The Sri Lanka Retailers’ Association held its 9th AGM on 23 June 2026 and elected Infiyaz M. Ali (Director, Healthguard Pharmacy Ltd) as President, with Mahesh Wijewardena (Group CEO, Singer (Sri Lanka) PLC) as Senior Vice President and Kumar De Silva (CEO, SPAR SL) as Vice President. The AGM adopted the 2025/26 annual report and previewed the Sri Lanka Retail Forum 2026.
Consumer Staples (FMCG)Healthcare & PharmaIT & Digital
Daily FT·Jun 12, 2026·Award or certificationPositive
CG Corp Global chairman Binod Chaudhary highlighted the group's Sri Lanka footprint, noting it holds a majority stake in Union Bank of Colombo and operates multiple hospitality properties including the Taj Samudra. He also cited a BYD agency partnership with John Keells and a cement feasibility study.
John Keells CG Auto (JKCG) said it did not open any Letters of Credit for BYD vehicles on the day before Gazette notification No. 2488/56 (15 May 2026) and denied prior knowledge of the temporary vehicle import surcharge. The company said its BYD orders were placed between March and 30 April 2026 and no LCs were established after that date.
Ada Derana·May 11, 2026·Promotional / marketingPositive
John Keells' JKCG Auto launched a campaign with Bank of Ceylon and Sri Lanka Insurance to boost NEV adoption among government employees from 4 May–31 July 2026, offering financing, preferential leasing, tailored insurance, home charging access and aftersales support.
Nations Trust Bank will take over HSBC's Sri Lanka retail banking operations and the Rs.18 billion portfolio effective 1 May, with services expected to resume from midday 2 May after a system migration blackout. HSBC will suspend various services from 24 April and fully cut access from 7 p.m. on 30 April.
IT & Digital
Ada Derana·Feb 16, 2026·Promotional / marketingPositive
John Keells' authorised agent John Keells CG Auto opened the BYD Kandy 3S facility (showroom, service centre and spare parts) in Kandy, expanding BYD aftersales services in the Central Province.
Ada Derana·Feb 6, 2026·Promotional / marketingPositive
Ceylon Cold Stores PLC (Elephant House) celebrated 160 years in January 2026, highlighting continued focus on innovation, sustainability, portfolio expansion and digitalisation under the John Keells Group.
Colombo Stock Exchange closed flat as profit taking followed the previous day's record high; ASPI was down 0.71 points at 23,607 and S&P SL20 fell 0.12% to 6,494. Market turnover was lower at 4.9 million rupees, with Dialog up and John Keells among the top decliners.
Colombo Dockyard's continued sell-off pushed the CSE ASPI down 1.13% (68.27 points) to 21,898.20, with Dockyard closing at Rs107, down Rs35.50. HNB, Cargills and John Keells also fell; market turnover was Rs2.7bn and Dockyard received Rs27.1m of net foreign inflow.
New owners have committed over Rs. 600 million for safety, operational and aesthetic upgrades at the Altair Colombo apartment and retail complex after Blackstone India's acquisition of its parent, with TWC providing strategic oversight. Blue-chip firms including John Keells and Hayleys are using Altair to showcase products.
Construction Activity
Ada Derana·Nov 13, 2025·Promotional / marketingPositive
John Keells (via JKCG Auto) launched DENZA, BYD’s premium new-energy vehicle brand in Sri Lanka on Nov 12, 2025, introducing the D9, B5 and B8 models and opening an official showroom at The Shoppes, City of Dreams on Nov 13.
Renewable Energy
EconomyNext·Nov 12, 2025·Regulatory or legalPositive
John Keells CG Auto said Sri Lanka Customs agreed in court on 11 November 2025 to release detained BYD vehicles under bank and corporate guarantees after JKCG filed writs challenging detention of an additional 631 EVs. JKCG also offered testing equipment and a Vehicle Diagnostics Service; Customs will notify the court on next steps for testing.
John Keells CG Auto Ltd said the BYD Tang and Yuan Pro models have not been sold in Sri Lanka, so the BYD global recall does not affect any BYD vehicles in Sri Lanka. All BYD vehicles in Sri Lanka are imported, distributed and serviced exclusively through John Keells CG Auto Ltd and are covered by manufacturer warranties.
John Keells CG Auto (JKCG) said BYD electric vehicle consignments remain detained by Sri Lanka Customs, delaying EV deliveries and offering customers booked before 11 September 2025 the options to switch to a BYD SEALION 5 with a discount, receive a refund with interest (if by 10 October 2025), or retain their booking. JKCG said BYD PHEV imports, warranties and after-sales support remain unaffected and it will not require payment advances for EV bookings.
Sri Lanka Customs told the Court of Appeal it is prepared to release 991 detained BYD vehicles held by John Keells CG Auto if the importer posts a bank guarantee of about Rs.3.6 billion, pays any interest, cooperates with the investigation and a technical committee assesses motor capacity.
Hemas Holdings' consumer arm launched Diva Power Pods under the Diva Power sub-brand and handed exclusive distribution to Keells Supermarkets; each pod is marketed to clean, soften and add long-lasting fragrance in one wash.
Consumer Staples (FMCG)
EconomyNext·Aug 1, 2025·Award or certificationPositive
Brand Finance values Sri Lanka’s top 100 brands at LKR559.4bn in 2025, with banking the best-performing sector (Bank of Ceylon #1); Commercial Bank (LKR46.6bn), Dialog (LKR35.4bn) and Keells (LKR22.7bn) rank among the top brands.
Interest RatesIT & DigitalConsumer Staples (FMCG)
Daily FT·Aug 1, 2025·Award or certificationPositive
Brand Finance's Sri Lanka 100 2025 ranks Bank of Ceylon as the country's most valuable brand at Rs.57.4 billion. Keells emerges as the strongest brand (BSI 90.2, AAA+), while Commercial Bank (Rs.46.6b) and Dialog (Rs.35.4b) take second and third places.
John Keells CG Auto said the BYD vehicles it imported are 100 kW models verified by BYD and an independent tester, and that all imports comply with local regulations; the company is cooperating with authorities and providing documentation.
Ada Derana·Jul 1, 2025·Promotional / marketingPositive
John Keells CG Auto opened a fifth BYD showroom in Ampara, expanding the BYD retail network across five regions in Sri Lanka and planning service/spare-parts facilities plus nearby 7kW EV charger installations to improve NEV accessibility.
Hosking Partners says it invested tens of millions of USD in Sri Lankan equities in 2023, buying stocks such as Aitken Spence, John Keells, Dialog and others at deep discounts after the CSE market-cap fell to about $9bn (~70% USD decline). They point to rupee-driven inflation, 30% interest rates and a tourism-led recovery as key drivers.
AICPA & CIMA SHIFT25 Summit will be held tomorrow at Cinnamon Life, bringing together finance and business leaders including speakers from Hayleys, Sri Lanka Telecom and John Keells to discuss digital transformation, the evolving CFO role and sustainability.
Pasan Wanigasekara has been appointed to the Board of John Keells PLC as an Independent Non-Executive Director. He currently also serves as an Independent Non-Executive Director at Abans Finance PLC and Union Assurance PLC.
John Keells CG Auto received its first shipment of nearly 500 BYD New Energy Vehicles at Hambantota Port, with deliveries to pre-booking customers to begin in the coming weeks.