News & market updates

Companies can cut carbon footprints and reduce energy costs with low-cost steps — upgrading equipment, switching to renewables, optimizing transport, working with suppliers, reducing waste and measuring emissions to find savings.

Manufacturers are increasingly adopting circular-economy practices—repair, reuse and recycling—to cut costs, reduce exposure to volatile material prices and meet tightening regulation. Design changes and product-as-a-service models help capture value but require upfront investment and new collection/refurbishment systems.

Seylan Bank (SEYB.N0000) is approaching the opening of its 300th 'Pahasara' library, a decade-old ESG programme that builds and refurbishes school libraries while providing digital learning, financial literacy and community engagement initiatives.

Adopting circular economy practices can turn Sri Lanka's municipal, agricultural and industrial waste into economic value through recycling, reuse, and waste-to-energy, improving resource efficiency and creating jobs. Opportunities span manufacturing, construction, agriculture, packaging/retail, and digital technologies for material tracking and financing.

Sri Lankan businesses are increasingly treating diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) as a strategic driver of innovation, employee retention and investor confidence. Inclusive policies, transparent reporting and supply-chain labour standards are highlighted as ways to boost competitiveness and attract responsible investment.

Hayleys Plantations launched 'Regenerate', a unified ESG roadmap joining Talawakelle (TPL), Kelani Valley (KVAL) and Horana (HOPL) across 55 estates and ~14,000 ha with 2030 targets including a 42% reduction in Scope 1–3 emissions and 95% renewable-energy reliance. The plan also targets 90% regenerative agriculture, zero deforestation, 100% supplier ESG screening and digital/AI monitoring.

Sri Lankan corporate boards were urged at the Sri Lanka Corporate Director Summit to shift from monitoring results to anticipating change, strengthen crisis management and AI literacy, and ensure independent directors provide genuine scrutiny.

HUTCH Sri Lanka ran the 'HUTCH DANSADA' Poson Moon Scan promo inviting users to scan the full moon with their phones to receive assured instant digital rewards; thousands of customers participated nationwide.

Commercial Bank of Ceylon won six awards — the most by any Sri Lankan bank — at the 2026 Asian Banking & Finance Awards in Singapore. The awards covered Retail, Wholesale and Corporate & Investment Banking, highlighting its AI-powered SME credit underwriting, green financing and its Rs.15bn 2025 Green Bond alongside loan book growth past Rs.2tn.

Ceylon Chamber will host a Business Networking Session with a 30-member Indian Chamber of Commerce delegation on 28 July 2026 at the Hilton Colombo Residences to explore trade, investment and partnerships across sectors including construction, healthcare, IT, renewable energy, tourism and food processing.

FITIS announced partners for FITIS Cricket 6's 2026, to be held on 26 July 2026 at Thurstan College Cricket Grounds, naming Hikvision | IT Gallery Computers as Title Partner and Inflow Technologies, ESOFT Uni, ASUS, Acer (Metropolitan Technologies) and ViewSonic as supporting partners.

Sri Lanka Corporate Director Summit urged companies to raise board governance standards to help rebuild the country's investment appeal. Speakers including Minor International's CEO and LYNEAR Wealth's MD stressed board quality, independence, faster decision-making, AI readiness and sustainability as investor priorities.

HNB Life (HASU.N0000) has launched the HNB Life Mobile App, giving customers on-the-go access to policy details, requests and support; the app is available on Google Play and the Apple App Store. The move follows recent digital upgrades including AI integrations and the HANA chatbot.

Sri Lanka's total exports reached an estimated US$ 9,012.24 Mn in Jan–Jun 2026, up 8% y/y; merchandise exports were US$ 7,073.31 Mn (+8.95%) and services US$ 1,938.94 Mn (+4.49%). Electrical & electronic components, rubber, food & beverages and spices recorded strong gains in June, while apparel exports fell 11.74% y/y.

Union Bank appointed its CEO Dilshan Rodrigo to the board of LankaPay, Sri Lanka's National Payment Network. He will contribute to strengthening the national payments infrastructure and advancing secure, efficient digital payment solutions.

