DFCC Bank was awarded ‘The Best Common ATM Acquirer of the Year - Category C’ at the LankaPay Technnovation Awards on 20th September 2018 at Shangri-la Hotel, Colombo. The award is based on the criteria of the number of ATMs deployed and the average monthly interbank transaction volumes.
DFCC Bank’s ATM network consists of 115 machines, while the branch network stretches to 138 branches across the island. The Bank has expanded significantly in recent months into a number of new towns and cities, adding to its ATM and branch portfolio, offering greater convenience and access to customers and facilitating financial inclusion. DFCC Bank CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva commented on the accolade, “We have drawn up a strategic expansion plan which includes rapid ATM and branch expansion across the country. We are closely attuned to customer needs and evolving consumer trends. Furthermore, as we are connected to the LankaPay network, customers of other banks can also conveniently perform withdrawals through the DFCC ATM network.”
Following the strategic partnership with DIMO, DFCC Bank commenced street promotions in collaboration with the DIMO sales team. The campaign will run across the country for three months and be rolled out through the branch network. The first promotion was held by the ‘Wayamba Go-getters’ at the Dambulla branch.
During a visit to the Batticaloa branch, DFCC Bank CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva took the opportunity to meet with key customers of the branch along with the Regional Manager, Mr. Candiah Jegarajah. Mr. Silva also inaugurated a Paddy Seeds Production Unit at Jegathees Rice Mill. The programme was organised and coordinated by Mr. A.A. Arunashantha, Branch Manager of Batticaloa.
The Sustainability Unit organised a “Plastic Recycling Day” at the DFCC Bank Head Office on 26th September. Staff members brought discarded plastic items from their homes, in addition to plastic bottles and containers which were present at the bank premises. The collected plastic items were sent to a plastic recycling plant, and participating staff members were gifted with a DFCC branded reusable shopping bag. The event helped to raise awareness among employees about the importance of reducing consumption of plastic products and how to discard them in an environmentally friendly manner.
Mr Jegan Durairatnam was appointed to the Board of DFCC Bank PLC on 30th August 2018. Mr Durairatnam possesses extensive experience in the banking field, having been with Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC for 36 years. He served as a Director of Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC from April 2012 to July 2014, and as the Managing Director/CEO from July 2014 until his retirement on 26 July 2018. He has served in several other senior management positions at Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC including Chief Operating Officer, Deputy General Manager – International, Assistant General Manager - International, and Head of Imports. Mr Durairatnam’s extensive experience covers all aspects of international trade, off-shore banking, credit, and operations. He has also held the position of Managing Director of Commercial Development Company PLC and has served as a Director on the Board of Lanka Financial Services Bureau Ltd. Mr Durairatnam holds a BSc from the University of Peradeniya and an Executive Diploma from the University of Colombo.
The Regional Development Bank, Badulla branch, organised an inter-bank cricket tournament on the 22nd of August at Vinsant Dias Stadium, Badulla. 15 teams representing the leading Banks in Badulla area took part in the full-day tournament, with DFCC Bank Badulla becoming runners-up after losing a nail biting final to SDB Badulla. Bashitha Maduwantha of Team Badulla won ‘Best Bowler of the Tournament’. Participating team members included Hashan Premathilake, Chinthaka Kumara, Shanaka Silva, Bashitha Maduwantha, Ashok Kumar, and Lahiru Cham Gagana.
DFCC Bank was honoured as one of the Top 10 Most Admired Companies in Sri Lanka at an Awards Ceremony organised in partnership by the International Chamber of Commerce, Sri Lanka (ICCSL) and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) Sri Lanka. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was the Chief Guest of the event, which was also attended by CIMA President Steven Swientozielskyj and FCMA CGMA and ICC India President Jawahar Vadivelu as the Guests of Honour. The awards recognise companies not just for their financial performance but also for the value they create for their shareholders, customers, employees, and the general community. In an email sent out to staff, Mr. Royle Jansz said, “To have been accorded this honour is a testament to the dedication of the people of DFCC, both past and present. It is their attitude towards the performance of their duties, placing the customer above all, caring about the environment, their colleagues, and fellow citizens, that sets DFCC apart.”
The Asian Development Bank bestowed DFCC Bank with the ‘Leading Partner Bank in Sri Lanka’ award at its fourth annual Trade Finance Programme (TFP) Awards held on 4th September in Singapore. Attended by over 200 guests from banks and other financial institutions around the world, the TFP Awards recognised 23 leading partner banks from 15 countries – with DFCC Bank being the only bank from Sri Lanka awarded at the ceremony. The TFP Awards were held on the first day of the Global Trade Review's annual conference in Singapore, GTR Asia Trade and Treasury Week 2018, one of Asia’s leading trade finance conferences.
45 staff members qualified for the CEOs Club in Q2 and were invited to a felicitation reception and dinner with Mr. Lakshman Silva and Mr. Pankaj Banerjee at the Hilton Colombo Residencies. The Gampola branch was the first to produce six qualifiers for the Q2 awards.
Congratulations to everyone who made the CEOs Club!
For the month of September, the Call Centre team launched an International Peace Day theme, decorating the department with the peace symbol, colours of the rainbow, and white Poppy.
The theme was selected to strengthen the ideals of peace and unity, recognising the diversity within the department, and that it should not affect the professional services provided to the customer.
DFCC Bank inaugurated its newest branch in Ruwanwella, continuing its branch expansion drive in the southern and western provinces. Residents of Ruwanwella can now avail DFCC’s full range of development and commercial banking products and services, backed by excellent customer service and exciting promotions. Mr. Lakshman Silva was present at the inauguration held on 20th September, along with senior representatives, staff from the Bank, and well-wishers from the local community.
The new branch at Ruwanwella is located at 183, Avissawella Road, Ruwanwella, and can be contacted via telephone on 0362268770 and 0362267775, or via fax on 0362267677.
DFCC Bank PLC and Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC (DIMO) entered into a strategic tie-up to promote Leasing for TATA branded commercial vehicles. Mr. Vijitha Bandara – Director, DIMO represented DIMO while Mrs. Gillian Edwards – SVP, Consumer Banking and Ms. Samathri Kariyawasam - Head of General Legal represented DFCC Bank at the signing of the MOU. The promotion will run from September 19th to December 20th.
The Aralaganwila branch carried out a campaign at the Po/Dimbu/Medagama Maha Vidyalaya to raise awareness about the brand and Vardhana Junior accounts among students, teachers, and parents. The branch would like to thank Anton Arumugam (VP - L&TBD), Duminda Silva (AVP - RA&LS), Nuwan Medonza, Candiah Jegarajah (RM - Region-06), Regional Office team (Sukitha Munasinghe, Aravinda Jayaweera, Kalpani Baddegama, Pradeep Senevirathna), Nilantha (BDO - Dehiyathakandiya) and Kapila Dissanayake (Team Leader) for their support.
The Embilipitiya Branch organised an Art competition for the children at the Bodhiraja International Preschool in Embilipiitiya. The school’s principal praised the team for their efforts and encouraged parents to deposit funds regularly to their accounts. Embilipitiya branch manager, Pubudu S Wijayasundara, said, “This is the 4th promotion held during the year to promote Junior. We will continue to keep the momentum going and will also focus on the “Ithurum Wasanthaya” campaign and other savings accounts in the coming months. We would like to thank Nuwan Medonza and the Marketing team, and also Pavithra Dias and the Branch Operations team for the assistance provided to us.”
DFCC Bank was the principal sponsor and the official banking partner of the CNCI Achiever Awards 2018, held on the 9th of August at the Galadari Hotel. The Hon. Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe was the Chief Guest at the event. The Ceylon National Chamber of Industries designed the awards to promote industrial growth in the country by recognising and rewarding industrialists who have excelled in their businesses. The awards focus on areas such as quality standards, productivity, corporate plan, research and development, employee benefits, labour relations, etc. while ensuring that social and environmental obligations are fulfilled. The ceremony was held for the 17th consecutive year and closely aligns with DFCC’s commitment to supporting industrial growth across the country.
The Kurunegala branch held a Vardhana Junior campaign aimed at Grade 5 scholarship students at Wellawa Central College. The team organised a Special scholarship seminar with a reputed guest lecturer, Mr. Sanjeewa Mapa, Teaching Advisor of Maho region, and over 233 students attended from the school.
In partnership with AIA, the DFCC Bancassurance team held a special training programme for clients’ wives in Matara on the 26th of July at the Solis Hotel, Matara. Mr. Indika Krishantha Perera of The Skills Syndicate conducted the programme, touching on areas such as understanding the human mechanism, life of a female – an aesthetic approach, difference between males and females, financial and general upkeep in a household, caring for the well-being of spouse and family, keeping family and social relationships healthy, appropriate career planning for offspring and hobbies, and rituals and spirituality in family life.
The latest Sahaya Hamuwa programme organised by the Akuressa branch was held at the Uruwala Tea Factory on the 3rd of August. The programme was hosted by Mr. Migara Hadunge – Regional Manager, CBSL, who spoke on Entrepreneurship and Financial Literacy. The function was attended by over 155 participants.
The second Rewarding Excellence Ceremony of 2018 was held at DFCC Bank’s Auditorium. Nominations received from staff are reviewed and selected by a cross-functional panel. A newly appointed panel took over the reins from the previous panel, which had completed two years of service. The new panel comprises of Vidarsha Dharmasena, Kapila Nanayakkara, Shan Heenkenda, Charitha Jayawickrama, Bathiya Alahakoon, Prasanna Premaratne, Sooriya Bandara and Amanthi Dahanayaka.
The event was attended by DFCC Bank Chairman Mr. Royle Jansz and members of the board, Mr. T. Dharmarajah and Mr. Mayura Fernando, together with Mr. Lakshman Silva, Mr. Thimal Perera, senior management, awardees, their families, and staff members.
The Hambantota team celebrated the branch’s 5th year anniversary on the 14th of August. In addition to celebrations at the branch, the team also visited the "Sarana Anda Wadihiti Niwasaya" in Ambalantota to spend time with the blind senior residents over evening tea, and donated pocket radios.
An Executive Development programme, sponsored by AIA Insurance, was conducted over a five-month period at the Postgraduate Institute of Management (PIM). The opportunity to participate in the programme was provided to 35 Branch Managers across the country.
The programme covers aspects including personal excellence, effective communication, public relations and negotiation skills, strategic management and best practices in management. The programme adopted an interactive learning approach, including lecture presentations, case analysis, group presentations and discussions, video assignments, and weekly learning diaries.
As part of the progress evaluation of participants, group presentations were conducted for DFCC management on practical concerns pertaining to the Bank on the 18th of August at the DFCC Auditorium. The participants expressed their satisfaction with the learning and exposure they received.
An Outbound Training programme was organised by the DFCC REDS Committee on the 4th and 5th of August for 30 ETs and ARMs who recently joined the Bank. The programme was held at Kalutara Training Centre and included activities such as a nail game, lava crossing, key punch, yoga session, raft building, and sailing. The programme aimed to build team spirit, develop leadership skills, and enhance team collaboration, as well as provide the new recruits the opportunity to interact with their colleagues and get to know each other.
Together with Seylan Bank, DFCC Bank recently arranged a syndicated credit facility for Home Lands Skyline (Pvt) Ltd, a leading real estate developer in Sri Lanka. Seylan Bank was the major lending party financing Rs. 1 billion in Loan Capital.
Home Lands Skyline (Pvt) Ltd expects to use the financing to accelerate construction of their recently launched project, the Ariyana Resort Apartment Complex, Sri Lanka’s first ever Resort Apartment Complex.
DFCC Bank participated at the Clean Technology Fair 2018 held on the 30th of June at the BMICH. Organised by the National Cleaner Production Centre of Sri Lanka, the exhibition extensively featured Sri Lanka’s eco-friendly entrepreneurs. DFCC was present at the event with a specially designed stall, and the team received many leads for SME lending and consumer and liability products.
A Product Assessment for the sales force was conducted on the 23rd of June at the Auditorium, aimed at enhancing the team’s knowledge and building a strong sales team. The inaugural assessment, which was attended by 87 staff members, included questions on asset products, liability products, alternate channels, and credit cards. Product refresher sessions on DFCC iConnect and Loans were conducted towards the end of the programme.
Kisal Cooray (Marketing), Roshan Fernando (Channels and Operations) and Charith Perera (Ja-ela Branch) represented the national Basketball team, which emerged champions at the South Asian Basketball Championship 2018, held in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The final was played against the Maldives, with a final score of 82-57.
DFCC Bank commemorated World Environment Day with a tree planting campaign at Dedigamuwa Kanishta Vidyalaya in Ranala. DFCC’s Sustainability Unit planted 50 fruit trees with the students of the school and the Community Projects team organised the donation of agricultural and gardening equipment to enable the students to continue nurturing the planted fruit trees.
The event was attended by Dedigamuwa Kanishta Vidyalaya’s entire staff, all 300 students, and most of the students’ parents. DFCC Bank CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva said, “This World Environment Day, we are very pleased to have had the chance to give back to the planet and do our part as responsible corporate citizens, by hosting a tree planting campaign at Dedigamuwa Kanishta Vidyalaya. We recognize the value of teaching our youth, the importance of conserving our environment and natural resources, and we hope that this initiative will inspire and encourage the students of the school to become more involved in environmentally friendly practices and activities.”
The Corporate Banking team hosted corporate clients at their Annual Trade event with an evening of cocktails at DFCC Bank's Auditorium. The event served as an appreciation of the loyal patronage of corporate clients who have supported the Bank over the years. Chairman Mr. Royle Jansz, CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva, DCEO Mr. Thimal Perera, and senior management attended the event.
Clients attending the event were introduced to DFCC iConnect, DFCC's state-of-the-art Payments and Cash Management Solution, with Senior Cash Management and Customer Servicing Manager Sheron Mendis explaining its benefits with a presentation and demonstration of the system.
DFCC Bank expanded its branch network with the opening of a new branch in Marawila on Thursday the 5th of July. The new branch was ceremonially declared open by CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva. The branch is located at No: 293, Negombo Road, Marawila and can be reached at 0322 250313/0322 250306 or Fax 0322 250308.
In an effort to drive CASA and increase the number of acquisitions, the Trincomalee branch recently held two programmes in support of this mission.
