One of the youngest banks in Sri Lanka, Cargills Bank Limited, a licensed commercial bank in Sri Lanka once again stood up strong despite the challenging economic situation prevailing last year and is moving towards offering more benefits to the customers.
The prime objective of the bank which was opened in June 2014 was to facilitate and empower small and medium entrepreneurs, enhance industry standards through a highly motivated team of innovative bankers,” recalled Veteran banker Senarath Bandara who is the Managing Director/CEO of Cargills Bank Limited.
He said that their reach to the Agro sector farmers especially in rural areas have helped them to improve their businesses
Senarath Bandara
and today some of them have also become exporters.
“We have also assisted and guided several youth with novel ideas on how to start a business and have provided all marketing assistance for them to be respectable entrepreneurs.”
He also said that looking back they also saw some of their suppliers to Cargills supermarkets who were just bringing a handful of products by themselves are today sending their products in lorry loads.
“Today our Farmer Base with Cargills Bank exceeds 20,000.”
In addition to assisting the Micro and SME sector, the services that they provide in the branches have made the bank stand out from other financial institutions. He said that the biggest advantage they possess are their flexible working hours which in some branches are stretched up to around 9 PM.
We also have a superior service where remittances sent from overseas could be cashed from any on out outlets in Colombo and rural areas even during late hours. He said that they are also offering a special 60 Day Fixed Deposit scheme that offers 14% interest. In addition some of our other banking products are Abhimani Womens Savings Account, Diriya Investment Account, Cargills Cash Savings Account, Senior Citizen Savings Account, High Return Saver, Salary Saver account, Podihitiyo Children Savings Account and Cargills Cash Savings Account.
The products in the loans segment are, Personal Loans, Education Loans, Housing Loans and Loans against Property. The bank, despite having a strong network of branches, also offers Gold Credit Card, Titanium Credit Card, Platinum Credit Card and Ascend Credit Cards.
“In a bid to give special discounts to our loyal customers we are also extending special seasonal offers for cards at Cargills Food City, KFC,TGIF and Ceylon Theaters.
Young staff from rural areas
While assisting the MICRO and SME segments to move up to the next level of their businesses the bank has also provided employment for youth in large numbers and most of them are drawn from urban and rural areas.
“We also have a healthy Staff Gender Ratio (male vs female) with a 47.62% female work force in our 24 branches.”
Number of staff who have been allocated to various Departments, Branches, Sales and Mini Locations outside the Western Province is 80.79% while Western Province only has 19.21%. Cargills Bank is headquartered in Colpetty in Colombo and maintains branches at Maitland Crescent, Maharagama, Old Moor Street, Wattala, Kandy, Peradeniya, Nuwara Eliya, Chilaw, Fort, Rajagiriya, Ratnapura, Thanamalwila, Matara, Galle, Kurunegala, Kaduruwela, Vavuniya, Chunnakam, Jaffna Nawalapitiya, Negombo, Anuradhapura and Bandarawela.
Number of Cargills Mini Locations in Cargills Food City premises are 29.
Cargills Bank profitability improves
Commenting on the profits of the bank he said that Cargills Bank’s results for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 reflected continuing QoQ improvement in profitability.
Profit after tax at Rs. 432 Mn was higher by Rs. 324 Mn than in the corresponding period of 2022.
“We are pleased the Bank has been able to maintain this momentum of profitability growth, and are confident the results of 2023 will reflect the strong commitment of the Bank’s team, successful execution of its strategy, a continued rigorous focus on market trends and its adaptability to a volatile environment. Our financial results bear testimony to the progress made.” Nevertheless, the road ahead remains challenging. A meaningful Government budget, continued success of the IMF program, general price stability and regained momentum in tourism, remittances and exports will be key in shaping the country’s short- to medium- term economic revival.
Total assets of the Bank at September 30 stood at Rs. 64.7 Bn, an increase of 20% or Rs. 11 Bn in the first nine months of the year.
He also said the Cargills bank has got approval for listing the Bank’s shares on Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and steps are being taken to duly offer to the public 62.5 Mn shares of the Bank at Rs. 8 per share through an Initial Public Offering. “We may be the last bank to get a listing on the CSE.” (SS)
