The head of Sri Lanka’s DFCC Bank Plc says the Bank has set in place plans to achieve a demanding target within the next three years with an expectation to be placed as a Systemically Important Bank in the upper quartile of commercial banks in Sri Lanka.
Addressing shareholders in the Annual Report for 2017 released recently, Chief Executive Officer/Director of DFCC Bank, L. H. A. Lakshman Silva says that in achieving the said objective, a mix of complementary strategies will be employed, which would also include some ‘Blue Ocean’ initiatives.
“In this context, DFCC will explore a range of opportunities in consolidation and offshore markets. The Bank will also leverage on its Group relationships particularly in the area of Public Private Partnerships,” Lakshman Silva, who was appointed as the CEO in August 2017, pointed out.
Commenting on the amalgamation with DFCC Vardhana Bank and DFCC Bank’s transformation to a commercial bank in 2015, Silva noted that although the new financial landscape might have proved daunting, particularly given the fact that the Bank would be going head on against longer established commercial banks, it is gratifying that DFCC not only withstood the competitive pressure successfully but also prospered.
“This is validated by the highlights of DFCC’s financial performance,” the CEO highlighted.
During the year 2017, DFCC Bank recorded a profit before tax of Rs. 5,792 million, a growth of 31% year-on-year and a profit after tax of Rs. 4,415 million, a growth of 34% year-on-year. On the other hand, the Group recorded a profit before tax of Rs. 5,891 million, a growth of 26% and a profit after tax of Rs. 4,434 million, a growth of 28%.
“The Bank has set itself a challenging target over the next three years, and our people are geared to bringing this plan to fruition.
Quarterly reviews of results against the plan are conducted at Board level, concerns identified and corrective action taken,” Chairman of DFCC Bank, Royle Jansz pointed out.
Among the plans in 2018 include efforts to grow the bank’s Current and Savings Account Ratio (CASA), innovations backed by cutting-edge technology and investments in new channels of delivery apart from brick and mortar.
“The Business Banking Department will focus on growing the CASA base in 2018 by adopting a strategy of developing new relationships while strengthening the existing relationships. Personal loans will be used increasingly going forward to grow the Bank’s CASA base, with a primary focus on fixed income earners,” the Annual Report stated.
The report noted that the Bank will continue to invest in the growth of the cards business and aims to launch new credit card products in 2018.
EMV chip technology for debit cards and contactless credit cards are to be introduced in 2018 to provide enhanced security and ease of access for DFCC cardholders.
“Although catering to the future generation will be a challenging task, the Bank is fully geared to face the future head on, offering a breadth of seamless banking solutions that give customers unmatched value and unique benefits,” DFCC Bank’s report further pointed out.