Building upon the success of last year, the branch organised a Vardhana Junior Scholarship seminar for the second time at St. Mary’s Church - Alai Osai Auditorium. The seminar saw over 350 students coached in preparation for the upcoming exams based on free model papers prepared by leading consultants in Colombo. The DFCC brand was actively promoted at the seminar, which saw 170 Junior Accounts opened.
The latest Sahaya Hamuwa Programme was held in Galewala last Friday to promote Small and Medium Business Loans among the area’s business community. With approximately 75 potential clients participating in the programme, the audience mainly consisted of Ginger cultivators. The programme was fully funded by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, with Mr. Rohitha Abeykoon, Senior Assistant Director of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, serving as the guest speaker at the programme, speaking on entrepreneurship and financial literacy.
DFCC Bank was awarded a Certificate of Merit for Outstanding Sustainable Project Financing at the Global Sustainable Finance Awards 2018 in Karlsruhe, Germany. The award recognises DFCC’s success in financing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
Senior Vice President (Branch Banking) Bathiya Alahakoon received the award on behalf of the Bank, who also made a presentation on “Financing Enterprises for a Sustainable Sri Lanka”. The Conference was attended by over 100 delegates from over 30 organisations in Asia, Africa, and Europe.
SYNAPSYS Ltd, an IT solutions provider and subsidiary of DFCC Bank, achieved the 2nd Runner-up position in the Best Product Innovation Category at the SLASSCOM Innovation Summit and Awards 2018 held recently. The Sri Lanka Association of Software & Service Companies (SLASSCOM) held the Innovation Summit to recognise innovation and increase Sri Lanka’s visibility in the GII rankings. SYNAPSYS received the award in recognition of their efforts in developing Rapidex Remittance and Mobile Wallet, currently implemented at DFCC Bank under the brand names “Lanka Money Transfer” and “DFCC Virtual Wallet”.
The Kaduwela branch held a motivational session for the O/L students of Munidasa Kumaratunga Vidyalaya on the 29th of June. Renowned motivational speaker, Bhathiya Arthanayake, served as the speaker at the successful session.
A Junior Accounts Campaign was held by the Aralaganwila branch at the Po/Vilayaya C.C. on the 9th of July, with a focus on junior account acquisitions and raising brand awareness. The campaign generated 75 leads for Vardhana Junior, and other products were also cross-sold to teachers, students, and their parents.
The team thanks Anton Arumugam, Duminda Silva, Nuwan Medonza, Candiah Jegarajah, Sukitha Munasinghe, Aravinda Jayaweera, Kalpani Baddegama, Pradeep Seneviratna and Kapila Dissanayaka for their support.
Around 500 packets of Highland milk were distributed by the Chunnakam branch to devotees who gathered at Mayilani Murugan Kovil during the Kumbabishekam held on the 25th of June. Kumbabishekam is a Hindu temple ritual that is believed to homogenise, synergise and unite the mystic powers of the deity. The gesture was greatly appreciated by the devotees.
At the CSE Masterminds Quiz organised by the Colombo Stock Exchange, DFCC Bank placed 2nd overall and 1st in the Banking sector, winning a cash prize of Rs 75,000. DFCC was also the Silver sponsor of this event.
The event saw 46 teams participate, with Lanka Securities winning overall, and the London Stock Exchange (Sri Lanka) team placing third. The DFCC team was represented by Channa Dayaratne, Charith Rodirigo, Vino Ramasamy and Nalin Karunatileka. The team wishes to thank the Bank, especially the HR team for the support extended.
The Team Leaders of the Core Values Regional Championship initiative met with CEO, DCEO and some of the senior management to present new initiatives and strategies they had identified for implementation. The initiatives are linked with encouraging and personifying the Bank’s core values across the regions.
The Sustainability Unit held a tree planting campaign on the Colombo–Matara Highway between the Kahathuduwa and Gelanigama interchanges on 14th July. The initiative was a collaboration with Reforest Sri Lanka and the Road Development Authority for staff celebrating their birthdays in April and May, and 300 trees were planted. DFCC Bank has undertaken to maintain the trees for a period of one year. The Sustainability Unit wishes to thank DFCC Staff and their families who participated.
The Baddegama branch partnered with Christchurch Girl’s school as the sole banking sponsor of their school education exhibition. The event was held over four days and attended by over 8,000 people. The team conducted an Art Competition and Folk Singing Competition during the programme, and carried out a leadership programme for the school’s prefect board.
DFCC Bank launched a new leasing campaign to attract first time car buyers through TV, Radio, Press, and Cinema. The theme of the campaign is based on the concept of “Now’s the Time”, highlighting real life situations where young individuals and families are encouraged to think about buying their first car, while promoting DFCC Bank as being the best banking partner for the purpose.
DFCC Bank opened its latest fully-fledged branch at Eppawala on 21st June. With Eppawala’s growing importance, the inauguration of the new branch marks a new chapter for current and potential customers. The inauguration was attended by CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva and senior management and staff of the bank, as well as well-wishers from the vicinity of the new branch.
DFCC Bank’s new Eppawala branch is located at No:137, Thalawa Road, and contacted on telephone numbers 0252249900,0252249772 or by fax on 0252249773.
DFCC Bank celebrated World Environment Day on 5th June with a tree planting campaign and donating agricultural / garden equipment to the Dedigamuwa Kanishta Vidyalaya in Ranala.
The Sustainability Unit planted 50 fruit trees at the school premises with the active participation of teachers, school children, and their parents. The DFCC Community projects team organised for the donation of agricultural/garden equipment to be made to the school. DFCC Bank officials also visited the Korathota Somananda School in Athurugiriya to inspect the trees planted last year by the Sustainability Unit to commemorate World Environment Day.
The DFCC Bank Kattankudy branch organised an Ifthar on the 6th of June at the branch premises for 50 current and potential clients. The Regional Manager and Batticaloa branch manager were also present at the occasion.
A pioneer of FinTech solutions in the banking industry, DFCC Bank has launched DFCC iConnect, a fully integrated Payments and Cash Management (PCM) system. The system aims to deliver a superior experience to businesses of all sizes, from small and mid-sized businesses to enterprise businesses.
The innovative solution, developed by AurionPro, a global technology solutions leader, empowers DFCC Bank’s business clients with access to their account transaction information from anywhere on the globe, and provides enhanced security features that enable users to view their account balances in real-time, make local/cross border payments and choose the best solution for collection possible at the click of a button.
DFCC Bank CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva said, “One of our main objectives that drive us is that we want to give our customers the financial tools they need to improve their lives/businesses where they can capitalise on these capabilities and ‘Keep Growing’.”
DFCC Bank recently held a ceremony for the launch of “Randalu”, the new Micro Loan scheme for tea smallholders, at Galapidihenna Tea Factory, Rathnapura. The new scheme enables tea smallholders to obtain loans within two days of placing their request.
The launch event was attended by Mr. Saman Upasena, Managing Director - KDU Group and Mr. Bathiya Alahakoon, SVP - Branch Banking, Mr. Denver Lewis, VP – Payments & Digital Channels. KDU Group and the Ratnapura branch jointly organised the event which was attended by supervisors of KDU factories in Ratnapura and several tea smallholders.
DFCC Bank relaunched its range of DFCC Credit Cards, offering 1% CashBack on every swipe – a first in the Sri Lankan banking sector. The DFCC Credit Cards reward cardholders with 1% CashBack credited back to a DFCC account of their choosing.
Call the 24-hour customer service hotline on (011) 2 350 000 to find out more information.
The Malabe branch won the Bancassurance Champions League Award in February, having achieved an Annualised New Premium (ANP) of Rs. 5,056,370. Malabe Branch Manager Nevaan De Silva was presented the trophy by CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva.
The staff of Region 4 was recently given the opportunity to participate in a Bank-sponsored hike to Rassagala in Dolosbage. The nature loving staff members trekked through tea estates, valleys, mountainous terrain, and forests, and enjoyed wonderful vistas at the top of Rassagala.
DFCC Bank is the Exclusive Banking Partner and Platinum Sponsor for a full-day programme conducted by Harvard Professor Boris Groysberg on 24 April 2018 at the Oak Room, Cinnamon Grand. The programme, “Best of Harvard for Sri Lankan CEOs and their Executive Teams”, shares the secrets of success of world-class business leaders and the skills needed for great leadership. 26 handpicked key talents from the Bank will participate in the programme to acquire new perspectives and the tools to lead more effectively.
DFCC Bank relaunched their Credit Card range at a special launch event held on 28 March at the Cinnamon Grand, Colombo. The event was attended by a large gathering of clients, prominent personalities, Directors, CEOs, top executives, and business leaders of the industry. The credit cards offer 1% cash back on every swipe, a first in the Sri Lankan banking sector. To apply for your own DFCC Credit Card, call the 24-hour customer contact centre on 011 2 350 000.
The DFCC Bancassurance Team organised the AIA On-boarding event on 6 April 2018 at the Grand Ballroom, Goldi Sands Hotel, Negombo. The event aimed to familiarize AIA Bancassurance operations and products among the Region 5 staff, and was attended by Pradeep Ariyarathne - RM 5, Sajith Silva - VP/Head Banacassurance and DFCC Region 5 branch and office staff with their management representing DFCC Bank, while Piyal Hewapathirana - AGM Banacassurance and his team represented AIA.
DFCC Bank is proudly continuining its “Samata English” CSR project, as part of its commitment to impart essential life skills and knowledge amongst the public. The programme delivered impressive results in its inaugural year in 2017, and the second phase kicked off last week at the Kurunegala and Galle branches with the participation of DFCC Bank officials, selected students, their parents, and representatives from Gateway Language Centre. 30 students registered for the programme in Kurenegala and 25 students in Galle.
Kurunegala
Galle
The Kegalle, Nikaweratiya, and Galle branches organised and held three “Vardhana Sahaya Hamuwa” programmes during the last week. The programme focuses on increasing the financial literacy and financial management abilities of the MSME sector, in addition to the financial services offered.
Kegalle
Over 70 potential customers participated in the event, and 38 Savings Accounts were opened, with 20 customers expressing interest in signing up for MSME Loans.
Nikaweratiya
Over 130 potential customers participated in the event, and 35 Savings Accounts were opened with 40 more accounts expected to be opened soon. 40 customers expressed their interest in signing up for MSME Loans.
Galle
Over 81 potential customers participated in the event, with 43 Savings Accounts being opened and 50 customers expressing their interest in signing up for MSME Loans.
The Ja Ela branch MSME Unit organised and held an MSME loyalty programme on 22 February 2018 at The Kitchen Main Hall - Ja Ela, with the objective of advising MSME clients in the area about DFCC’s products (MSME Loans/Savings Accounts). 25 participants attended the programme and it is expected that the programme will further improve new business opportunities.
The MSME Unit arranged another loyalty programme at the Lucky Tea Factory on 28 February 2018 and was attended by 45 people. 25 new Savings Accounts were opened and 30 inquiries made into MSME loans.
The team will conduct the programme at other tea factories, including:
DFCC Bank further expanded the branch network across the country, opening a new fully-fledged branch in Urubokka on 9 March 2018. Situated on Kotapola Mulatiyana Road, Urubokka, the branch offers convenience to area residents with extended weekend banking on Sundays from 9 AM to 1 PM, with access to retail banking products and services. CEO Mr Lakshma Silva conducted the inauguration of the branch in the presence of senior management and other Bank officials.
Aimed at the senior leadership of the Bank, a leadership programme was conducted from 3 – 5 March 2018 at Pegasus Hotel, Wattala. Discussions with the training provider and senior management helped to structure the residential programme, which was conducted by Bridge Partnership, a Singapore-based training provider specialising in leadership training and coaching targeting senior executives. 23 senior staff participated in the programme.
The Matara branch organised and held the “Vardhana Sahaya Hamuwa” Programme in Morawaka recently, with a primary focus on increasing the financial literacy and financial management abilities of the MSME sector, in addition to raising awareness of the financial services offered by the Bank.
Over 150 potential customers took part at the event, with 70 Savings Accounts being opened and 40 customers expressing interest in signing up for MSME Loans.
The DFCC Bancassurance Team, together with Region 1 and AIA, recently organised and held a Health Forum at the Oak Ray Regency, Kandy. The event aimed to spur customer engagement and raise awareness on non-communicable diseases among select top customers of Region 4.
The Group Internal Audit Department recently held a special knowledge sharing session for Region 6 staff at the Siyanco Holiday Resort in Polonnaruwa. The programme focused on sharing common audit findings in the region and identifying their root causes. A discussion was held to identify possible plans of action to minimise the occurrence of these findings in an effort to achieve a Low risk audit rating. The programme was attended by Ms. Charitha Jayawickrama VP - Internal Audit and the Audit Team, Mr. Candiah Jegarajah - Regional Manager- Region 6, Branch Managers, and Officers of the Region.
DFCC Bank is pleased to be associated with The Ceylon National Chamber of Industries as the official banking partner for the 17th CNCI Achiever Awards 2018, to be held in August this year. It marks the first time that DFCC Bank has sponsored and event that recognizes and rewards excellence in Sri Lankan industries.
DFCC and CNCI officially signed an MOU for the partnership at the DFCC Head Office recently. An official launch and media briefing was held on 15 March 2018 at the Liberty Ballroom, Hotel Ramada, Colombo, with the participation of senior officials from CNCI, DFCC Bank, and the judging committee.
DFCC Bank held the first Rewarding Excellence Awards Ceremony for 2018 at the DFCC Bank Head Office Auditorium on 14 March 2018. The event recognises staff members who performed exceptionally during the first quarter. The Bank recently introduced the Rewarding Excellence scheme to encourage and appreciate employees who go the distance and perform above and beyond their expected levels of duty. The ceremomy was attended by Chairman Mr Royle Jansz, Director Mr K.P. Cooray, Director Ms V.J.Senaratne, Director Ms. L K A H Fernando, CEO Mr Lakshman Silva, DCEO Mr. Thimal Perera, senior management, awardees, and staff members.
DFCC Bank continued to demonstrate positive momentum across businesses in 2017 as a rapidly growing commercial bank completing its second year after the amalgamation.
Despite a backdrop of higher taxes, volatile interest rates, tight margins and intensifying competition, the Bank closed the financial year ended 31st December 2017 with a profit before tax of LKR 5,792 million a growth of 31% and profit after tax of LKR 4,415 million a growth of 34% over the year ended 31st December 2016.
