Bureau Veritas Consumer Products Services Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd, part of Bureau Veritas, has been honored with the Great HR Awards – 2025 by the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) Sri Lanka, marking a significant milestone in the company’s approach to employee development and workplace culture.

This is the first time Bureau Veritas CPS has received national recognition for its best-in-class people practices, acknowledging years of dedicated work in building an organization where people genuinely matter and can grow both personally and professionally.

Competing in the “Educational, Certification & Advisory Services” sector under the large category, Bureau Veritas stood out among leading industry players by demonstrating exceptional HR practices and a clear commitment to putting employees first in everything the company does. The award followed a thorough evaluation process covering 16 different assessment areas designed to measure how well organizations manage and develop their people.

Several key programs have been central to achieving this recognition. The “Adding Life to Years” Leadership Development Program focuses on building capable leaders at every level of the organization, preparing people to handle challenges and guide their teams effectively. The “HRtogether” Forum creates regular opportunities for honest conversation and problem-solving, where employees and HR work together to address real workplace issues. The “Together We Grow” initiative reflects a simple truth: when employees develop and succeed, the entire organization benefits.

Over the past several years, Bureau Veritas has worked to create a workplace where employees feel valued, heard, and supported. The company’s approach rests on three core ideas that guide all HR initiatives. Empowerment means giving people real authority to make decisions and own their work, trusting them to contribute in ways that matter.

The CSE kicked off on a positive note yesterday but in the middle of the trading session it turned negative as institutional and retail investors agonized over the way forward for the economy amid the uncertainties stemming from the recent weather devastation.

Both indices moved downwards. The All Share Price Index went down by 226.83 points, while the S and P SL20 declined by 37.51 points. Turnover stood at Rs 2.23 billion with six crossings.

Those crossings were reported in Richard Pieris, where 2 million shares crossed to the tune of Rs 82.4 million; its shares traded at Rs 41, Colombo Dockyard 300,000 shares crossed to the tune of Rs 55.3 million; its shares traded at Rs 217.50.

Hemas Holdings 1million shares crossed to the tune of Rs 36.3 million; its shares sold at Rs 36.30, Sunshine Holdings 1 million shares crossed tfor Rs 35.7 million; its shares traded at Rs 35.70, Hayleys 104,000 shares crossed for Rs 20 million; its shares traded at Rs 193 and LB Finance 130,000 shares crossed for Rs 20 million; its shares sold at Rs 154.

In the retail market companies that have mainly contributed to the turnover were; Colombo Dockyard Rs 251 million (1.2 million shares traded), Renuka Agri Foods Rs 207 million (19.3 million shares traded), Swisstec Rs 77.31 million (804,000 shares traded), JKH Rs 65 million (three million shares traded), LB Finance Rs 46 million (298,000 shares traded), Commercial Bank Rs 42 million (213,000 shares traded) and LOLC Holdings Rs 42 million (76500 shares traded). During the day 81.3 million shares volumes changed hands in 26877 transactions.

It is said that market showed mixed reactions due to the volatility in the market. Top contributors to the market were manufacture and financial sector counters.

Sarvodaya Development Finance said it had received Central Bank and board approval to list its High-Yield Subordinated Sustainable Bond on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

“The Board of Directors of SDF approved the dual listing of these Sustainable Bonds on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange, with the objective of enhancing international visibility, informed sources said.

Yesterday the rupee was quoted at Rs 309.00/25 to the US dollar in the spot market, from Rs 309.05/15 Friday, dealers said, while bond yields were broadly steady.

Accordingly, a bond maturing on 15.02.2028 was quoted at 8.95/9.00 percent, up from 8.93/98 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.05.2028 was quoted at 9.00/05 percent, up from 8.97/9.02 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.10.2028 was quoted at 9.05/15 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.06.2029 was quoted at 9.35/40 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.12.2029 was quoted at 9.40/50 percent, down from at 9.40/45 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.07.2030 was quoted at 9.57/63 percent, up from 9.56/62 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.03.2031 was quoted at 9.85/95 percent, up from 9.85/90 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.10.2032 was quoted at 10.25/35 percent.

A bond maturing on 01.11.2033 was quoted at 10.30/45 percent, down from 10.35/40 percent.

A bond maturing on 15.06.2035 was quoted at 10.65/68 percent.

By Hiran H Senewiratne

The latest earnings report for Sampath Bank PLC (SAMP), analysed by First Capital Research (FCR), firmly supports a positive outlook among investors. The research firm has stuck with its “MAINTAIN BUY” recommendation , setting optimistic targets: a Fair Value of LKR 165.00 for 2025 and LKR 175.00 for 2026. This signals strong belief that the bank is managing the economy’s recovery successfully.

The key reason for this optimism is the bank’s shift towards aggressive, yet smart, growth. Even as interest rates dropped across the market, which usually makes loan income (Net Interest Income) harder to earn, Sampath Bank saw its total loans jump by a huge 30.2% compared to last year. This means the bank lent out a lot more money, increasing its loan book to LKR 1.1 Trillion. This strong lending, which covers trade finance, leasing, and regular term loans, shows the bank is actively helping businesses and people spend and invest as the economy recovers.

In addition to loans, the bank has found a major new source of income from fees and commissions, which surged by 42.6% year-over-year. This money comes from services like card usage, trade activities, and digital banking transactions. This shift makes the bank less reliant on just interest rates, giving it a more stable and higher-profit way to earn money.

Importantly, this growth hasn’t weakened the bank’s foundations. Sampath Bank is managing its funding costs better, partly by improving its low-cost current and savings account (CASA) ratio to 34.5%. Moreover, the quality of its loans is getting better, with bad loans (Stage 3) dropping to 3.77% and the money set aside to cover potential losses rising to a careful 60.25%.

Even with the new, higher capital requirements for systemically important banks, the bank remains very strong, keeping its capital and cash buffers robust and well above the minimum standards.

In short, while the estimated profit for 2025 was adjusted slightly, the bank’s excellent performance and strong strategy overshadow this minor change. Sampath Bank is viewed as a sound stock with high growth potential , offering investors attractive total returns over the next two years.

By Sanath Nanayakkare