BOC celebrates 81 years of yeoman service

With an unfathomable bond that was built with the Sri Lankan community for over 81 years, Bank of Ceylon, the No.1 Bank in the country celebrated that deeply rooted relationship with pride at its 81st anniversary of establishment on August 1 .

With a heritage that explicitly showcases the commitment it has towards the nation in terms of co-creating social and economic wellbeing together with the government of Sri Lanka, Bank of Ceylon has reached Sri Lankan businesses and individuals of all-walks-of-life to enrich their socio-economic standards. Indigenously originated 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 declared open on August 1st, 1939 at 41, Bristol Street in Colombo Fort, by the Governor, Sir Andrew Caldecott.

Beginning its first extended branch in Kandy, Bank of Ceylon has moved forward to open 645 branches across the country, four overseas branches and a banking subsidiary in London up to now. BOC has expanded so much both in size and influence that the bank can still be considered as the prime financier for Sri Lankans despite all competition.

“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 learning of the bank goes back again as an investment to assist the government’s socio-economic agenda to develop the country’s infrastructure facilities and other, on behalf of all Sri Lankans. BOC takes great pride and responsibility in responding to the needs of all its stakeholders” stated the chairman Kanchana Ratwatte.

BOC is currently standing strongly 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, BOC boasts of being the wealthiest single business entity in Sri Lanka. This leading Sri Lankan banking giant has spread its wings across the island with a sophisticated inter-connected digital network currently inclusive of 645 branches, 10 mobile branches, 15 SME centres and also 1270 ATMs/ CDMs and CRMs that are 24 x7 operative as physical customer touch points building up a total of 1915, enabling customers to transact at their convenience. In its 81 year long journey, BOC has empowered generation after generation of individuals and businesses that many of the indigenous corporate scale businesses that are here today were start-ups financed by the bank back in the early days. At present BOC has taken its responsibility even further by being the bank that elevates the Sri Lankan banking industry by harnessing world class banking technologies and spreading the synergy across the country benefitting every household.

Leveraging on the strength gathered over eight decades, Bank of Ceylon has continued to dominate the Sri Lankan banking landscape at many different levels. “Looking at a broader perspective, anyone can observe that Bank of Ceylon is substantially rooted with every industry in the country in a significant way. In order to manage the requirements that are coming from this diverse customer base, BOC manages a product and a service portfolio that could financially enable anyone’s aspiration for social or economic growth. Considering the current social circumstances, the Bank has identified that the country is in need to promote the entrepreneurial spirit and more prominence should be given for financial inclusion and employment generation” stated the Acting General Manager Mr. D.P.K. Gunasekera.

BOC’s structure is sustainable in the longer-run as it is deeply connected to a profound vision, mission and a set of corporate values to begin with. It demonstrates it agility by adapting itself to be more responsive to customer needs. The assurance the Bank has earned throughout these years is validated by all stakeholders especially all Sri Lankans. The Bank aims to confront future challenges by developing market leadership, confronting market volatility, channeling and aligning resources to ensure business growth and transforming the banking landscape digitally.