Read moreAn Extraordinary General Meeting was held recently for the purpose of obtaining the approval of the shareholders, by way of a Special Resolution, for the issuance of a maximum of 70,000,000 Listed Rated Unsecured Subordinated Redeemable Debentures of Rs 100/- each with a term of up to 7 years, complaint with BASEL III requirements.
DFCC Bank opened a new branch at Nivithigala thereby growing their network to 138 fully-fledged branches across the country. Centrally located at Ratnapura Road, Nivithigala, the newest branch will boast weekend banking on Saturdays from 1 am to 9 pm, offering convenience for residents in the area to access retail banking products and services even on weekends. The CEO of DFCC Bank, Lakshman Silva, performed the formal inauguration ritual on the momentous occasion and the branch opening was conducted in the customary manner in presence of senior management of DFCC Bank, the staff of the new Nivithigala branch and a warm gathering of loyal customers and well-wishers.
DFCC Bank became the first bank in Sri Lanka to partner with the National Eye Bank (NEB) in conducting a successful Eye Donation Campaign, which resulted in 300 donors comprising of DFCC staff and the general public pledging their eyes to the cause of alleviating corneal blindness.
Persevering in its mission to inculcate the savings habit amongst the nation’s population, DFCC Bank yet again introduces an exciting New Year campaign named ‘DFCC Season of Gifts’ for customers to secure their financial future by opening savings accounts with DFCC Bank.
With an eye on children’s academic future, the Bank offered cash vouchers of Rs. 2500/- plus stationary packs for Vardhana Junior kids savings accounts opened on the first two days in January.
Fitch Ratings have revised DFCC’s outlook for both its International and National Long Term Ratings to “Stable” from “Negative” while affirming the ratings at B+ and AA- respectively.
The rating agency said that this outlook revision reflects their view that adverse effects on the bank’s credit profile from increasing risks in the domestic operating environment previously expected have reduced.
DFCC's Viability Rating and the National Long-Term Rating capture its developing commercial banking franchise and still-high capitalisation levels relative to the peers.
DFCC Bank embarked on far-reaching tree planting sustainability measures during the current year which have been commended by Reforest Sri Lanka, with whom the Bank collaborated to plant endemic and native species of trees. A non-profit society committed to protect and extend the forest cover in Sri Lanka, Reforest Sri Lanka has specifically mentioned the extensive commitment of funds and volunteers that DFCC Bank has committed to this cause. This project was conducted as part of the commemorative staff tree-planting campaign launched this year to reforest key areas across the island, whilst giving back to society at large
S&P Global Ratings revised its credit rating outlook for DFCC Bank from negative to stable, while affirming 'B' long-term and 'B' short-term issuer credit ratings on the bank. In its assessment of DFCC's business position, the Bank is projected to maintain its satisfactory market position and business stability over the next 12-18 months.
The stable rating reflects the rating agency’s confidence in the financial institution’s ability to navigate operating conditions in Sri Lanka and maintain its financial profile in the coming months. At the same time, it has affirmed its 'B' long-term and 'B' short-term issuer credit ratings on DFCC Bank while affirming its senior unsecured debt ratings on the bank.
DFCC Bank agreed to take up the Joint Title Sponsorship of the 2017 Inter School Golf Tournament, conducted by the Royal Colombo Golf Club (RCGC). The MoU for sponsorship was recently signed between the DFCC Bank and the Royal Colombo Golf Club. DFCC Bank has been a proud sponsor of sporting events in Sri Lanka since its inception in 1955, and believes that sports brings people together, to work and grow together – core beliefs in DFCC Bank’s own philosophy for growth.
DFCC Bank held its ‘Rewarding Excellence’ Quarterly Human Resource (HR) Awards recently amidst a strong mood of fellowship and corporate pride. The event was attended by Members of the Board, senior management, awardees and staff members. The eagerly anticipated final award ceremony for the year was held at the DFCC Bank Head Office Auditorium on 23rd November 2017, to recognize and reward staff members who performed exceptionally well in the third quarter of the financial year. The Rewarding Excellence scheme was introduced to encourage and appreciate its employees who go the distance and perform above and beyond the call of duty. DFCC has earned a strong reputation for the quality of its people, having moulded some of the best banking professionals in the country. The Bank values not only their professional achievements but also outstanding effort in other areas of corporate life.
DFCC Bank, joined hands with the Fairway Galle Literary Festival 2018, as the event’s official banking partner. The partnership is part of the bank’s long-term commitment to supporting events that uplift the arts and literature in Sri Lanka whilst raising the profile of the island as a creative hub in the international arena. The sponsorship will also help to highlight the Bank’s growing presence in the southern region, one of its key areas for growth and expansion.
DFCC Bank secured USD 30 million in funding from BlueOrchard, a leading global impact investment manager, following an agreement signed between the management of both organizations. The funds will be used to increase the levels of lending that the bank offers SMEs, whilst strengthening its micro-finance portfolio.
With a proven a track record of nurturing small businesses from their early stages, DFCC Bank takes pride in being one of the premier banking institutions in the country that promotes and supports the operations of small and medium enterprises. The bank has also set up a special unit dedicated to Micro and Small Medium Enterprises (MSME) and endeavours to fulfil the unique requirements of these businesses by providing them with customized financial and banking solutions.
Expanding its reach across the country, DFCC Bank opened its second fully-fledged branch in Matara. The new branch will be known as DFCC Bank’s ‘Matara City Branch’.
The branch was ceremonially inaugurated by Lakshman Silva, CEO - DFCC Bank, together with senior management of DFCC Bank, the branch staff and a large gathering of loyal customers and local well-wishers.
DFCC Bank PLC launched “DFCC Premier Go”, the first ever premier banking app in the industry, exclusively for its Premier customers, at a special launch event held on November 2, 2017 at DFCC Bank’s Executive Lounge.
DFCC Premier Go is yet another revolutionary feature in DFCC Bank’s mobile banking platform, developed by Synapsys; DFCC’s Fintech subsidiary that has been at the forefront of digital innovations in the banking industry having developed products such as the Vardhana Virtual Wallet which was launched last year.
The unique feature of the Premier Go App is that it enables customers to contact their Relationship Manager at the click of a button via video conferencing. In the event that a face-to-face meeting is required, this App can assist with scheduling appointments with the Relationship Manager at a time convenient to the customer. They are also able to chat with the Relationship Manager and leave messages for follow-up after working hours, providing them with access to DFCC Banking services anytime and anywhere in the world.
DFCC Bank recorded growth across all its income segments, with a 31% increase in operating income year-on-year. The Bank’s net interest income rose by 32%, to LKR 8,228 Mn buoyed by improvements to the net interest margin from 3.3% in December 2016 to 3.6% by September 2017. In addition, the Bank’s net fee and commission income grew by 17% to LKR 1,110 Mn complemented by the growth in business volumes.
Read moreThe Kahawatta Branch played host to the second Vardhana Sahaya Hamuwa programme recently.
Guest speaker Mr. Dilhan De Silva, Senior Assistant Director of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka presented to over 50 potential clients who attended the programme.
Vardhana Sahaya Hamuwa is a specially designed programme targeting potential MSME clients, with a focus on educating them on how to become good entrepreneurs in their sectors.
DFCC REDS, in collaboration with the National Blood Centre, organised a blood donation campaign under the theme “Share a Little” on September 14th at the DFCC Bank Auditorium.
Staff members from the Head Office, Ramanayake Mawatha and other branches in Colombo volunteered to donate blood, resulting in 57 collections.
The REDS Committee 2017 wishes to thank each and everyone who supported in making this initiative a success.
DFCC Bank conducted an English Education programme as a pilot project in the Gampaha and Kalutara areas. Together with Winner International, an institution specialised in teaching Spoken English to youth, the Bank targeted youth between the ages of 16-22. The programmed aimed to teach them Spoken English and equip them with a basic knowledge of English required to enter the workforce.
Approcimately 45 youths participated in the course carried out at the Kalutara and Gampaha branches from April to August. 70% of the students who sat for the final assessment scored over 60 marks.
The Bank held a Graduation Ceremony on the 23rd of September at the DFCC Bank Auditorium in recognition of the achievements of the participants. The Bank plans to extend the programme to other areas across the country in the coming months.
DFCC Bank organised a strategising session on September 9th at the Pegasus Reef Hotel, Wattala. The Bank’s senior staff participated in interactive discussions and focused strategy discussions for the Bank’s development in 2018-2020.
The workshop featured sessions conducted by two of the country’s financial leaders – Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and former Deputy Governor, Dr. W. A. Wijewardena. Topics covered included the macroeconomic development plans of the Government, and the long-term economic and financial sector growth of the country.
The sessions helped the DFCC Bank team to focus on developing a future strategy for growth, expansion and consolidation in the short and medium term. The senior management is fully committed to implementing the ambitious growth plan across the Bank.
DFCC Bank participated in the Edex Job Fair held from 2nd - 3rd of September at the Sri Lanka Exhibition and Convention Centre. The event gathered companies and job seekers and connected top talent with top employers.
The DFCC stall was visited by over 500 dedicated and talented job seekers and school leavers, who were met with the opportunity to engage with staff and obtain career guidance.
The DFCC REDS Committee organised "REDS Engage 2017" on the 25th of August at the Auditorium. The annual event, attended by Chairman Mr. Royle Jansz, CEO and the senior management of the Bank, was organised to discuss ideas and suggestions presented by the REDS to improve the Bank’s operations and functions.
35 Executive Trainees and Management Trainees in teams of four presented their ideas in the areas of improving CASA, quality lending, review on Great Place to Work and value driven culture, and improving customer service.
The event also provided an opportunity for participants to engage with the senior mangement and colleagues across branches and departments.
The Bank hosted a Reception to welcome CEO Mr. Lakshman Silva at the Cinnamon Grand Hotel. The event was attended by the Bank’s long standing clients, business associates and other well wishers.
Mr. Royle Jansz proposed a toast to the continued success of DFCC’s customers, the Bank and to Mr. Lakshman Silva, and Mr. Silva pledged his commitment to steer the Bank to greater heights.
The ‘Sri Lanka Sustainable Banking Initiative (SBI) – Phase ll’ was launched at the HNB Auditorium on the 15thof August 2017.
18 banks signed the 11 Sustainable Banking Principles for Sri Lanka which were developed by a committee comprising of members of these banks in November 2015. DFCC Bank was amongst the signatories that also included Cargills Bank, Hatton National Bank, and National Development Bank.
Phase II, commencing in August 2017, will be focused on implementing the 11 principles by providing the necessary input and building capacity in terms of guidance documents, training, E-learning and case studies.
The SBI aims to create a platform where banks can work together on sustainability issues. The platform will be used to facilitate decision-making and coordinate efforts, and to increase efficiency and effectiveness while ensuring a level playing field.
Banks who are signatories to the initiative will receive the necessary inputs to implement the signed principles, and gain access to a tailor made E-Learning platform.
The primary benefit of the initiative is to contribute to sustainable development efforts for a beautiful, clean and green Sri Lanka.
Mr. Lakshman Silva lighting the traditional Oil Lamp
Ms. Manuela Marques - Senior Director (Customer Solutions) presenting a token to Mr. Lakshman Silva on his appointment as CEO.
Mr. Silva presenting Ms. Meike Goetze - Senior Environmental and Social Specialist, a token of appreciation
Over 10,000 buns were distributed by the staff of the Kandy Branch, with support from colleagues in other branches in the region, to the general public who came to watch the Kandy Perahera on the 3rd of August.
DFCC Bank participated in the Mercantile Chess Tournament held recently for the first time, and tied for sixth place in the teams category.
The Bank was represented by Chiranth Rajapakshe, Manouri Liyanage, Ovintha Gunathilake, Sandeepa Perera, Sanjeewa Subasinghe and Tikiri Thotamune.
DFCC Bank is the official banking partner for Gajaba Super Cross 2017. The event, celebrating its 16th successive year in 2017, is an annual racing championship conducted by the Gajaba Regiment of the Sri Lanka Army in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Autosports Drivers Association (SLADA) that will be held at the supercross track in Saliyapura, Anuradhapura.
The press conference was held recently and the cheque was presented to Major General Shavendra Silva, Adjutant General of the Sri Lanka Army by Mr. Thimal Perera, Deputy CEO, DFCC Bank.
A musical event, the LMT Rhythm Show, was held in Dubai on the 4th of August, and was attended by the Sri Lankan labour community and the middle class working community in Dubai. The Sri Lanka Community Circle organised the event at Al Nasr Leisure Land which was attended by over 3,000 people. DFCC supported this initiative as the main sponsor.
DFCC Bank supported the Colombo International Tea Convention, which took place from the 8th to the 11th of August, as a Strategic Partner.
The event was attended by high level dignitaries and Government officials, over 100 foreign delegates, 500+ local participants, and approximately 44 speakers and moderators.
DFCC Bank, together with Synapsys, presented the revolutionary supplier settlement system that supports Sri Lanka’s well-established community of private tea manufacturers and tea leaf suppliers. With the supplier settlement system, supplier can have their revenues from their sales managed by a bank and be transferred directly into their bank account.
Here are some pictures from the event:
Mr. Lakshman Silva speaking at the panel discussion on Trade/ Finance
Mr. Dinesh Fernandopulle and Mr. Denver Lewis making a presentation on DFCC’s Role in the Tea Industry at the convention
The Bank recently held an on-boarding event was its Region 02 staff members at the Grand Monarch, Battaramulla, to educate them about the Bancassurance operation and products.
The event was attended by the staff of the Region 02 branch and members of the AIA managemen team.
DFCC Bank recently held an awards ceremony to honour 2016's outstanding consumer banking achievers who supported the business. The awards honoured individuals and entire teams.
The bank also honoured the best customer service representatives, best volunteer, best sportsman and best award recipient from the quarterly recognition awards.
Winners of categories outside of consumer banking were selected from nominations sent in by staff members, after being evaluated by a cross-functional panel.
A cocktail reception was held after the ceremony to celebrate the achievements of over 70 award winners.
Here is the much awaited list of winners together with the picture highlights!
