC Technologies joins hands with Microsoft to enhance core-banking with Azure

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[from left to right]: Prasanna Siriwardena, Deputy CEO of LOLC Technologies Ltd and CIO of LOLC Holdings PLC; Conrad Dias, Chairman of LOLC Technologies Ltd and Director of LOLC Holdings PLC; and Kapila Jayawardena, Managing Director/CEO of LOLC Holdings PLC together with Harsha Randeny, Country Manager for Microsoft Sri Lanka and Maldives and Dhammika Weerakoon, Corporate Accounts Lead for Sri Lanka and Maldives.

LOLC Technologies Limited, a subsidiary of the LOLC Group, has entered into a collaborative agreement with Microsoft to integrate Azure cloud services into “FusionX”, its core banking platform designed to meet evolving customer needs. This strategic move aims to upscale their operational architecture, enabling LOLC Technologies to harness the power of data and AI to expedite growth and success.

Through Azure, LOLC Technologies can harness cloud-native services to enhance FusionX by enabling scalability, agility, and AI-driven efficiency. Azure serves as the foundation, empowering LOLC Technologies to achieve its evolving digital goals by delivering tailored experiences that meet today’s unique banking demands. Azure’s secure and easily deployable nature, along with its AI capabilities, enables existing functions to be updated without needing a complete rebuild, simplifying the process of rolling back updates. Azure provides FusionX with an additional layer of cybersecurity to counter potential threats and implement best security practices. Consequently, as the organization designs new banking solutions, they do so with a proactive stance against threats.

Speaking on the adoption, Prasanna Siriwardena, Deputy CEO, LOLC Technologies Ltd and CIO, LOLC Holdings PLC, said, “This is not just a technological advancement, but a strategic transformation aimed at positioning LOLC Technologies at the forefront of digital banking solutions. By leveraging the unparallelled agility and resilience of Microsoft Azure, we are focused on redefining financial services. With this shift, we have empowered BFSIs to evolve rapidly while unlocking AI’s full potential through a real-time analytics platform.”

Strategizing for international growth, the company aims to enhance its products’ capabilities by leveraging the cloud service architecture of Microsoft Azure to boost value addition. The Cloud Adoption Framework within Azure will assist LOLC Technologies and their teams in improving operational efficiencies and promptly closing feedback loops, allowing them to cleverly align their business goals, operations, and vision.

Harsha Randeny, Country Manager for Microsoft Sri Lanka and Maldives, added, “We are enthusiastic about supporting LOLC Technologies break ground on their undertaking to elevate operations through AI automation. Not only are we looking forward to guiding LOLC Technologies through this transition, but we’re also keen on optimizing the organization’s leveraging of Microsoft AI Solutions at every level. We trust that with these tools at their disposal, LOLC Technologies will forge ahead with inventive opportunities.”

Microsoft is committed to empowering LOLC Technologies to drive innovation and transform their business with AI, leveraging cloud agility to support their evolution and advance their core banking capabilities.

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Low investor participation in share market but trading takes positive direction

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By Hiran H.Senewiratne

Stock trading was positive yesterday but investor participation remained at a lower range. The turnover level was 60 percent down compared to previous days after suffering its worst dip in over two years and losing Rs. 188 billion in value on Wednesday, market analysts said.

Amid those developments both indices moved upwards. The All- Share Price Index went up by 227.95 points while S and P SL20 rose by 72.87 points. Turnover stood at Rs 2 billion with four crossings.

Those crossings were reported in JKH, which crossed six million shares to the tune of Rs 136.3 million, its shares traded at Rs 22.70, Melstacope 450,000 shares crossed for Rs 58.3 million; its shares traded at Rs 130, ACL Cables 250,000 shares crossed for Rs 33.7 million; its shares traded at Rs 135 and Dialog 2 million shares crossed to the tune of Rs 26.2 million; its shares traded at Rs 13.10.

In the retail market top six companies that mainly contributed to the turnover were; Browns Investments Rs 115 million (13.2 million shares traded), Access Engineering Rs 88.7 million (2.1 million shares traded), CIC Holdings Rs 88.5 million (792,000 shares traded), Melstacope Rs 85.9 million (678,000 shares traded), Dipped Products Rs 67.8 million (1.1 million shares traded) and Sampath Bank Rs 66.9 million (557,000 shares traded). During the day 78 million share volumes changed hands in 17970 transactions.

During the day the main contributors to the All Share Price Index were, Ceylinco Insurance, 34 points, Melstacope 25 points and JKH 21 points.

It is said that high net worth and institutional investor participation was noted in Amana Bank, Access Engineering and Teejay Lanka. Mixed interest was observed in Browns Investments, HNB and LOLC Holdings, while retail interest was noted in LOLC Finance, Waskaduwa Beach Resort and Dialog Axiata.

The banking sector was the top contributor to the market turnover (due to HNB and Amana Bank), while the sector index gained 0.76 percent. The share price of HNB edged up by 25 cents to Rs. 334.25. The share price of Amana Bank moved down by 10 cents to Rs. 25.

The Capital Goods sector was the second highest contributor to the market turnover (due to Access Engineering), while the sector index increased by 0.79 percent. The share price of Access Engineering recorded a gain of Rs. 1.10 to reach Rs. 40.

Yesterday the rupee was quoted at Rs 298.40/80 to the US dollar in the spot market, stable from Rs 298.40/70 to the US dollar the previous day, dealers said, while bond yields were broadly steady.

A bond maturing on 15.12.2026 was quoted at 9.05/15 percent, up from 9.05/10 percent. A bond maturing on 15.10.2027 was quoted at 9.75/85 percent, up from 9.70/80 percent. A bond maturing on 15.02.2028 was quoted at 10.13/17 percent, down from 10.15/17 percent. A bond maturing on 01.07.2028 was quoted at 10.35/38 percent. A bond maturing on 15.09.2029 was quoted at 10.80/85 percent, down from 10.82/90 percent. A bond maturing on 15.10.2030 was quoted at 11.23/28 percent, down from 11.23/33 percent.

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Timeless elegance and masterful craftsmanship on display

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Director of Hirdaramani Group of Companies Siddarth Hirdaramani, Chairman of Sifani Jewellers Rizvan Sahabdeen and CEO of Chatham Luxury Watches Indrajith Ranawana

Chatham Luxury -the exclusive representative of Chopard in Sri Lanka- held a private preview of the Swiss luxury brand’s newest watch and jewellery collections on Thursday the 23rd of January at the Chatham Flagship Boutique at Galle Face Court; making it the first time a global jewellery label showcased in Sri Lanka.

Representing Chopard at the intimate event was Xavier Lasserre, International Sales Manager of the brand; and as the evening unfolded, models gracefully exhibited exquisite timepieces and jewellery while Lasserre introduced every coveted creation on display with fascinating insight into the design and craftsmanship behind each, while also speaking to the ethos, heritage, and vision of the brand.

Under the spotlight were some of the luxury label’s newest creations that reflected both the masterful artistry and calibre of Chopard, namely the latest additions to the iconic Happy Diamonds and Ice Cube collections.

Chopard’s Happy Diamonds luxury jewellery capsule with its quintessential ‘dancing diamonds’ is recognised for its authentic elegant charm. On the other hand, the brand’s Ice Cube collection of luxury rings, diamond pendants, bracelets, and earrings, perfectly marry classical glamour and sleek modernity.

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