The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has instructed banks to set up business revival units to assist customers in reviving failed businesses.
Many services aiming to revive collapsed businesses such as providing financial grants to revive businesses, reducing loan interest, extending loan repayment period are supplied through these units.
However, it was noticed that such units were in operation in a few banks before the CBSL instructed them to set up new units for each bank.
Upgrading of earlier established units to provide more efficient and public friendly service is in progress under new systems.
The CBSL has reduced its policy interest rates on several occasions. In this way, it is the responsibility of the banks to give the benefit of the Central Bank’s policy interest rate reduction to customers.
CBSL Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe has previously made a request to the banking system to use the advantage of the policy interest rate reduction in several cases to help reduce the loan interest.
Accordingly, banks have already started providing loans at low interest rates to facilitate business.
In this regard, when Daily News made an inquiry to Chief Executive Officer and General Manager of Bank of Ceylon (BOC) Russell Fonseka, he replied that there are already 11 such centres operating at the provincial level at the BOC. There is one such at the headquarters in Colombo also.