The DFCC Bank Trincomalee Branch successfully held the Vardhana Junior Scholarship seminar for Region 7 recenty at T/ Orr's Hill Vivekananda College. Over 650 students attended and were guided through a mock paper in preparation for the upcoming examination by an experienced panel of lecturers.
The team thanks everyone involved with the initiative for their hard work and time to make the initiative a success.
DFCC Bank formed a partnership with WebXPay to connect the bank’s customers to e-Commerce merchants, as part of its vision to enable a new paradigm in the e-Commerce-led growth of Sri Lanka.
DFCC Bank customers will be able to use their Vardhana Virtual Wallet as a payment option with WebXPay’s network of 600+ e-Commerce merchants, enabling them with more flexibility with their online payments for a wide range of goods and services, basic daily necessities, and opening up access to a wider market for e-Commerce merchants.
Read MoreIn collaboration with ‘Reforest Sri Lanka’ and the Ministry of Highways, DFCC Bank held the seventh tree planting initiative to commemorate staff birthdays on 22nd July alongside the Colombo – Matara Highway, near the Kahathuduwa Interchange.
500 Karanda and Kumbuk trees were planted, out of which 380 were planted to commemorate staff birthdays celebrated in the months of April, May and June.
The Financial Times recently reported on the DFCC Group’s excellent half year performance for 2017, with DFCC Bank’s rapid emergence as a full service commercial bank driving the Group’s strategic growth.
Read moreOver 40 entrepreneurs attended the first Vardhana Sahaya Hamuwa programme held at the Balangoda branch recently as a customer acquisition initiative. In a session conducted by Mr. Dilhan De Silva, Assistant Director, Central Bank, the entrepreneurs were educated on business challenges and how to overcome them to sustain their business.
DFCC Bank opened its newest fully-fledged branch in Tissamaharama on 20 July 2017. In recognition of the emerging economy of Southern Sri Lanka and its unique and diverse range of financial needs, the Bank will provide services to both commercial and personal banking customers in this historical and vibrant city.
Mr. Lakshman Silva opened the new branch in the presence of the Bank’s senior management, staff and customers. Tissamaharama residents now have access to convenient banking with spacious facilities, expert financial advice and the Bank’s innovative use of technology and mobile-based services. The Tissamaharama branch offers the complete range of DFCC Bank’s financial expertise to retail customers as well as corporate and SME customers.
The Human Resources and Bancassurance teams, in collaboration with AIA Insurance PLC, launched a special retirement scheme for DFCC staff.
Senior management from DFCC Bank and AIA PLC attended the launch ceremony held at the DFCC Bank Auditorium on the 7th of July. Staff members who opted for the scheme were presented their documents at the event.
The Rewarding Excellence ceremony for Q2 was held recently in recognition of exceptionally performing staff members, and was attended by members of the Board, senior management, awardees and staff members.
Families of award winners, in appreciation of the role they play in the lives of staff, were also invited to attend the ceremony.
The award winners were:
In recognition of their efforts to reduce Central Bank monthly processing fees for small note deposits.
In recognition of securing a major garment retailer in the country to register for the Vardhana Virtual Wallet.
In recognition of their efforts and sacrificing their personal time and resources to assist the bank with administrative matters.
In recognition of his active involvement in detecting and preventing the Bank from being used for money laundering purposes.
Congratulations and well done!
The Flood Relief team donated flood relief items to the Lankagama Junior Model School located off Deniyaya. Situated in a remote area, the school has 162 students from Grades 1-13, most of them from under-privileged families. The branch manager and staff of Deniyaya together with the Regional Manager – R3 visited the school and donated Rs. 1,250/- DSI vouchers, schools bags and uniforms to all 162 students on the 5th of July.
The Flood Relief team identified the needs of six schools affected by the recent floods and, with fund contributions from staff, donated shoe vouchers, school bags, uniforms and exercise books to 360 students at Mihindu Vidyalaya in Ratnapura and shoe vouchers to 181 students at Gamini Central College, Kalawana. Branch managers and staff of respective branches visited the schools to hand over the donations.
162 students of the Lankagama Junior Model School in Deniyaya will receive further donations, and the Bank will assist four schools in Deniyaya, Matara and Kalutara by providing books for their libraries, Duplo-machines, printers and furniture, all of which were damaged by the floods.
Distribution of shoe vouchers to 181 students at Gamini Central College, Kalawana
Distribution of school bags, exercise books, school uniforms and shoe vouchers to 360 students at Mihindu Vidyalaya, Ratnapura
The DFCC REDS recently held their annual outbound training in Kalutara. 38 Executive Trainees and Management Trainees who recently joined the Bank participated in activities such as Aerial Roping, Raft Sailing, Kayaking, and a Yoga and Relaxation session.
The event provided an opportunity for the new recruits to interact with their colleagues and get to know each other better, while also building trust, teamwork, leadership skills and goal motivation.
An evening of fellowship for Stockbrokers was recently organised by the Margin Trading Team at the Premier Centre Lounge, in recognition of their patronage, and strengthening the Bank’s relationship with them.
Around 25 guests from five broking houses and members of DFCC’s senior management attended the event.
The Vardhana Junior Scholarship seminars commenced recently at the Welipillewa Primary School in Ganemulla, with over 300 students coached in preparation for the upcoming examination. A workshop for their parents was also conducted by specialist lecturers who shared knowledge on preparing children for the exam, parenting tips and more.
The Bank rolled out the initiative to more locations including Bandarawela, Matara, Tangalle, Kandy, Dambulla, Kurunegala and Kaduruwela.
DFCC Bank, in collaboration with the Zonal Education Offices, recently organised scholarship seminars in areas across the country aimed at students who will be sitting for the scholarship examination. The Bank will also enlist the assistance of the Past Teachers and Principals Association to maintain strict standards to enhance the overall seminar content.
A minimum of 300 students are expected to attend per seminar, and the programme will be held from 8.30 a.m. to 1.00 p.m. on specified days at the identified locations. Special workshops for parents will also be held simultaneously at the same location to help their children prepare for the examination.
DFCC Bank relaunched Vardhana Junior, strengthening its position as one of the leading minor savings products in the country by the addition of special features such as an exciting array of valuable gifts to inspire children to save for their future.
As a special offer for Grade 5 scholarship students, the Bank will award account holding students Rs.150 for every mark scored above 150 marks at the Grade 5 examinations.
DFCC Bank will also award parents who deposit a minimum of Rs. 10,000 for the year upon reaching the Rs. 50,000 tier with a stationery pack or a pair of shoes.
The Sustainability Unit of DFCC Bank recently held a Tree Planting campaign at the 'Korathota Sumangala Vidyalaya' in Athurugiriya. With a majority of its students coming from under-privileged familes, the 'Korathota Sumangala Vidyalaya' is a school that requires a lot of assistance. The school premises are kept clean and organised through the efforts of its Principal and staff, utilising the limited funds available to them.
DFCC Bank planted 100 fruit trees of different varieties alongside the school’s play ground with a ceremony attended by the Principal and staff, parents and students of Grades seven and eight.
Vardhana Double Winner is an unique personal loan product that offers double the benefits.
The key feature of this product is that customers can apply for a loan facility of up to 20 times their gross salary, at an attractive interest rate.
In addition, customers can obtain a cash advance of up to 90% of their salary to reap the maximum benefits from the loan.
Furthermore, on obtaining the loan, customers will also be eligible for other perks such as a complimentary debit card, eBanking services, the Vardhana Virtual Wallet and a credit card with the joining fee waived off.
DFCC Bank has re-launched Vardhana Sahanaya to help people affected by adverse weather conditions rebuild their lives in the aftermath.
The loans offered include Personal, Housing, Education and Business Loans. Going beyond providing short-term relief, the Bank is focusing its efforts on facilitating a long-term rebuilding initiative by providing individuals and enterprises affected by the floods with low-cost personal and business loans.
Individual salaried earners who have been affected by the floods will be eligible for personal loans to rebuild their damaged properties.
More information can be sought by calling the Bank hotline or visiting the nearest DFCC Branch.
DFCC Bank and Synapsys along with their partner Oracle, recently launched the Oracle Planning and Budgeting Cloud Service.
In doing so, DFCC became the first bank in the ASEAN region to implement cloud-based planning and budgeting services and the first bank in Sri Lanka to implement a product on the Oracle Cloud.
The technology will improve overall budgeting performance, refine responses to market volatility and support key operational areas of IT and Finance. It will similarly eliminate costs on hardware, tech support and upgrades.
The team that spearheaded the project from DFCC, Synapsys and Oracle
DFCC Bank recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC (DIMO), to facilitate the leasing of TATA vehicles at an affordable price, to customers across its Branch network.
The MoU was signed by the CEOs of both organisations, at a gathering that took place at the DFCC Head Office.
DIMO is the sole authorised agent for TATA light and intermediate commercial vehicles in Sri Lanka.
Through the leasing partnership, customers can expect to benefit from discounts on selected TATA lorries, pick-ups, heavy duty trucks and buses.
L-R Sampath Kumarasinghe - DGM - TATA commercial vehicle sales, Madu Singh - Country Manager - TATA Motors, Nalinda Kurukulasooriya - GM - TATA commercial vehicle sales, Vijitha Bandara - Director DIMO, Gahanath Pandithage - Group CEO DIMO together with the DFCC team; Arjun Fernando, Lakshman Silva, Gillian Edwards, Bhathiya Alahakoon and Rasika Senaratna
The sixth tree planting initiative to commemorate staff birthdays which was scheduled for 27th May in Kottawa was postponed due to adverse weather. The date will be re-scheduled once the prevailing weather conditions improve.
The table below records the initiatives undertaken so far:
| Place held | Date held | Trees planted | Trees for Staff |
| 1. Aranayake | 28 January | 960 | 160 |
| 2. Kaduwela | 4 February | 1,000 | 100 |
| 3. Jaffna | 17 February | 1,000 | - |
| 4. Duplication Road, Colombo 3 and 4 | 19 March | 30 | 30 |
| 5. Thalawila | 25 March | 1,000 | 105 |
| Total | 3,990 | 395 |
DFCC Bank’s Roshan Fernando and Rajitha Hettiarachchchi were selected to represent Sri Lanka at the upcoming Basketball Tournaments of the South Asian Games and International Tour Champ respectively.
Also, Christie Mariathasan of DFCC Bank has been appointed by the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation as the Country Representative / Director 3X3 Development for the 3X3 Basketball Game in Sri Lanka.
The recent adverse weather conditions brought about significant hardship to the population of Sri Lanka. Many people were displaced due to the heavy rains. Thousands lost their homes and livelihoods. Many of the employees of DFCC Bank were affected as well.
DFCC Bank further initiated a three-pronged emergency relief plan focused on assisting staff, clients and the general public who have been affected.
The Akuressa Branch of the Bank, in collaboration with the Akuresse Base Hospital, also organised a medical camp at its premises to provide medical assistance for people in the local area.
The Sustainability Unit of DFCC Bank launched an e-waste collection system on the 1st of June. This was one of several initiatives launched by the Bank to commemorate World Environment Day.
The programme was initially launched at the Head Office and Nawala Branch. An e-waste bin was placed permanently at these locations for staff to conveniently dispose of related waste.
Large items that do not fit the bin can be brought to the notice of the Sustainability Unit via e-mail.
DFCC Bank participated in the Build SL - Expo 2017 exhibition recently. This is the largest Housing and Construction Exhibition in Sri Lanka. The event was held from the 26th to the 28th of May at the BMICH.
The Bank participated with the objective of promoting its range of Sandella Housing Loans.
The product being offered comes along with a complimentary fire insurance policy.
The initiative was successful, with a significant number of leads being generated.
The Corporate Banking team held their Annual Trade Cocktail at the DFCC Auditorium last Friday. This was to recognise and thank long-standing customers for their patronage of the Bank.
The Bank prides itself on sustaining close relationships with all its customers, and this event was one of many in which we further rekindle our associations.
The DFCC Annual Awards ceremony which was held recently at the BMICH, recognised the many and varied contributions that DFCC staff made throughout the year.
A full list of award winners is provided below:
All DFCC Staff members have now been provided with DFCC Bank reusable shopping Bags.
If it is assumed that each employee of the Bank uses 12 polythene bags per week for their shopping; switching to these reusable bags will save approximately 84,000 bags from going into landfills each month. This comes to a total of one million bags being saved in a year!
DFCC Bank hopes that all individuals will adopt the concept of using reusable bags.
A team of employees at the Piliyandala Branch of DFCC Bank went out of their way to aid an customer.
This was in helping the customer clear the title of the property he was bringing forward as collateral. This was a long-unresolved issue for the customer, and he was immensely grateful for the entire team’s efforts in helping him rectify the situation.
A solid working relationship has in addition been secured between the client and the Bank.
CGI Federal Inc has moved their account from a foreign bank to DFCC as of 26th April 2017, to aid in their collection of US Visa fees.
Founded in 1976, CGI is one of the largest IT and business process service providers in the world.
Commenting on this initiative, Mr. Lakshman Silva said, ‘We are honoured to have been chosen by such a large global organisation as their exclusive partner for US Visa fee collections. We are committed to delivering a superior level of service to everyone that walks into our Branches to execute their Visa payments’.
DFCC Bank has partnered with ThePapare.com to disseminate knowledge in the form of articles about rugby, in order to reach students and alumni who are interested in the sport.
The Schools Rugby League is an eagerly-awaited annual event. This year, the school rugby season has been more intense than ever, with all participating teams competing strongly.
DFCC has successfully disseminated in-depth news and analysis of the rugby season through its Know and Grow campaign by interviewing past players, coaches and educating sports enthusiasts and the public at large about the League and the Tournament.
For the first quarter ended 31 March 2017, the DFCC Group reported a consolidated profit after tax (PAT) of LKR 1,373 million, which is a growth of 42% over the LKR 970 million recorded for the equivalent period last year.
The Bank recorded a 65% growth in profit before tax (PBT) and a 45% growth in profit after tax (PAT).
Due to the timely repricing of its assets and liabilities, the interest margins of the Bank improved to 3.6% from 3.3% during the previous quarter, which contributed towards augmenting the net interest income.
The Bank launched the ‘Mobile Teller’ application, a digital banking service, in collaboration with SYNAPSYS.