Labour Minister Dr. Anil Jayantha said the government has not decided to merge or privatise the EPF and ETF and that a Cabinet paper only seeks a committee review to improve administration. The review will focus on data integration, governance, investment safety and speeding up payments.

World Bank lead economist Dr. Harsha Aturupane warned Sri Lanka must reverse anti-export policies and reconnect with global markets to restore innovation and competitiveness. He cautioned ICT/BPM faces disruption from AI and noted low global value-chain participation (8.1% vs 26% India, 34% Vietnam).

CA Sri Lanka published a white paper urging urgent tax and investment reforms to boost FDI, proposing measures like a Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax, refundable tax credits, targeted spend-based incentives and APA improvements. The paper prioritises tech/digital, renewable energy, export manufacturing and regional HQs and calls for institutional capacity to implement OECD-GMT–aligned reforms.

Asian stocks rose, led by a rebound in semiconductor shares as MSCI's Asia-Pacific ex-Japan index gained 1.2% and South Korea's Kospi jumped over 6%. Brent crude nudged to $91.55/bbl and markets are focused on upcoming US earnings and central bank meetings.

Indocopters will install Loft Dynamics' Airbus H125 VR full-motion simulator in India, creating South Asia's first dedicated H125 VR training site and expanding pilot training capacity for operators in Sri Lanka and the region. The simulator supports emergency, high-altitude and mission-specific training.

Provider.lk launched an AI Website Builder — billed as Sri Lanka’s first native AI website creator — that builds professional, responsive sites via a chat interface in under 10 minutes and is available now with a limited-time six-month free trial when registering a new annual .lk or .com domain.

Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya said an efficient public sector and accountable management accounting are essential for Sri Lanka's sustainable development as the country recovers from its economic crisis, and warned legal action against institutions that fail to submit financial reports. She launched the CMA National Management Accounting Conference Journal and noted progress in manufacturing, tourism and financial sectors.

EY Global Delivery Services Sri Lanka hosted its largest-ever Milestones event in Colombo with about 3,500 EY professionals and the Prime Minister spotlighting the National Digital Economy Strategy to embed AI-first operations and grow ICT exports.

Sweden will send a trade delegation to Sri Lanka Expo 2027, Ambassador Jan Thesleff confirmed, with preparations underway to bring Swedish buyers and investors to the Colombo event (14–17 Jan 2027). Discussions identified export opportunities in cinnamon, coconut products, gems & jewellery, apparel and IT services for Nordic markets.

Kaspersky warns fraudsters are exploiting parked domains to harvest sensitive user data (IP, geolocation, cookies, browser fingerprints), perform malicious redirects and typosquatting, and deliver phishing/malware. Users are advised to avoid suspicious links, verify URLs and use anti-tracking/security tools.

Women Empowered Global launched the 24-week virtual 'WEG Leadership Lab', commencing 26 September, to accelerate and transform women leaders' careers. The programme combines masterclasses, mentorship and practical leadership tools with international exposure for rising managers, senior professionals and entrepreneurs.

Abans Finance PLC (AFSL.N0000) opened four new branches—Ambalangoda, Moratuwa, Horana and Kiribathgoda—bringing its network to 22 after reporting FY ended 31 Mar 2026 profit after tax of Rs.857 million (up 101%). Total assets rose 54% to Rs.20.81 billion and customer deposits reached Rs.11.04 billion.

SLT-MOBITEL won the Winner award in the Sustainable Telecommunication Service Provider category at the Sri Lankan Sustainability Awards 2026. The recognition highlights the firm's ESG focus and investments in renewable energy, energy-efficient infrastructure and digital inclusion.

AIA Insurance Lanka has been named SLASSCOM's exclusive Insurance Partner under a signed MoU to support wellbeing initiatives for Sri Lanka's technology community, engaging members through events such as FIT HIT 2026 and Megamind Quiz.

L B Finance PLC's LB CIM launched the LB CIM Virtual Debit Card with UnionPay, offering in-app NFC Tap-to-Pay, global e-commerce and cross-border QR payments. The platform processed Rs. 300 billion across more than 6 million transactions this year and has 800,000+ downloads.