News & market updates

Mayur Lodge by NYNE offers two exclusive villas (each accommodating up to six guests) about 20 minutes from Yala National Park, positioned to serve wildlife tourists during the dry season (May–Sept). The boutique lodge highlights bespoke dining, an in‑house naturalist and sustainable, low‑impact operations.

Seylan Bank opened its 293rd Pahasara Library at Ranpokunugama Maha Vidyalaya, donating two laptops, a multimedia projector and books as part of its drive to establish 300 libraries nationwide.

John Keells' auto arm (JKCG Auto) has expanded the BYD aftersales network in Sri Lanka, completing over 20,000 vehicle services and opening multiple new service centres and a large bodyshop. The push includes bigger parts inventory, technician training, digital diagnostics and 21+ fast chargers.

Sophos launched Sophos Fusion, an AI-native cybersecurity defense system that unifies endpoint, XDR, SIEM, MDR and other controls, with key capabilities becoming generally available between August and October 2026. Sophos says its SOC resolves 52% of cases entirely by AI with an average automated response time of 89 seconds.

MAS Holdings handed over official podium and performance kits to Team Sri Lanka for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games, presenting kits for 42 athletes across seven sports at a Colombo press conference on 15 July. The designs, developed with CGA Sri Lanka, are sport-specific and themed "Sacred Giants of Sri Lanka."

Hafele has partnered with Sri Lankan retailer Damro to make Hafele appliances available in 15 Damro Mega Showrooms across Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Matara, Kurunegala and Jaffna, expanding its retail presence nationwide.

Janashakthi Limited was featured as an official TikTok for Business Case Study for its 'Who is JXG?' integrated brand and IPO campaign ahead of a Rs. 5 billion IPO. The campaign recorded over 4.76 million video views, more than 5 million impressions and about 255,000 destination clicks to the IPO landing page.

LOLC Finance PLC opened two new branches in Mirigama (18 June 2026) and Galagedara (2 July 2026) to expand its islandwide footprint and offer its full range of financial and digital services.

Union Assurance launched 'Union Assurance Platinum Circle', automatically enabling eligible policyholders to access exclusive lifestyle experiences, milestone recognition, digital health services and partner benefits via its Clicklife app.

Salesforce South Asia President Arundhati Bhattacharya says digital transformation is central to rebuilding and growing Sri Lanka's financial services, citing the National Digital Economy Strategy's $15bn digital economy target and 95% digital literacy by 2030.

Colombo Stock Exchange ASPI was up 0.06% at midday (13.19 pts to 21,221.29) with market turnover LKR 358.7m and Food, Beverage & Tobacco leading turnover at LKR 201.3m. Positive contributors included John Keells, Dialog, Aitken Spence and Browns; HNB, DFCC and Ceylon Grain were top negatives; Tess Agro listed 125,000,000 shares effective July 21, 2026.

IFC and HSBC will invest up to $40m in South Asia Gateway Terminals to fund twin-lift ship-to-shore cranes — a $20m sustainability-linked loan from IFC and a $20m green loan from HSBC — to raise quay-side productivity (~11%), improve reliability and reduce energy use.

Yellow House Productions and Nanotek Computer Solutions announced a formal Technology Partnership, with Nanotek as Yellow House's Official Technology Partner supplying professional-grade hardware to power the studio's XR platform Archivist Into the Artverse and the Helixra web game.

Ceylon Cold Stores' Elephant House partnered with Eco Spindles on 30 June 2026 to clean Ruwanwelisaya, collecting about 350 kg of plastic bottles that will be processed into monofilaments and yarn. The CSR drive involved 60 volunteers and aimed to raise visitor awareness on waste segregation.

Happy Chimps, a Sri Lankan-British AI company valued at LKR 2.5 billion, has been accepted into NVIDIA's Inception Program and will receive up to US$100,000 in cloud infrastructure support over the next 12–18 months. The support aims to cut AWS costs and accelerate development of its AI-powered SME operating system.

SLT‑MOBITEL opened newly modernized Maharagama and Battaramulla outlets with extended hours (09:00–21:00 weekdays, 09:00–17:00 Saturdays) and digital features—queue management, appointment booking, wireless service and digital payments—to improve customer experience.

The Colombo Port City Economic Commission and CHEC Port City Colombo conducted high-level engagements and an investor forum in Muscat to court Omani investors and promote Port City Colombo as a South Asia gateway, exploring SEZ synergies and investor referral mechanisms.

A three-day National Workshop on Data Governance and Artificial Intelligence for Public Sector Transformation commenced in Colombo on 20, aiming to strengthen senior public officials' capacity in data governance, interoperable systems and responsible AI to accelerate digital transformation.

Access Real Estate appointed former Sri Lanka bowler Chaminda Vaas as brand ambassador as it celebrates its 15th anniversary. The developer says it has delivered over 155 projects on 350 acres and served more than 4,500 landowners with ready-to-build plots.

The Financial Intelligence Unit imposed Rs.14.6 million in administrative penalties on 11 reporting institutions for non-compliance with the Financial Transactions Reporting Act between Oct 2025 and Mar 2026; the proceeds were credited to the Consolidated Fund.

Sri Lanka's rupee closed at 336.25/35 to the US dollar on Monday, while bond yields were broadly steady with key maturities trading roughly between 10.35% and 12.70%.

Kaspersky GReAT identified OkoBot, a sophisticated malware framework that has targeted hundreds of cryptocurrency users across 25+ countries, exfiltrating seed phrases via OkoSpyware and multiple stealers. It hooks Trezor and Ledger apps, deploys malicious loaders and fake installers, and remains active and evolving.

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and Sri Lanka's private sector urged a faster shift to renewables—particularly solar and energy storage—to meet rising electricity demand and reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels, calling for stable policy, streamlined approvals, financing, procurement and net metering.

Colombo Stock Exchange fell 0.80% as the All Share Price Index closed at 21,234.81 amid escalating West Asia tensions and rising oil prices. Top decliners included Dialog Axiata and Commercial Bank, with market flows shifting from equities to fixed income amid higher interest rates.

Fitch assigned DFCC Bank PLC's proposed LKR10 billion Basel III subordinated debentures an expected National Long-Term Rating of 'BBB+(EXP)(lka)'. The five-year debentures will be listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange and are intended to qualify as Tier 2 capital to strengthen the bank's capital base.

IFC and HSBC will provide up to $40 million in financing to South Asia Gateway Terminals (SAGT)—a $20m sustainability-linked loan from IFC (including $8.57m mobilized) and a $20m green loan from HSBC—to fund twin-lift ship-to-shore cranes, raising quay productivity by at least 11% and cutting energy use.

Commercial Bank of Ceylon MD/CEO Sanath Manatunge was appointed Chairman of the Employers' Federation of Ceylon (EFC) at its 97th AGM, succeeding Dinesh Weerakkody for the 2026/27 year.

Sri Lankan exporters are being urged to prepare for new EU sustainability rules — EmpCo, PPWR and EUDR — with compliance timelines from Aug–Dec 2026 and penalties up to €2m or 4% of turnover. The measures target sectors including tea, food/agriculture, apparel, rubber, plastics, fisheries and tourism; Peterson Solutions is offering guidance and a free ESG webinar on 29 July 2026.

Sri Lanka and India amended their DTAA to introduce the OECD Principal Purpose Test, with the protocol entering into force on 19 June and the revised provisions applying in India from 1 April 2027. The change lets tax authorities deny treaty benefits where one principal purpose is obtaining a tax advantage, requiring genuine commercial substance for cross-border arrangements.