This doorstep banking service is conducted by a staff representative, who accepts cash deposits in real time via a mobile device. This offers customers the option of executing cash deposits at a location of their choice situated within 10 kilometres of a Branch that offers the service.
The service is simple to use and does not require any registration. The user will need to inform the Bank of the requirement at a prearranged time.
The DFCC annual Avurudu Pola was held recently with much fanfare. This utilised both the Bank’s Auditorium and external premises at a church.
Stalls were erected with vendors selling items ranging from clothes, jewelry, and books to delicacies and pet-related items. The most popular stall was the stall selling isso wade (batter-fried prawn cakes); which encountered some impressive queues!
DFCC Community Projects recently wrapped up its one-week drive in collecting newspapers and selling the items for a worthy cause. The proceeds of the collection, along with contributions from the Bank, will go towards issuing each of the Bank’s employees with a durable and eco-friendly shopping bag. This will contribute to lessening the Bank’s dependence on plastic shopping bags.
The Bank would further like to thank all Branches and departments who actively took part in this initiative, which will contribute towards reducing the carbon footprint of the Bank as well.
DFCC Bank recently took part in the career fair held by the University of Colombo. This was with the intention of looking for high-potential candidates for recruitment and also to provide guidance to graduates in terms of career advice and interview preparation tips.
The event was a marked success.The DFCC stall saw a significant turnout, with a long list of potential candidates who wished to be interviewed by our panelists.
The Rewarding Excellence Ceremony for the first quarter of DFCC Bank’s operations was conducted in April 2017. The event was held under the patronage of members of the Board, senior management, and members of the staff.
The Chairman of DFCC Bank, Mr. Royle Jansz, thanked all laureates for their contributions and wished them continued success ahead. The CEO of DFCC Bank, Mr. Arjun Fernando, echoed these sentiments and felicitated the HR team of the Bank for their efforts in motivating staff and organising the Awards ceremony.
The awards handed out were as follows:
Dilini Perera
Stephanie Rayen
Sivapragasam Thivagaran
Farah Wijayakumara
In line with its strategy to rapidly expand and reach all corners of the island, DFCC Bank inaugurated two new branches at Ambalantota and Wattegama. The branches were declared open by Mr. Lakshman Silva, in the presence of senior representatives and staff from the Bank and representatives from the local community.
DFCC’s new Ambalantota branch is located at No. 94, Main Street, Ambalantota and the Wattegama branch is located at No. 136, Kandy Road, Wattegama.
We are mindful of the ways in which our operations impact on communities and the environment. The Bank continually promotes sustainable initiatives in the environments in which we conduct our activities; which consequently form our social and environmental capital. Our employees are always encouraged to engage in community efforts along with our corporate social responsibility activities. Further details on these and more can be accessed from our Annual Report 2016.
We are cognisant of the fact that our operations thrive on the many interlinks we sustain with our cherished and trusted partners. The Bank is pleased of the strong relationships it has forged over the years with diverse local and global organisations that constitute its Business Partner Capital. Further details can be accessed from our Annual Report 2016.
Employee capital is also a constituent of external capital. Our employees are the strength of our operations, and it is their dedication and contributions that powers our success. We enjoy the benefits of a highly-skilled and multi-disciplinary staff who function to global standards. Further details can be accessed from our Annual Report 2016.
Customer capital is another constituent of external capital. Our customers are the cornerstone of our existence. We furnish them with a comprehensive portfolio of products and services encompassing the entire range of both traditional and electronic banking systems. Further details can be accessed from our Annual Report 2016.
Investor capital is a constituent of external capital. Investor capital consists of individuals and organisations providing equity and debt capital to our operations. In doing so, they expect returns over the short, medium and long-term.
The Bank generates reciprocal earnings whilst operating under the controls of secure risk management policies and control frameworks. Further details can be accessed from our Annual Report 2016.
Institutional capital is also a constituent of internal capital. It represents the abstract entities that underpin our operations; to include; organisational knowledge, systems and processes, corporate culture, values, brand equity, business ethics, integrity and all other associated matters. It is the sum of these that; amongst others; give us an unique competitive edge in our business environments. Further details can be accessed from our Annual Report 2016.
Financial capital is a constituent of internal capital. As it is quantifiable, it is represented in the financial statements of the DFCC Group. Financial capital is utilised for investing in economic capital. Further details can be accessed from our Annual Report 2016.
A felicitation party was held to congratulate and recognise members of the DFCC team who had gone beyond their recognised roles to participate in clubs and committees, train and interview candidates and represent the Bank at various miscellaneous activities conducted throughout the year.
The party was conducted at the DFCC Head Office premises with the attendance of the Board of Directors and Senior Management.
It was a memorable evening with good food and music featuring a live band.
Photo opportunities were also arranged for the various committees and teams. The DFCC theme song was sung in English, Sinhala and Tamil.
We, at DFCC Bank, are indebted to the staff members who contribute immensely in making DFCC Bank a ‘Great Place to Work’, and thank them profoundly for their continued support and efforts.
The Inter-Bank Talent Show organised by the Association of Professional Bankers was recently conducted at the Bishop’s College Auditorium.
It featured a selection of musical and dance performances from over 50 representatives of the banking sector of Sri Lanka.
The event was a rousing success in helping fostering fellowship amongst the banking community.
DFCC Bank was represented by Shanika Mendis of Human Resource Development (HRD), Gurney Pearson of the Matara Branch and Achini De Silva from the Head Office Reception. Shanika teamed up with Gurney for a powerful rendition of the song ‘You Raise Me Up’ whilst Achini joined forces with Hasuru from People’s Bank to sing the popular Sinhala song ‘Heenayaki Mata Adare’.
It was a memorable night as the participants from DFCC showcased their many talents, and acted as fantastic ambassadors to make the Bank proud.
We were awarded the above certification in recognition of our implementation of best practices in legal, physical and technical control for information security management.
In 2014, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CNSL) implemented a Baseline Security Standard (BSS) for the banking and financial sector to identify and mitigate risks that could affect information assets and systems. The BSS is an extract of the ISO 27001 International Standard.
In addition to giving us a competitive edge in the industry, this certification will aid us in numerous ways, to include; improving our operational efficiency, reducing costs, providing assurance to clients and suppliers, improving security through continuous ISO audits, enabling risks to be managed at an acceptable level, improving the security awareness and work ethic amongst staff, enhancing internal information-handling processes and minimising the impact of adverse events.
The financial year ended 31st December 2016 was the first full year of operations following the merger of DFCC Bank with DFCC Vardhana Bank.
We expected significant results based on the resulting synergies and blending of our development and commercial banking operations.
We were not disappointed, as shown by our results: our Profit after Tax (ignoring extraordinary capital gains) crossed the LKR 3.0 billion mark for the first time in our history.
We similarly excelled in our employee engagement and brand consolidation.
Total income grew by 35% to reach LKR 2. 68 billion, and our operating income surpassed the LKR 11 billion mark. Total assets grew by 18%, and our national rating was re-affirmed by Fitch Ratings Lanka Limited at AA- (lka).
Despite an additional head count and an increase in overhead expenses following the amalgamation, our net profit per employee rose by 30%. Our cost to income ratio was recorded at 45%, to give one of the most commendable figures in the country.
With six decades of experience in nurturing small and medium businesses in becoming leading enterprises, the Bank is pleased to launch Vardhana Sahaya; a new product dedicated to the SME sector offering a range of financial services including loans, leases and bank guarantees.
The benefits of this product are manifold. It will offer customised and flexible financial solutions to customers. The Bank will complement these with advisory services and entrepreneur development schemes conducted island-wide.
The service will additionally help build business potential and credit-worthiness over the assets offered by the client.
The Bank has, over the decades, built strong relationships with its rapidly-growing customer base and remains committed to providing them with innovative and responsible financial solutions.
The Bank’s newest fully-fledged Branch was opened in Nawalapitiya on the 6th of February, in line with the Bank’s expansion strategy.
Our network is rapidly growing, and has extended its reach throughout Sri Lanka.
The new Branch is located at No. 13B, Council Road, Nawalapitiya, and offers the full range of commercial and development banking services. It can be contacted by phone on 054-2222850/ 2223508.
The HR team of DFCC Bank would like to take this opportunity to thank all members of staff who contributed generously towards raising awareness on breast cancer during the month of October 2016.
The amount raised was matched by the Bank, and the funds were utilised to co-sponsor a programme for breast cancer survivors organised by the non-profit Can-Sur-Vive.
The programme was held at the Lanka Hospitals Auditorium and provided cancer survivors with important information on health and support.
As part of its CSR and sustainability initiatives, the Bank launched this feature with the aim of planting a tree to celebrate the birthday of every employee of its staff.
A member of staff will receive a personalised invitation to attend the planting ceremony, as well as an e-tree dedication certificate providing a link to find the exact location of the planted tree on Google Maps.
This programme is conducted in collaboration with Rainforest Lanka, a non-profit dedicated to the protection and extension of forest cover in Sri Lanka.
In January alone, the Bank planted a total of 960 trees in Aranayake. 160 of these were to commemorate staff birthdays. To coincide with Independence Day celebrations, a further 1,000 trees were planted along the Kaduwela-Kadawatha Highway. The Bank oversaw the planting of 1,000 additional trees at the University of Jaffna towards the end of February.
The trees will be instrumental in reforesting vulnerable regions of the island. In doing so, they will improve both soil and air quality and help combat soil erosion.
The Bank launched the campaign to coincide with Independence Day in Sri Lanka. The campaign aimed to familiarise the public with the elements that made up the national flag of the country.
The Sri Lankan flag is one of the most locally searched-for items on Google. Banking on this, we created an interactive digital activity whereupon users can assemble the flag using each of its elements, and receive information on each component while doing so. Those who successfully completed the activity were rewarded with a gift, which they could collect from the nearest DFCC Branch.
Mr. Arjun Fernando, the CEO of DFCC Bank added: ‘DFCC Bank is continually looking for ways in which we can add value to the citizens of Sri Lanka. The launch of this campaign, in an engaging format that appeals to people of all ages, was a way of communicating with the public and enhancing their knowledge. DFCC Bank remains committed to inspiring individuals through public initiatives and contributing towards the growth and development of the country.’
The Bank’s CSR Committee was formed with the objective of nurturing a working culture that honours social responsibility.
The Committee continually encourages staff members to take part in their initiatives. Together, they are instrumental in transforming and uplifting communities for the benefit of all.
The Committee is formed of Tikiri Thotamune, Shanya Pandithakoralage, Senaka Jayasinghe, Pradeepan Sivalingam, Sareeka Gunatunga, Gayathri Sivayoganathan and Rachitha Dayaratne.
In December 2016, the Committee obtained toys, books and stationery for the children at Learning Tree Montessori in Mount Lavinia; which educates children from disadvantaged backgrounds. The school functions on donations made by sponsors and the public, and greatly appreciated the items that were gifted to them.
The Committee is actively looking for other charities that require help and support.
The Bank’s fully-fledged Hikkaduwa Branch was opened by Mr. Arjun Fernando and Mr. Lakshman Silva on the 26th of January 2017, under the patronage of members of the staff and individuals from the local community.
The Branch offers a comprehensive portfolio of retail banking solutions in hand with corporate and SME Banking services. Customers visiting the Branch can thus enjoy a streamlined and holistic banking experience.
The Branch is located at No. 249, Galle Road, Hikkaduwa and can be contacted by phone on 091-2275899/ 091-2276920 and fax on 091-2276921.
The Reds Scavenger Hunt took place on the 7th of January, with a widespread participation from across the Bank’s branches. Competitors were assigned into one of ten teams by the committee.
The teams were then handed a sequence of creative tasks spread around Colombo. These included jogging two rounds around Independence Square to count the stone lion figurines, obtaining a take-out menu from an Indian restaurant and performing the Macarena at Liberty Plaza! The teams who were the quickest to successfully complete all the assigned tasks were duly rewarded.
Mr. Nalin Karunathilaka and Mr. Channa Dayaratne presented the winners with their prizes.
The Bank featured at EDEX EXPO Fair held at the BMICH in Colombo 07. An impressive turnout of undergraduates, graduates and professionals attended the event. Many individuals were interested in the placement opportunities available at the Bank. A cross-functional team representing the Bank conducted interviews with potential applicants.
The team carried out additional initiatives such as providing interviewees with interview tips and career guidance for their future success.
The Pettah branch of DFCC Bank was officially opened on Wednesday, under the patronage of Mr. Arjun Fernando, Mr. Lakshman Silva, members of the staff, senior representatives and members of the community.
The Branch offers the entire range of retail banking services to customers. Pettah, being the trading and commercial hub of the city, will additionally benefit from the Bank’s expertise in corporate and SME banking.
The Branch is located at No. 143, Main Street, Colombo 11; and can be contacted by phone on 011-2337707/ 011-2337708 and fax on 011-2337709.
Former employees of DFCC Bank attended a luncheon hosted by Mr. Arjun Fernando and Mr. Lakshman Silva. This saw the participation of over 100 retired employees. The event was held at the auditorium, and it was a memorable occasion as they reminisced about their past days at the Bank. Long-standing staff were equally present at the event; which gave them an opportunity to catch up with their former colleagues.
Our staff and former staff are what makes DFCC what it is, and we are always grateful for their contribution.
The Bank opened a new fully-fledged branch in Wennappuwa, under the patronage of Mr. Arjun Fernando, Mr. Lakshman Silva, members of the staff and other prominent individuals of the community.
The Bank has located its services in a strategic location to meet the increasing demand for its products and services as a fully-consolidated commercial bank. The new Branch will offer customers a wide array of retail banking facilities and services.
The Branch is located at No. 194, Colombo Road, Wennappuwa, and can be contacted by phone on 031-2253653/ 031-2251994, or fax on 031-2253994.
The DFCC tennis team cinched the runner-up position at the Mercantile Tennis Tournament, showcasing an impressive performance. The first place was awarded to MAS Holdings and Standard Chartered Bank emerged at third place.
The stand-out performance was recorded by Mr. Arjun Fernando, the CEO of DFCC Bank; and Mr. Neil de Rose, who with their combined efforts, won the runner-up position in the Men’s Over 35 doubles.
