The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has been declared Sri Lanka’s Best Bank in 2020 by the US-based Global Finance magazine, an accolade the Bank wins for the 20th time in the 27 years that Global Finance has presented awards to the world’s best banks.
Global Finance’s just-released list of the 28 Best Banks in Asia Pacific has Commercial Bank ranked alongside banking behemoths such as the Commonwealth Bank (Australia), Westpac New Zealand, ICBC (China), The Bank of East Asia (Hong Kong), and State Bank of India, which were adjudged the best banks in those countries. The winners were chosen in nearly 155 countries across Africa, Asia-Pacific, Central & Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, North America and Western Europe.
Commercial Bank Managing Director S. Renganathan said, “Our focus right now, is on assisting in the recovery of businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is most encouraging to see that our achievements of 2019, also in challenging conditions, have been recognised with one of the most coveted awards in the sphere of banking. Such accolades will provide further motivation to our team to maintain the high standards of the Bank even in times of adversity.”
“Commercial Bank of Ceylon weathered the twin challenges of higher taxation and impairment charges in 2019, plus the adverse effects of last year’s April terrorist attacks, to deliver a solid 12% ROE off the highest gross income of any Sri Lankan bank. Deposits grew a solid 5% and interest income rose 11.2% to facilitate a 7.4% rise in total operating income.”
Commercial Bank also achieved the highest profitability, highest credit rating, highest deposit base, largest lending portfolio, and the highest return on average shareholders’ funds amongst all private sector banks in Sri Lanka.
“The banking industry is increasingly challenged by rising customer demands for safe real-time access with total control and broad flexibility,” said Joseph D. Giarraputo, publisher and editorial director of Global Finance.
The Commercial Bank of Ceylon was also declared ‘Strongest Bank Brand’ in Sri Lanka by Brand Finance earlier this month. Other international awards won by the Bank this year include ‘Best Corporate Bank Sri Lanka 2020’ and ‘Best Trade Finance Bank Sri Lanka 2020’ from International Business Magazine of the UAE, and the ‘Decade of Excellence’ Award for Retail Banking in Sri Lanka from Global Banking & Finance Review of the UK. Founded in 1987, Global Finance has a circulation of 50,050 and a readership encompassing chairmen, presidents, CEOs, CFOs, treasurers and other senior financial officers.
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