The Bank of Ceylon (BOC) marked its 81st anniversary last week.
The Bank has reached Sri Lankan businesses and people of all-walks-of-life to enrich their socio-economic standards. Set up in response to the needs of Ceylonese businesses to move forward to expand their businesses and wellbeing, the Bank of Ceylon Ordinance was enacted in 1938 and the Bank was opened on August 1, 1939 at 41, Bristol Street in Colombo Fort.
Beginning with its first branch in Kandy, the Bank of Ceylon moved forward to open 645 branches across the country, four overseas branches and a banking subsidiary in London up to now. Chairman Kanchana Ratwatte said, “BOC has been the highest profit earning single business entity in the country for a number of years continuously.
The Bank’s anniversary would be the best day to remind the nation that all earnings of the bank is invested to assist the Government’s agenda to develop the country’s infrastructure facilities.”
BOC stands strong with a balance sheet that encompasses assets valued over Rs. 2.6 trillion, deposits over Rs. 2.1 trillion, advances and lending over Rs. 1.8 trillion.
The banking giant has spread its wings across the island with a sophisticated inter-connected digital network.Acting General Manager D.P.K. Gunasekera said, “Looking at a broader perspective, anyone can observe that the Bank of Ceylon is substantially rooted with every industry in the country in a significant way. The BOC manages a product and a service portfolio that could financially enable anyone’s aspiration for social or economic growth.”
In its 81-year-long journey, BOC has empowered generation after generation of people and businesses that many of the indigenous top businesses today were start-ups financed by the bank in the early days.