The DFCC team was additionally comprised of Ravinda Gunawardena, Tharindu Paranathanthri, Manouri Liyanage, Nishani de Soyza, Sriyani Ranatunga, A. D. A. Rishan, Lakshan Kumarajeeva, Anandakumara Perumal, Malintha Wijewardena, Dharshika Sudharshini, Kanishka Ratnayake, Asanga Goonatilaka and Niroshana Chaminda.
The DFCC team has been a key player in the Mercantile Tennis tournaments in the past years, garnering many impressive victories.
AIA Insurance hosted an event in Kurunegala for 60 small and medium enterprise (SME) proprietors in collaboration with the Kurunegala Branch of DFCC Bank.
The event was held at the Kandyan Reach Hotel, and aimed to raise awareness on the mitigation of risks associated with business and life.
The event was well-received by the attendees.
DFCC Bank added six new branches to its growing network. The branches are located in Kahawatta, Kochchikade, Giriulla, Wennappuwa, Pettah and Hikkaduwa.
The Bank remains focused in driving financial inclusion by enabling more individuals to access its services while simultaneously reaching out to new retail and business customers.
The Bank offers a comprehensive portfolio of commercial banking services to include current and savings accounts, fixed deposits, loans, pawning services, leasing facilities, NRFC/RFC accounts, credit cards and remittances. Customers can equally avail themselves of the Bank’s expertise in corporate and SME banking.
DFCC Bank adopts a dynamic approach in its expansions to uphold its commitment to remaining customer-centric. The Bank has adopted its services onto multiple digital platforms to reflect changing trends as well.
To further spread the Christmas spirit, the DFCC Toastmasters organised an evening of Christmas carols on our premises on the 19th of December. This was an inaugural event, and showed widespread participation; to include the Chairman and members of the Board. The choir sang a variety of Christmas classics, and the event concluded with a sing-along that saw the participation of all.
The Bank is proud to be the leading financier of Sri Lanka’s premier utility-scale, grid-connected, solar power project. This is being developed by Sagasolar Power (Pvt) Ltd, and is situated in Habantota.
The project is expected to add 19GWh of clean, green energy to the country’s national grid for 25 consecutive years.
The Bank is equally financing a similar 10MW solar project being developed at the same location by Anorchi Lanka (Pvt) Ltd.
These developments follow DFCC Bank’s strong track record in financing renewable energy projects in Sri Lanka, commencing with the first grid-connected, mini-hydro power plant in 1996.
In 2010, the Bank financed the first-ever wind power project in Sri Lanka, and extended its expertise to developing a cost-based, technology-specific tariff structure for the project. This resulted in commercial results which spurred the adoption of this new technology. The Bank has equally financed turbine manufacturers to benefit both local and foreign hydro-power plants.
The Bank launched the above feature on the 1st of January 2017.
Family members who opened two or more saving accounts with a combined deposit of Rs. 25,000 received an instant cash reward or DFCC gift voucher which could be redeemed at select merchant outlets island-wide.
A deposit of Rs. 25,000 in a Children’s savings account rewarded the depositor with similar cash rewards or gift vouchers. The Vardhana Virtual Wallet was also offered on a complimentary basis for all account-holders, and Vardhana Garu Saru holders received a loyalty card.
These initiatives were to encourage families to save together, and thus secure their financial futures by becoming powerful economic units. We equally encouraged families to set a positive example to their children by demonstrating and encouraging the practice of saving.
A range of other benefits were made available to customers. These included advances of up to 100% on savings accounts or fixed deposit balances, advances of up to 100% on monthly salaries deposited into salary booster accounts and a 10% discount when using the Vardhana Virtual Wallet at select merchant outlets.
The Bank was active in its efforts to spread the festive spirit in Colombo during the holiday season.
The Bank was a key sponsor of ‘Tourism Fest 2016’ held at Arcade Independence Square from the 21st to the 23rd of December. The highly-anticipated event was organised by the Ministry of Tourism Development and Christian Religious Affairs and was inaugurated by several distinguished guests.
DFCC Bank equally sponsored the installation of the venue’s Christmas tree.
The event featured four days of Christmas-themed events and entertainment, including musical performances, games and activities.
The Bank equally contributed to decorating the Galle Face roundabout, with the addition of festive lights and décor.
DFCC Bank entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Think Green (Pvt) Ltd for eco-friendly waste management. The signing took place at the DFCC Head Office on the 28th of November. This represents yet another green banking initiative in the Bank’s portfolio of sustainable banking principles.
Think Green (Pvt) Ltd is a pioneer in providing safe and reliable electronic waste management in Sri Lanka. It is approved by the Central Environment Authority (CEA) for the collection and disposal of e-waste. Think Green will collect material for recycling from the DFCC Head Office as well as the branches at Ramanayaka Mawatha and Nawala.
The MoU represents a join effort in rectifying the threats posed by e-waste to the environment and human health.
The DFCC Quiz Team flashed their colours as they finished in fourth place at the Annual Trade Finance Quiz. It was a tight challenge to rank in the top three, as at one point DFCC Bank was tied for third place with Team A from Seylan Bank and Team B from Commercial Bank. Following the tie-breaker round, DFCC Bank beat Commercial Bank to secure the fourth spot.
The quiz consisted of four categories: Current Affairs, International Trade, International Affairs and Sports and Entertainment. DFCC Bank ranked first in the Current Affairs and International Affairs categories.
The team comprised of Nalin Karunathilake (Project Management), Aruna Dissanayake (Regional Office: Central Region), Dilshan Dodanwala (Treasury), Sajitha Jayakody (Trade Services) and Tikiri Thotamune (Trade Services).
The Annual Trade Finance Quiz was organised by the Trade Finance Association of Bankers and held at the Kingsbury Hotel, and saw the participation of 29 teams representing commercial banks.
DFCC Bank recently entered into an exclusive long-term Bancassurance partnership with renowned insurance provider, AIA. This will offer the Bank’s customers exclusive access to a range of innovative savings options, insurance policies and services. Customers can avail themselves of attractively-priced insurance and banking solutions to meet their diverse needs.
The partnership with AIA will equally enable DFCC to diversify its product portfolio and expand its objectives.
Mr. Pankaj Banerjee, the CEO of AIA Sri Lanka, noted: ‘Our mutual partnership will now allow us to give multiple access points to Sri Lankan customers to ensure that they get the financial advice they seek.’
AIA’s partnership with DFCC commenced as a distribution agreement in 2014, and has now evolved to a strategic 20 year partnership. This progression is evidence of not just the mutual strengths between the two parties, but also the great potential of Bancassurance in Sri Lanka.
DFCC is to transfer all its services onto the Google cloud. The cloud-based tools on offer will enhance communication, real-time collaboration, productivity and work-flow within the 1, 500 employees that constitute our workforce.
The CEO of DFCC Bank commented on the service, highlighting its many benefits. Employees will be able to access information from both desktop and mobile devices, which will facilitate flexibility and mobility. The cost-efficiency of processes will also increase. Similarly, the Bank’s customers will also see benefits with regards to improved systems and processes, faster response times, and product and service innovations.
DFCC Bank remains committed to investing in technology to drive excellence in service and product innovation. The Bank has made significant steps to digitise and simplify its procedures. Some innovations it has brought to light include the Vardhana Virtual Wallet, the Lanka Money Transfer system and the Supplier Settlement System.
DFCC Bank’s innovative mobile application, the Vardhana Virtual Wallet, has been upgraded to extend its use to non DFCC Bank customers as well. Thus, any individual with a registered local mobile number, who is a resident of Sri Lanka and aged 18 or above can now avail themselves of the free service by completing a one-time registration at any DFCC branch or service point.
The user can then top up funds at select merchant outlets, or receive funds from existing application users. The application can then be used to purchase goods and services, pay utility bills and execute monetary transfers: anytime and anywhere.
The application can further enable users to manage and organise their finances efficiently, as their bank accounts are linked to the application. This assures a new level of financial freedom and flexibility.
DFCC Vardhana Virtual Wallet, the first of its kind in the country’s banking industry, further encourages individual users and merchants to move away from the traditional use of physical cash, for advanced ease and convenience.
DFCC Bank PLC issued debentures to raise LKR 4 billion, with an option to go up to LKR 7 billion, in the event of an over-subscription. The purpose of this issue is to strengthen the Tier II capital of the Bank while supporting its lending operations in the Corporate, Business and SME sectors. In addition, it will mitigate the Bank’s interest rate risk by reducing mismatches in the maturity of assets and liabilities.
The debentures are rated A+ (lka) by Fitch Ratings Lanka Ltd and is attractively structured with tenures of five and seven years, carrying fixed annual coupons of 12.15% and 12.75% respectively.The subordinated, redeemable and unsecured debentures will be listed in the Colombo Stock Exchange where the minimum subscription is LKR 10,000.
The issue was opened for subscription on the 02nd of November 2016.
The issue is structured by DFCC Bank’s Treasury and Resource Mobilisation Unit and managed by Capital Alliance Partners Limited and Acuity Partners (Pvt) Ltd.
The DFCC REDS CSR project for 2016 was held at Abakolaweva Primary School in Tangalle.
The main school building was renovated under this project. The entire roof of the building was replaced and the whole structure was painted.
The project was successfully completed and the building was handed over on 09th October 2016 with the participation of the school principal, the zonal educational director, the DFCC Reds committee and Mrs. Namali Sirithunga, the DFCC Hambantota branch manager.
REDS wishes to thank everyone for the tremendous support they executed in purchasing raffle draw tickets and making monetary donations. Their contribution assured the immense success of this project and helped secure the future of numerous deserving schoolchildren.
An art competition was held to celebrate Children’s Day on the 8th of October. The competition was spread across the regional offices located in Wellawatte, Nawala, Kandy, Jaffna, Kaduruwela, Matara and Negombo, and was based on the theme of Growth.
There was significant participation across all regions. Children ranging from ages 6 to 12 took part in the events. Overall, over 150 children took part, and this was a great opportunity for the Bank to engage with local communities.
The top three winners were judged by the senior management in each region. In some instances, prominent people from the community were involved in the judging process as well.
The top prize winners were gifted a Vardhana Junior Account with deposits of Rs 10,000, 5,000 and 2,500 respectively. Participants also received gift packs and certificates of participation.
DFCC Bank signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Sathosa Motors at the DFCC head office. This will facilitate the leasing of ISUZU branded vehicles for DFCC’s customers, allowing customers the opportunity to purchase a vehicle of good quality at a lower cost. Sathosa Motors is the sole authorised agent in Sri Lanka for ISUZU commercial vehicles. ISUZU is regarded as the foremost Japanese brand for commercial vehicles in the world.
Mr. Arjun Fernando, the CEO of DFCC Bank commented: ‘We are pleased to sign an MoU with Sathosa Motors as this arrangement enables us to offer multiple benefits to our customers, as well as helping us in expanding our leasing portfolio. DFCC Bank is committed to meeting the aspirations of our customers by entering into such fulfilling relationships’.
Mr. Tilak Gunasekara, the Managing Director/ CEO of Sathosa Motors, added: ‘We are delighted to enter into a partnership with DFCC Bank, and hence offer attractive discounts and benefits for our mutual customers’.
On the strength of its credentials and sound track record over a period of six decades, DFCC has been fruitful in raising funds for its developments in the Middle East.
An US Dollar loan facility over the term of three years was thus secured by DFCC Bank from the National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah (RAKBANK), of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Alpen Capital (ME) Limited, an investment banking advisory firm, also based in the UAE, acted as the sole financial advisor to the transaction.
Through the growth of all sectors, DFCC is now a technologically-enhanced modern commercial bank that supports a broad and diversified clientèle. This added capital will further ensure the long term expansion plans of the Bank of its offshore banking unit (FCBU).
This long-term funding opportunity is also a welcoming sign for the local banking industry of Sri Lanka, as it reinforces faith in industry prospects and the general trajectory of the national economy.
DFCC Bank tied up with the Export Development Board (EDB) as the Exclusive Banking Partner for the World Export Development Forum (WEDF) which was held in Colombo on the 12th and 13th of October.
WEDF is an unique global conference and Business-to-Business (B2B) matchmaking platform dedicated to supporting trade-led development.
This forum brought together over 600 business leaders, policy-makers, heads of trade, investment support institutions and international trade development officials to address international competitiveness for developing countries.
It took place at the BMICH and was held under the theme: Connect, Compete and Change.
DFCC Bank held its inaugural Customer Service Week celebration in October 2016. The Bank utilised this opportunity to further foster its core value of always being customer-centric across the Bank.
The theme of the event was Service Champions, as DFCC realises that delivering cutting-edge services is only possible with a team of dedicated professionals working together as one.
DFCC has always, over the decades, built strong relationships with its ever-growing customer base and remains wholly committed to providing them with innovative and responsible financial solutions to drive sustainable growth.
The celebrations ended with a customer service forum featuring guest speeches from Mrs. Sandra de Soysa, the Group Chief Customer Service Officer of Dialog Axiata and Mr. Manesh Fernando, the General Manager of Hilton Colombo: two chief specialists in the field of customer service.
DFCC Bank was proud to be the Official Banking Partner for Shape South Asia 2016.
Under the theme of Shaping Identities, the event was hosted by the Global Shapers Colombo Hub who will utilise Colombo and Sri Lanka as a backdrop to explore the role that successful millennials would play in shaping their communities to drive positive changes.
The Global Shapers Community is a worldwide network of hubs developed and led by promising young leaders and entrepreneurs. Participants from across South Asia attended the landmark event.
These efforts are directly reflected in DFCC’s mission to drive self-reliance and sustainability in small, medium and large-scale businesses by offering access to finance and value added services. DFCC aspires to reach to youth in society by presenting to them a wide portfolio of products and services, to include its latest offering: Vardhana Virtual Wallet.
With the objective of providing people from all walks of life, with an effective savings solution that is flexible and offers long-term financial security, DFCC launched the Vardhana Xtreme Saver account recently. The account offers attractive interest rates between 6% - 9% which varies based on the monthly account balances. This enables individuals, corporates and institutions to earn higher interest rates.
The Vardhana Xtreme Saver account can be opened with a minimum deposit of Rs. 5,000 and interest is calculated daily and credited monthly. Customers can enjoy a higher return even with a minimum balance of Rs 1000 and enjoy unlimited withdrawals free of charge from over 3,500 DFCC Bank or LankaPay ATM’s across the country. Moreover, customers can get concessionary interest rates on advances of up to 90% on their savings.
