News & market updates

Kapruka Holdings PLC subscribed Rs. 41.51 million for 883,203 ordinary shares in its wholly-owned Kapruka E-Commerce Ltd. to fund working capital and acquire electric delivery vehicles to expand and green its delivery infrastructure.

Sri Lanka and Nepal launched cross-border QR payment connectivity on 12 May 2026, allowing Nepali users to pay at more than 400,000 LankaQR merchants in Sri Lanka using Nepali payment apps. The interoperability is expected to ease payments for travellers and expand digital acceptance for local merchants and SMEs.

Cabinet approved a fresh international tender to select a service provider for Sri Lanka’s liquor security stamp system for the next five years, with the current contract due to expire on 1 January 2027. The selected provider will handle security stamp printing and system management under the Excise (Amendment) Act provisions to improve traceability and revenue collection.

Sampath Bank reported PAT of Rs 6.2 Bn for Q1 2026, down 26% YoY mainly due to Rs 4.5 Bn of impairment provisions despite Total Operating Income of Rs 28.5 Bn and 5% NII growth. Total assets topped Rs 2.1 Tn with Rs 127.5 Bn loan growth; capital ratios remain above regulatory minima.

Sri Lanka completed a four-year FAO–Republic of Korea project to modernize shrimp aquaculture, producing a National Aquatic Animal Health Strategy and a digital Shrimp Industry Information System (SIIS). The project mapped 699 farms, trained 450 farmers and 190 officials, upgraded labs and provided about USD 128,000 of equipment.

Colombo Stock Exchange fell as the ASPI dropped 104.80 points (0.46%) to 22,910.52. Top negatives were Melstacorp, Sampath Bank and HNB; Ceylon Tobacco declared a Rs34 dividend and Kapruka said it will inject Rs41,510,541 into its subsidiary to buy shares to fund electric delivery vehicles and working capital.

First Capital Holdings PLC launched SAVI, Sri Lanka’s first Smart Assisted Customer Onboarding avatar platform, enabling end-to-end online account opening and KYC with OCR and video verification, developed in partnership with Nagarro.

Commercial Bank of Ceylon announced the first draw of its 'Debit Card Challenge 2026', with 250 winners and a campaign that will award 1,000 customers prizes totaling Rs.45 million by end-June. Customers who spend Rs.20,000+ monthly on Commercial Bank debit cards qualify for monthly draws, with a grand draw for top spenders.

Dialog Axiata's Dialog Enterprise has partnered with Seceon Inc to deploy Seceon's aiSIEM platform and offer AI-driven Managed Detection and Response (MDR) services in Sri Lanka. The collaboration enables a multi-tenant SOC delivering unified SIEM, UEBA, SOAR and automated incident response across networks, endpoints, cloud and applications.

ANC Campus hosted a dialogue with Hayleys' executive director and Janashakthi's CEO on geopolitical risks and private-sector resilience; the University of West England will open its first Sri Lanka branch campus in June. Speakers urged firms to adopt AI, diversify exports and streamline approvals to attract investment.

Sri Lanka Expo 2026 has been rescheduled to 14–17 January 2027 at BMICH in Colombo. The EDB expects about 750 local exporters and 1,500 international participants and has extended exhibitor registration to 31 July 2026, citing geopolitical uncertainties.

The Book Studio Pvt Ltd launched Sri Lanka’s first fully automated book vending machine to enable instant self-service purchases. The company plans island-wide expansion and will open two flagship outlets in the Southern and Northern regions.

Innovative Production Group (IPG) completed an all-stock merger with Flash/UGRO, bringing Lanka Premier League commercial rights onto NASDAQ-listed UGRO and committing USD 20 million over the next two years to expand the LPL.

Short Circuit Group has merged with Payables, bringing 40,000+ merchants and over $200m of transaction volume. Payables aims to expand to 100,000+ merchants and $8.9bn in transaction volume over the next five years as the group moves into owning and monetising payment flows.

Rockland Group has appointed Tharindra Kulasinghe as a Non-Executive Director, effective immediately. He will continue to serve as Chief Information Officer of Capital Alliance Limited (CAL).

