The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has launched another initiative under its Green lending portfolio to support customers who share the Bank’s commitment towards the environment.
Green Home Loans of up to Rs 50 million are now available for the purchase of homes that have been granted Green Building Certificates by the Green Building Council of Sri Lanka (GBCSL), or for the construction of houses that will be so certified.
Loans of up to Rs 5 million are available for the purchase of solar power systems, solar net metering systems or for any other green initiative such as waste or rain water management or composting, that leads to Green certification, a Bank official said.
The first home loan product of its kind in the market, Commercial Bank’s Green Home Loans will carry a concessionary interest rate that would be 1% lower than the published ‘Platinum’ rate, and customers would only pay 50% of the documentation charges applicable. The Bank has also already secured discounts of up to 10% from five leading solar power system providers in Sri Lanka for customers who obtain Green Home Loans.
The loans are repayable in up to 15 years and can also be topped up periodically for maintenance or upgrades that improve eco-friendliness, he said.
Commercial Bank’s Deputy General Manager, Retail Banking and Marketing, Hasrath Munasinghe said: “As Sri Lanka’s first carbon neutral bank, Commercial Bank is committed to leading the way in promoting planet-friendly consumption, and one of the best ways to do that is by incentivising investments in going Green through our lending. We launched Green PersonalLoans and Green Leases five years ago and have been working with institutions like the IFC to develop Green Financing products. The Green Home Loans scheme with the Green Building Council supplements these efforts.”
Commercial Bank also recently signed a milestone agreement with the Seoul-headquartered Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), a leading international inter-governmental technical advisor on sustainable finance initiatives, for a sustainable finance collaboration program that enhances Commercial Bank’s readiness to mobilise green and blue investment opportunities for Sri Lanka’s private sector.