DFCC recently expanded its premier centre network to Negombo. Situated at 454, Main Street, Negombo, this service centre will offer premier customers banking services in the comfort of a modern environment. The services include individually tailored banking solutions, 24/7 exclusive access to Prabhu / Premier Call Centre, e-banking facilities, wealth management services and safety locker facilities amongst many others.
An outbound training was organised by DFCC REDS on 25th and 26th of June at Leading Edge/ Hustlers Paintball recreation facility in Hanwella. A group of 28 newly recruited ETs and ARMs participated in this training, which included fun activities such as rock crossing/ hiking, paintball shooting, raft building, raft launching on the Kelani River and many other activities. These were specially put together to help amplify trust, teamwork, goal motivation and build leadership skills of the participants. The outing also provided an ideal opportunity for the new recruits to interact with their colleagues and build friendships.
A long term assignment conducted by ‘Great Place to Work’, is underway at DFCC Bank. It is based on the Bank’s current culture and introducing new people practices to support the Bank's core value system. Phase two of the project commenced last week, with the first People Practice Workshop conducted for an inter-departmental group of senior staff and HR process owners. The objective of the session was to educate both management and HR about the new people practices that would need to be inculcated into DFCC’s culture. The program content was developed after a series of focus group discussions between the ‘Great Place to Work’ consultants and sample groups of staff members from diverse cadres of the Bank. Going forward, a series of workshops will be carried out across the Bank in order to create a uniform, vibrant and productive work culture.
DFCC Bank recently organised an Iftar Ceremony in Qatar, with the aim of promoting LMT amongst the migrant workers. The event which was organised for the first time by a Sri Lankan Bank was well received. Cash prices were awarded to the winners (residing in Sri Lanka) of the draw which was held during the event. The awards were given to the winners recently at the DFCC Head Office, by the CEO and DCEO of DFCC Bank.
DFCC bank joined hands with the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) to become the exclusive partner of the World Export Development Forum (WEDF).
The forum plays a vital role in the flourishing of businesses with regards to value chains, sustainable trade and international levels of competitiveness.
The flagship event of the International Trade Centre, co-hosted by the EDB, will focus on how Sri Lankan SMEs and corporates can better navigate an evolving global trade landscape.
The global forum ‘Connect, Compete and Change’ will take place at the BMICH, featuring an array of speakers from the public and private sectors. It will include workshops, industry-specific presentations, a round-table discussion, a gala night and a supplementary exhibition.
For over 60 years, DFCC bank has been at the forefront of contributing to economic development in Sri Lanka. The bank is proud to connect with EDB as the exclusive banking partner of this prestigious event, in line with efforts to drive economic growth in Sri Lanka.
DFCC Bank launched ‘Vardhana Salary Booster,’ especially designed for professionals. Accordingly, salaried individuals who meet the minimum criteria, have access to a host of exclusive benefits and privileges. These include, overdraft facilities upto 90% of two months’ salary, concessionary interest rates for ‘Vardhana Nenasa’ education loans and ‘Vardhana Sandella’ housing loans and special benefits when opening a ‘Vardhana Junior’ savings accounts. In addition to a free debit card, access is given to the ‘Vardhana Virtual Wallet’ and e-banking facilities. The credit card joining fees are waived off as well.
DFCC Bank organised the Market Opening Ceremony on 1st of June at the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) to mark the first day of trading for the month.
Whilst being proud of all they have delivered to the shareholders for over 60 years, DFCC Bank has further strengthened and continued to grow, raising the bar in service delivery and rapidly expanding its digital reach and footprint across the country. The Bank remains committed to maximising shareholder value in a sustainable manner by providing innovative financial solutions, drawing on the synergies of its other businesses within the group.
The Bank has offered value through its shares and thereby played an important role in sparking interest in the market, especially among retail investors around the country. The Bank’s shares have since developed into an attractive stock for investors and continue to attract interest both locally and internationally.
This form of Market Opening Ceremonies are conducted by the CSE to serve as a platform to generate exposure for listed companies as they celebrate important milestones in the capital market.
DFCC Bank hosted cocktails for members of the Sri Lanka Shippers’ Council at the DFCC Auditorium. The event was held in honour of the Council’s Diamond Jubilee which was celebrated in March this year.
A special plaque was presented to the Chairman of the Sri Lanka Shippers’ Council, Mr. Sean Van Dort at the event by Mr. Arjun Fernando.
Having played a pivotal role in economic development over the past 60 years, DFCC Bank has close associations with the Shipping and Export Industries. An event of this nature helps to build stronger business relationships.
DFCC Bank’s latest fully-fledged branch was opened at No. 63/1, Kalutara Road, Bandaragama on 2nd June.
The branch offers end-to-end financial solutions for all business and retail customers. This includes project financing, SME financing and retail banking services such as current and savings accounts, fixed deposits, loans, pawning services, leasing facilities, NRFC/RFC accounts, credit cards and money transfer options via Western Union. In addition, DFCC’s Lanka Money Transfer service is made available to the customers.
With its expertise in SME financing, the Bank expects to play a key role uplifting the business sector in Bandaragama. These services are complemented by the online banking facility, a 24/7 call centre and access to over 3,500 ATMs through DFCC’s own and partner ATM networks facilitating unlimited withdrawals at zero cost.
Continuing its commitment towards the environment and society, DFCC Bank launched a tree planting campaign to commemorate World Environment Day.
The Sustainability Unit of the Bank along with the staff members who volunteered their time planted thirty ‘Na’ trees at the Keththarama Temple premises on World Environment Day. This was conducted in collaboration with ‘Reforest Lanka,’ a non-profit organisation committed to protecting and extending the forest cover in Sri Lanka. Present on the occasion were the religious leaders from the Keththarama Temple and members from the ‘Reforest Lanka’ team.
In addition, a tree planting ceremony was also held at the DFCC Bank Head Office, where five ‘Karanda’ trees were planted in its front lawn. These were planted by the Bank’s senior management including CEO Mr. Arjun Fernando, Deputy CEO Mr .Lakshman Silva and Executive Vice Presidents Ms .Anomie Withana, Mr. Palitha Gamage and Mr. Tyrone de Silva.
DFCC Bank takes pride in being a socially responsible Bank with a vision to developing a caring culture towards the environment, which is one of its core values. The Bank has been involved in many tree planting initiatives over the years. Going forward, more tree planting projects will be launched by the Bank across the island with the support of its branch network. In addition to creating a healthy environment, the Bank strives to inspire its staff members and the general public to plant, nurture and appreciate trees.
The first Vardhana Wallet Merchants Evening was held at the DFCC Bank Executive Lounge on the 11th of April 2016. The aim was to formally welcome the Merchants on board as DFCC’s strategic partners and further strengthen connections through fellowship.
Vardhana Virtual Wallet, which is a virtual replacement of a physical wallet, enables DFCC to be at the forefront in paving the way for a cashless society. This also affirms DFCC’s potential for stronger growth through innovation and driving financial inclusion in Sri Lanka.
In keeping with its commitment to deliver a superior customer service experience, DFCC Bank recently joined the LankaPay Common ATM switch (CAS) operated by Lanka Clear Ltd., which is Sri Lanka’s largest ATM network.
This alliance provides the Bank’s Debit, ATM and KDU Vcash cardholders the convenience of withdrawing cash and carrying out balance inquiries through LankaPay member banks, free of charge from over 3,000 ATMs island-wide. In addition, there is no restriction on the number of withdrawals and balance inquiries that cardholders can perform through CAS connected ATMs. However, the daily ATM and POS limits applicable to the cards would apply.
Mr. Arjun Fernando – CEO, DFCC Bank exchanges the agreement with Channa de Silva – CEO/ General Manager, Lanka Clear. Also present (L-R): Gemunu Gunasumana – AVP Card Operations, DFCC Bank, Denver Lewis –VP Services, DFCC Bank, Achintha Hewanayake - Chief Technology & Services Officer, DFCC Bank, Lakshman Silva – DCEO, DFCC Bank, Harsha Wanigatunga - DGM IT & Operations, Lanka Clear and Isuru Jayaweera – Senior Manager, Lanka Clear
The DFCC Bank website was re-designed and re-launched with the objective of enhancing the navigation experience and creating a more cohesive experience across digital channels.
From the layout pattern to the dynamic content loading and seamless context transitions, the website embraces today’s multi-device media consumption. It also adapts to the size of the window – be it mobile, tablet, laptop or desktop PC.
The new investor relations section also includes a ‘Perennial Compendium’ featuring the Bank’s latest news, enabling stakeholders to stay up-to-date with the new developments. This website highlights the forward thinking brand personality of the Bank. Further value additions are set to follow including mirroring the site in Sinhala and Tamil, processing applications online and a 24/7 chat support.
A special Avurudu promotion themed ‘Thaagi Kadai - Wadi Poliyai’ was launched to drive CASA during the festive season upto the 4th of May. Both new and existing customers are offered attractive gifts and special benefits on their deposits to the Savings or Fixed Deposit accounts. It also carries a 10.5% rate of interest on an one-year Fixed Deposit. In addition, new Savings Deposits over Rs.10,000 are entitled to a range of gifts including gift vouchers and DFCC branded household items from Singer Sri Lanka.
DFCC Bank PLC, Sri Lanka’s pioneering development bank, is renowned for being a national icon that has played a pivotal role in the development of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country.
The bank has a track record of having sustained these businesses in their operations in becoming some of the largest and most successful corporations of today, and its contribution has always been holistic, extending well beyond the mere financing of activities.
After 60 years of development and growth, DFCC recently amalgamated with its commercial banking subsidiary, DFCC Vardhana Bank, transforming itself to raise the bar of service delivery, to further enhance the bank’s value proposition to this sector.
The Government of Sri Lanka has identified the Small and Medium Enterprise sector in its policies as being an important strategic highlight. The Chief Executive Officer of DFCC Bank PLC, Mr. Arjun Fernando, has clearly detailed how the bank has supported such enterprises in the past and how it is further positioned to support such initiatives in 2016 and beyond.
DFCC Bank, in its continued efforts to support the harnessing of renewable energy resources of Sri Lanka, has provided financial support to the Laugfs Group in establishing one of its two maiden Solar Power Projects at Hambantota. This is the second such solar power project financed by DFCC at the proposed 100MW “Solar Park” at Hambantota.
DFCC Bank has been a steady partner of the non-conventional renewable energy (NCRE) industry of Sri Lanka since its humble beginnings in 1996. The NCRE industry contributes to approximately 10% of the country’s electricity generation today, and the government envisages the NCRE industry to play an even greater role in the years to come.
DFCC Bank has the enviable position of having financed Sri Lanka’s first grid connected mini-hydro project in 1996, first private sector wind power project in 2010 and the first grid-scale solar power project in 2015. As of date, the Bank has financed 70 mini hydro projects, 3 wind power projects, 2 solar power projects and a biomass project with a cumulative capacity of more than 150MW feeding the national grid.
With the gradual exhaustion of locations suitable for hydropower development (both large and non-conventional), Sri Lanka is now looking forward to harnessing other forms of renewable energy such as Solar, Wind and Biomass. DFCC Bank, with its 20 years of expertise in renewable energy financing together with in-house technical expertise and multilateral agency relationships, is well poised and committed to support the development of such modern renewable energy technologies for Sri Lanka to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels and to control emissions related to electricity generation.
DFCC’s Rs. 7 billion debenture issue surpassed the Rs. 5 billion mark on the opening day itself.
The Issue was 50 million rated, senior, unsecured, redeemable debentures of Rs. 100 each, with an option to offer a further 20 million debentures in the event of an oversubscription of the original amount.
The Bank received applications for over 50 million debentures and the Issue was oversubscribed by the end of the opening day. Applications were received till 4.30 p.m. on the 11th as per the prospectus.
2015 was a year o f transformation for DFCC following the amalgamation with DFCC Vardhana Bank and the change in the financial yearend to December 31 from March 31. The performance reported is for nine months from April 2015 to December 2015 as against that of the previous full year. Net profit after tax as at December 31, 2015 was Rs.1,642 million (group) and Rs.1,068 million (bank) while that for FYE March 2015 was Rs.4,439 million and Rs.3,240 million, respectively. However, there were several exceptional items in both periods which distort the comparison.
FYE 31 March 2015 included substantial one-off capital gains and impairment reversals, while the period ended December 31, 2015 entailed significant nonrecurrent expenses incurred during the amalgamation for items such as systems integration and data migration. The change of the financial year meant that the bank incurred an additional taxation charge based on the full year, even though results were for nine months.
Also, substantial dividend income, which accrues in the first quarter of the calendar year, could not be included. Meanwhile, total assets grew by 17 percent to Rs.247,109 million as at December 31, 2015 from Rs.210,610 million as at March 31, 2015. This included a robust credit portfolio growth of 18 percent to Rs.171,111 mi l l ion from Rs .144,896 million. At the same time credit quality was not compromised.
The ratio of impaired loans to total loans for December 31, 2015 was 5.1 percent compared to 6.1 percent for March 31, 2015, indicating a credit quality improvement. Close monitoring drove down the bank’s ratio of impaired loans to total loans as well as its regulatory non-performing loan ratio, with the latter improving to 3.7 percent as at December 31, 2015 from 4.3 percent as at March 31, 2015. Its balance sheet strength is demonstrated by a group Tier 1 capital adequacy ratio of 15.4 percent and a total capital adequacy ratio of 15.3 percent making DFCC Bank one of the highest capitalised banks in the industry. CEO Arjun F e r n a n d o commented, “While 2015 was a transformative year for DFCC, the amalgamation with Vardhana has laid the foundation for the bank to take on the competition. We are therefore confident of resuming our normal growth trajectory in 2016 and beyond.”
The Government of Sri Lanka signed an agreement with the Asian Development Bank for a Credit Line of USD 100 million on the 23rd of February. DFCC Bank was also selected as one of the Participating Financial Institutions (PFI) for the Credit Line.
The funds will come in to the country within a period of four years and is to be on-lent to the SME sector. The interest rate at which this could be on-lent to the final beneficiary is yet to be decided, as it will depend on the rate at which each PFI would receive the funds, which would come through an auction mechanism every six months.
