Asia Financial Services

These are changing times for Sri Lanka’s insurance sector. Major regulatory moves over the last two years have seen much strengthening and consolidation, with these processes set to continue in the year ahead. Profitability remains high, particularly in the life insurance segment, while in the non-life segment a fiercely competitive environment is driving companies to find ways to...

A post-war boom has been followed by a mixed few years for Sri Lanka’s capital markets, with a strong performance in 2014 followed by two slower years. The outlook is now brightening again as the Colombo Stock Exchange, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Sri Lankan government look to build the bourse’s role in the economy. The bourse’s composition is not particularly...

With strong asset growth, reliable profitability and solid capital adequacy, the Sri Lankan banking sector stands in sound health these days as it looks forward to a period of continued economic stability. Like other sectors, the industry is moving in the direction of greater capital and technological requirements, and continues to undergo a period of consolidation – particularly among its...

As the country’s economy has liberalised and grown in recent decades, its trade volumes to developed markets and emerging ones have risen strongly. The country has established a name for itself as a leading exporter both of manufactured goods and traditional products such as tea and spices. A free trade agreement with India signed in 2000 has proved a major boon and is now being followed by a...