HNB Life PLC reported Gross Written Premium of Rs.7.01 billion for the quarter ended 31 Mar 2026, up 54% y/y. Net written premium rose 54% to Rs.6.69bn, profit after tax was over Rs.210m, and total assets reached Rs.71.38bn.

DFCC Bank reported Group core business PAT of Rs. 1.7 billion for the quarter ended 31 March 2026. Total assets rose 3% to Rs. 884 billion, net fee and commission income grew 34% and impairment charges increased to Rs. 3,163 million; integration of Standard Chartered's Sri Lanka wealth and retail operations is underway.

HNB General Insurance recorded Gross Written Premiums of Rs. 11 billion in 2025 and is implementing a FY2026 growth plan focused on digital-enabled sales, standardized KPIs and expanded bancassurance integration with HNB to drive distribution-led expansion.

Abans Finance PLC (AFSL.N0000) listed its maiden five-year debenture issue, with subscriptions of 13,384,000 units oversubscribing the 10,000,000 offer and raising LKR 1,338,400,000. The A- (lka) rated issue, managed by NDB Investment Bank, aims to expand the company's asset base and support growth and digital initiatives.

The Sri Lanka Brand Forum (co-founded by Rohan Somawansa) urges businesses to adopt purpose-driven branding to rebuild trust and support Sri Lanka’s recovery and long-term growth. The Forum aims to promote leadership, sustainability, innovation and youth engagement to position brands as national ambassadors.

Colombo Stock Exchange closed marginally higher, ASPI up 0.02% at 23,015.32 with turnover of Rs.3.66 billion. Real estate and transportation led turnover (Rs.495.2m and Rs.485.2m) and Abans Finance listed Rs.1.34bn five-year debentures; its shares rose 3.47%.

Commercial Bank (COMB.N0000) announced 250 winners in the first monthly draw of its 'Debit Card Challenge 2026', part of a promotion awarding 1,000 prizes worth Rs.45 million by end-June. Cardholders spending Rs 20,000+ monthly qualify for monthly draws; those spending Rs 100,000+ over the campaign qualify for a grand draw of 25 high-value prizes.

ShowLab Studio opened Sri Lanka’s first purpose-built previsualisation, lighting programming and show integration facility to design, program and test entire live productions before venue entry. The studio uses industry-standard tools (grandMA3, 3D real-time visualiser, LED/projection simulation, timecode) to reduce rehearsal time, cost and technical risk.

China Duty Free Group opened CDF Duty Free at Port City Colombo in September 2024 with a USD 5 million investment and has served nearly 120,000 travelers. The downtown store offers international brands and a digital Customs-verified 'Pre-Order & Collection' service for pickup at Bandaranaike International Airport, serving arriving/departing passengers and diplomats.

IMRA Foundation opened applications for IMRA Awards 2026, inviting Muslim women across nine sectors with applications closing on 1 July 2026. The awards ceremony is scheduled for 6 September 2026 at the Kingsbury Hotel; categories include Hospitality & Tourism, Healthcare, Banking & Finance, Education, Media, Architecture, Arts & Culture and Entrepreneurship.

Fintrex Finance went live with a new Nimble core banking system powered by Craft Silicon and implemented by APTS on 2 April 2026. The rollout aims to improve processing speed, security, data management and scalability to enhance customer service and operational efficiency.

Mahindra Ideal Finance reported PBT of Rs. 818m for FY26, up 193% YoY; PAT rose 228% to Rs. 478m and disbursements nearly doubled to Rs. 57.6bn. The loan book grew 82% to Rs. 26.95bn, cost-to-income improved to 50.5%, and gross Stage 3 fell to 1.73%.

First Capital Holdings PLC launched SAVI, Sri Lanka's first Smart Assisted Customer Onboarding platform using an avatar to guide account opening and KYC, with integrated OCR and video verification enabling end-to-end online onboarding and real-time verification.

The Sri Lanka Export Development Board has rescheduled Sri Lanka Expo to 14–17 January 2027 at BMICH citing geopolitical uncertainty. The event is expected to host about 750 local exporters and 1,500 international participants across apparel, tea, ICT, pharma, renewable energy and other sectors.