The criteria for eligibility of an SME is; an annual turnover of < 750 million or <300 employees if it is a manufacturing business, or <200 employees if it is a business in service. Criteria for on-lending includes; lending to enterprises that have not previously borrowed from a Licensed Commercial or Specialised Bank, to women-led enterprises and targeted SMEs.
DFCC Bank recently announced its Debenture Issue to raise Rs 5 Bn with an option to issue up to Rs 7 Bn, carrying a tenor of 3 years. The Colombo Stock Exchange has approved the listing of these debt securities on the main board and the Issue opens to the public today.
Rated AA- by Fitch Ratings (Lanka) Limited, this public Issue is attractively structured giving investors the opportunity to receive an annual rate of return of 10.625%.
Speaking on the Debenture Issue, Kapila Nanayakkara, Senior Vice President Treasury and Resource Mobilisation of DFCC Bank said, ‘The funds raised from this Issue will supplement the ongoing deposit mobilisation drive of the Bank to support the lending and investment activities of DFCC during the normal course of business in 2016, whilst mitigating DFCC’s interest rate risk by reducing maturity mismatches. More specifically the Bank will use the mobilised funds to support lending in the SME sector, Personal Financial Services and Project Financing. In addition, it will supplement the diversification of the borrowing base of the bank. Retail and institutional investors will also benefit from having an alternative investment opportunity and the ability to earn a fixed rate of interest.’A total of 50,000,000 Senior, unsecured, rated, redeemable debentures with a face value of Rs 100 will be on offer with an option to issue a further 20,000,000 if the Issue is over-subscribed. The minimum subscription will be Rs 10,000.
The Issue is structured by the Treasury and Resource Mobilisation Unit of DFCC Bank and jointly managed by Acuity Partners (Pvt) Ltd and the People’s Bank Investment Banking Unit, while the placement agent is First Capital Limited. The Registrar to the Issue is SSP Corporate Services (Pvt) Ltd.
DFCC Bank recently opened two new branches in Kaduwela and Hingurakgoda, further strengthening and adding value to its branch network. The branches were ceremonially declared open by CEO, Mr. Arjun Fernando and Deputy CEO, Mr. Lakshman Silva at the events held at the respective branches.
The new branches offer end-to-end financial solutions for individuals and businesses including; project financing, SME financing, consumer banking, foreign currency products and money transfer options via Western Union. The Lanka Money Transfer service, which was launched by DFCC to provide Sri Lankan migrant workers and their families a safe and reliable remittance option, is also available. These services are complemented by the online banking facility, a 24/7 call centre and access to over 800 ATMs through DFCC’s own and partner ATM networks which facilitates unlimited withdrawals at zero cost.
Branch contact details are as follows:
Kaduwela:No 506 G, Colombo Road, Kaduwela
Tel: 011-2548170 / 011-2538025
Fax: on 0112538026.
No 88, D S Senanayake Street, Hingurakgoda.
Tel: 027-2245399 / 027-2245073
Fax: 027-2245074
In a landmark development in Sri Lanka’s banking and financial sector, DFCC Bank and DFCC Vardhana Bank recently amalgamated to form DFCC Bank PLC, a fully-fledged commercial bank overlooked by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. The joint synergies of the two leading banking partners strengthen and position DFCC Bank PLC as a force to be reckoned with in the financial services industry, and the Bank remains committed to driving financial inclusion in the country.
DFCC Bank conducted a successful New Year children’s savings drive. The bank invited parents to open savings accounts for their children on New Year’s Day 2016 and promised in return an additional Rs. 1,000 to the account. The promotion was aimed at encouraging parents to consciously save for the future of their children. The day saw double the expected number of children’s account opened across 137 branches and DFCC Bank honoured their pledge of an additional Rs. 1,000 into all such accounts.
Commenting on the special savings drive, DFCC Bank CEO Arjun Fernando stated, “We are indeed very pleased with the response received from parents and guardians of children below 18 years. We witnessed a level of activity in our branches never seen before on New Year’s Day. Our objective was to use the occasion to send out this important message on the value of saving for one’s future. As a responsible bank keen on developing individuals as well as business institutions and contribute to the country’s overall progress we are very pleased at how successfully we were able to pass this message out to the public.”
DFCC Bank PLC stands apart from the rest of the banking industry by offering a diverse range of services in the areas of project financing corporate, business and retail banking, supported by innovative banking technology, all offered under one roof. With decades of experience in all these areas, DFCC Bank PLC is strengthened further by a professional and experienced team of employees.
With high interest rates and a range of other benefits such as gifts and education support DFCC Bank’s Vardhana Junior and Vardhana Junior Plus savings accounts are committed to ensuring the future leaders of the country step into their adult lives with a sound financial backing.
For the first time in Sri Lanka, DFCC Bank conducted a children’s savings promotion for the New Year. This was to motivate parents to open savings accounts for their children on this special day.
The Bank pledged to pay an additional Rs. 1,000/= for every children’s saving account opened for children below 18 years on this day. The aim of the campaign was to encourage parents to consciously save for their children.
As a responsible commercial bank in the country, DFCC felt this was a timely requirement to educate parents on the value of saving for their children. In addition, DFCC is also committed to educating children on the value of saving in line with the government’s vision. Offering high interest rates and a range of other benefits including gifts and educational support, DFCC Bank’s Vardhana Junior and Vardhana Junior Plus savings accounts, ensures that the future leaders of the country step into their adulthood with a sound financial backing.
For the first time in Sri Lanka, DFCC Bank will run a New Year children’s savings promotion to motivate parents to open savings accounts for their children on New Year’s Day.
DFCC Bank has pledged to pay an additional Rs.1000 into the child’s account for all children’s accounts opened for children below 18 years on that day. The promotion aims at encouraging the parents to consciously make it a habit to save up for their children.
Commenting on the January 1st children’s savings campaign, DFCC Bank CEO Arjun Fernando said: “As a responsible commercial bank in the country, DFCC felt it is a timely requirement to educate the parents on the value of saving for their children. The bank’s purpose behind this campaign is to get parents and children off to a positive start in 2016.
Also DFCC is committed to educating the children in line with the government’s vision towards securing the countries future, on the values of savings.”
DFCC Bank PLC stands apart from the rest of the banking industry by offering a diverse range of services in the areas of, project financing corporate, business and retail banking, supported by innovative banking technology, all offered under one roof. With decades of experience in all these areas, DFCC Bank PLC is strengthened further by a professional and experienced team of employees, who are driven by a deep sense of commitment to achieve the bank’s new vision. With high interest rates and a range of other benefits such as gifts and education support DFCC Bank’s Vardhana Junior and Vardhana Junior Plus savings accounts, are committed to ensuring the future leaders of the country step into their adult lives with a sound financial backing.
With a legacy that extends over 60 years, DFCC Bank PLC has 137 branches and extension offices; which includes 58 units across the Sri Lanka Post network.
Coinciding with the 60th Anniversary Celebrations of the Bank in the North, DFCC Bank provided assistance to two healthcare institutions in Jaffna and Vavuniya. The Bank provided essential equipments to cater to the needs of patients.
Accordingly, 30 wheelchairs were donated to the Jaffna Teaching Hospital and 200 seats for the OPD Unit in the Vavuniya General Hospital. These initiatives have enhanced the quality of service extended to the needy patients. The equipment was handed over to Dr.Sathiamoorthy, Director of the Jaffna Teaching Hospital and Dr .K. Akilendiran, Director General of the Vavuniya General Hospital.
The project was spearheaded by the Regional Manager and the Branch Managers of the Jaffna and Vavuniya branches.
Although Bank’s CSR is mainly focused on Education, Entrepreneurship, Environment and Emergency Relief, enabling growth and development in every area is also of utmost importance to DFCC. Therefore, community development is an integral part of the Bank’s core value system and it aims to be a model corporate citizen creating long term social value for the communities in which it operates.
DFCC PLC expanded its operations in Weligama, with the opening of a new branch. Weligama town has developed into a thriving centre for trade and business in the south of Sri Lanka. The new branch located at No. 354/45, Samaraweera Place was ceremonially opened by Arjun Fernando, CEO of DFCC Bank, Lakshman Silva, DCEO of DFCC Bank as well as several senior banking officials, staff members and members of the local community.
The branch will offer tremendous convenience and a comprehensive service to all business and retail customers in the area. It operates as a fully-fledged branch offering all types of banking transaction including foreign currency products. The new branch is equipped with an ATM and is linked to all other DFCC Bank branches.
Mr. Saravanapavan Raveendra and his team in the Northern region provided assistance to families affected by floods in the Vatharavarai Village. The village was severely affected and many people were displaced due to the flash floods caused by heavy rains.
Acting on the request of the Divisional Secretariat, the team distributed packets of biscuits and mosquito coils for about 100 affected families. This was a great comfort to the families as most were without food, especially the children.
The relief team extends their appreciation to the Marketing team for the support given. These initiatives make a difference to the communities whilst portraying the Bank as one that truly cares for the community!
DFCC Bank was ranked 17th in the ‘Top 25’ list of Business Today for the financial year 2014/15, based on the financial performance. This is the 6th consecutive year that DFCC has made the list.
Based on the published information of companies listed in the Colombo Stock Exchange, the companies are ranked based on financial criteria. These include, Share Turnover, Revenue, Profit after Tax, Return on Equity, Earnings per Share, Market Capitalization and Value Addition.
DFCC’s financial indicators recorded an increase, year on year in the year reviewed for the latest ranking. Group profit after tax soared 38% to LKR 4.4 billion and operating income before VAT and NBT swelled by 33% to LKR 6.1 billion. Accordingly, Earnings per Share grew by 38% to LKR 16.46 whilst, Group assets surpassed the LKR 200 billion mark recording LKR 211 billion from LKR 175 billion the previous comparable year.
DFCC Bank PLC made another remarkable move through its approval of a project loan to Saga Solar (Pvt) Ltd. The bank is renowned as a pioneer in financing renewable energy. Yet, this is the first time the bank financed a project of this kind.
The project initiated by Saga Solar (Pvt) Ltd is a revolutionary initiative undertaken by a team of experts in the solar energy sector. The team includes a group of brilliant investors and professionals. DFCC will also be completely committed towards the project. The Bank will oversee the project from start to finish.
In the green energy category, solar energy has great potential. However this project will be the first large commercial solar project with grid connectivity.
The Bank financed similar projects such as Sri Lanka’s first ever privately-owned grid-connected mini-hydro power plant in 1994. DFCC also became the pioneer financier for the private sector wind power projects in the country when it partly financed the first wind power project in 2010.
The Bank which celebrated its Diamond Jubilee very recently aspires to be a part of projects of this kind in the future.
The second listed debenture issue of DVB, which concluded on 29 May 2015 was a resounding success. Following on the success of its first debenture issue in 2011, both senior and subordinated debt categories were oversubscribed within hours of opening to the public.
The issue was an industry milestone, being the first listed issue with two types of debt rankings. Both senior and subordinated debt categories had a tenor of 5 years with a bullet capital repayment. With an AA- Fitch Rating, the senior debt carried an annual interest coupon of 9.10% whilst the subordinated debt was rated A+ with an annual interest coupon of 9.40%.
This debenture issue supported the growth process of DVB whilst the subordinated debt component boosted the Tier II capital ratio of the Bank in accordance with Basel ll guidelines.
The Issue was managed by Capital Alliance Partners Limited and Acuity Partners (Pvt) Limited, and structured by DFCC Bank’s Funding and Capital Markets Division.
Value creation is a two-way process, as the ability of an organisation to create sustainable value for itself is also related to the value it creates for its stakeholders. It leads to capital formation. As a store of value, capital takes on a broader meaning in integrated reporting, and constitutes the resources and relationships used and affected by an organisation.
We classify capital that is owned by the organisation as being 'internal' capital, while capital that is not owned as 'external' capital. Ownership is irrelevant here, as the organisation has access to and uses all forms of its capital to create sustainable value for itself and its stakeholders.
Our stakeholders are individuals or organisations that interact with us and are impacted by our business activities, or whose actions can affect our business. Our primary stakeholders are investors, customers, employees, business partners, regulators and the society and physical environment in which we operate.
As a responsible banking business we communicate with our stakeholders throughout the year, and engagement is integrated into our business decision making processes as the relationship we foster with them has a direct impact on the Bank’s success. The mode and frequency of engagement vary depending on the stakeholder group and nature of a specific aspect to be addressed.
The value created by DFCC Bank, the DFCC Banking Business (DBB) and the Group for themselves through activities, relationships and linkages lead to the formation of capital that is internal to and 'owned' by these entities. While what is most visible and quantifiable is financial performance that leads to financial capital formation, internal capital also includes several intangibles that constitute institutional capital.
We exist to create value, for ourselves and for our stakeholders. The value we create for ourselves is best seen in the profits we make and by our standing in the market. Profits are important to reinvest and grow our business and thereby reward our investors. Profits are also important as they indicate how efficient and effective we are in formulating and executing our business strategies and managing scarce resources.
Institutional capital is the non-financial component of DBB's internal capital. It encompasses aspects such as organisational knowledge, systems, processes, intellectual property, corporate values, business ethics, brand equity, goodwill, recognition and so on.
The value created by the DFCC Banking Business for stakeholders through activities, relationships and linkages lead to the formation of capital external to these entities. They reside within our stakeholders and hence not 'owned' by us. But we have access to and make use of these and our 'own' internal capital in driving business. The discussion that follows focuses on our external capital formation, the material ones being investor capital, customer capital, business partner capital, employee capital and social & environmental capital.
Our investors provide us with equity and debt capital needed for expansion and growth. In turn, we strive to offer optimal returns on their investments through sustained profitable growth.
Customers are the source of our earnings, and hence, our existence. We serve them through the provision of financial products and services to meet their diverse needs.
Employees form the backbone of our organisation and are the very essence of our competitive advantage. They are nurtured and developed, and rewarded for their performance.
Our key business partners are those who provide lines of credit (either to manage or to on-lend) as well as the regular suppliers of goods and services needed for business operations. These stakeholders are an important part of our value chain and share complementary business goals.
The local communities in which we operate are a source of customers and employees, while they also effectively 'hold' our licence to operate. We endeavour to understand their perceptions and expectations and tailor our business operations and CSR activities accordingly to create win-win solutions.
