National Savings Bank (NSB), Sri Lanka’s premier financial services provider and 3rd largest bank in the country, marked a milestone by unveiling South Asia’s first Self Sovereign Identity (SSID) solution on blockchain for its customers, in partnership with PayMedia and Bridge Advisory and Consulting, powered by FlexID.

FlexID, a layer 2 network blockchain solution has reimagined a protocol for the issuance, storage and sharing of verified digital identity credentials in a fully decentralized, user managed network environment, built on the Algorand Blockchain.

The solution was facilitated by Bridge Advisory and Consulting, the authorized partner for FlexID in Sri Lanka and emerging markets in Southeast Asia.

The future of digital identity is evolving rapidly due to the adoption rate of SSID solutions which offer users the ability to share their digital credentials securely with multiple service providers such as financial institutions, healthcare providers and educational institutions.

FlexID Director/COO Sanjay Mendis said: “Our focus is to provide a solution to bank the unbanked population of the world, which stands at over 2.1 billion. We are excited to work with NSB, PayMedia and Bridge to launch the first SSID solution in South Asia, in Sri Lanka.”

National Savings Bank CIO Dr. Amal Illesinghe said: “At NSB, we are delighted to have been the first financial institution in South Asia to implement an SSID solution that enables us to provide top of the range e-KYC services for our customers across online and offline channels.

This move is aligned with our positioning as a forward-thinking bank with our customer’s satisfaction with their banking experience at the heart of what we do.

The implementation is truly a milestone in Sri Lanka’s journey towards accelerated digitization and NSB will continue to innovate by building more capabilities through this platform

For NSB, the implementation of the SSID solution will offer a host of benefits including an enhanced digital experience for customers, cost savings, and interoperability with the latest, emerging class of web 3.0 technology products and services.

Furthermore, following the implementation of the solution, NSB will be able to maintain a singular view of its customer identities across products and services provided to them which simplifies seamless e-KYC based on-boarding and verification processes.

Bridge Advisory & Consulting Director Michael Sathasivam said: “Bridge was formed with a singular vision of assisting in the modernization and technology transformation of the private and public sectors in Sri Lanka.

The SSID solution implemented for NSB is the first in many transformative projects in our agenda, and we are looking ahead with a lot of excitement and optimism towards the impact we can create in the local landscape.”

NSB SSID implementation is one of the many projects undertaken by Bridge towards supporting this shared vision and driving a ‘new digital economy’ in Sri Lanka.

PayMedia Ltd. Founder and CEO Kanishka Weeramunda said: “Adopting blockchain technology for the first time is a ground breaking initiative that is set to transform Sri Lanka, heralding a new era of digital finance.

Through the implementation of blockchain-based digital identity, financial institutions can seamlessly and confidently authenticate users in the digital realm, effectively thwarting fraud and other security risks.

Dipped Products PLC (DPL), a member of the Hayleys Group, recently commissioned an automated central warehouse facility at the Biyagama Export Processing Zone, to enhance its service delivery excellence to meet the critical global export demand.

The state-of-the-art new warehouse facility will enable DPL to consolidate storage facilities across its Hanwella, Kottawa and Biyagama factories, by streamlining operations, reducing transportation and logistics costs, and increasing visibility and control across DPL’s supply chain.

The extensively automated 23,000 cubic metre facility represents a new technological milestone for the company’s digitalization drive, and was commissioned by Hayleys Chairman and Chief Executive Mohan Pandithage

“Given the ongoing economic challenges, it is now more imperative than ever to strengthen Sri Lanka’s position as a vibrant export hub by developing local products to the highest global standards.

As a leading global player in the protective hand wear industry and a member of the Hayleys Group, we take pride in DPL’s continuing contributions to our nation’s development,” Dipped Products PLC Managing Director Pushpika Janadheera said.

“Our latest investments are part of our strategy to expand global reach, ensure supply chain resilience, and enhance service delivery to our key export markets. With our centralized warehousing facilities, we are also optimizing our service capacity, speed, and customer value to help secure our next wave of growth,” he added.

Equipped with a state-of-the-art US National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) compliant safety system which covers 4,200 pallet racks, the new facility provides DPL with an extensive storage capacity.

Combined with robust technologies including modern articulated truck technologies and product management systems, and an integrated data tracking system that streamlines DPL’s logistical operations, that enables systematic tracing of containers from the loading point to the pallet rack.

Moreover, the new central warehouse significantly reduces the need for internal transportation, reflecting a 30% decrease in inter-factory transport related Green House Gas (GHG) emissions.

Dipped Products Plc producing rubber gloves is seeking new export markets as demand from Western buyers falter, an official said while domestic costs are also rising after a fall in the currency Managing Director, Pushpika Janadheera said.

He said “We are in the process of expanding to the Middle East, Asia, Africa, and India. We have already started setting up the facility in the Middle East – a sales office.”

There was strong demand for exports from Asia as the US and other Western nations printed money, straining supply chains.

The supply chain delayed in turn made buyers run up inventory. The Fed and the ECB is now tightening monetary policy taking away excess demand after inflation soared and demand for many products are falling.

“The other reason is, they are releasing their excessive stocks, so the purchases are not for us,” Janadheera said.“Therefore, it has an impact whole glove industry and other industries as well.”

Sri Lanka’s export firms initially benefited as the rupee collapsed from 200 to 360 to the US dollar and wages and utility prices did not go up. However, eventually utility prices catch up. Wages also usually rise over time.

A State-Owned Enterprise Restructuring Unit (SRU) has been set up by the Government, under the Ministry of Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policies, in an attempt to implement structural reforms to accelerate growth so that the country can emerge out of the current economic crisis.

The decision was taken in view of the fact that the State-Owned Enterprise (SOE) sector has been a severe burden on the country’s economy for several years.

Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved, in principle, the divestiture of various companies, including SriLankan Airlines, SriLankan Catering, Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), Sri Lanka Insurance Corporation (SLIC), Canwill Holdings (Grand Hyatt Colombo), Hotel Developers Lanka (Hilton Hotel Colombo), Litro Gas Lanka, Litro Gas Terminals and Lanka Hospitals.

The SRU will appoint reputed, qualified and experienced consultancy firms and development financial institutions to provide transaction advisory services to assist with the divestitures, while the process of selecting such transaction advisors is due to commence shortly.

The transaction advisors will, inter-alia, assist the SRU with sell-side due diligence, valuation, data room creation, transaction strategy and marketing of the entities to be divested.

The divestiture program will be carried out by the SRU in a transparent and credible manner and investor selection will commence with an EOI / RFP process to be published in the local and international press.

Issuing a statement in this regard, the Finance Ministry noted that these reforms are expected to contribute towards higher economic productivity by reducing market distortions, increasing organizational efficiency and improving the quality of service to the public.

The State-Owned Enterprises Restructuring Unit will be assigned to study the methodology of restructuring the national carrier SriLankan Airlines and make recommendations to the Cabinet of Ministers.

This action has been taken following a revelation made by President Ranil Wickremasunghe that the Government was looking at raising $ 3-4 billion via sale of certain State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) to boost foreign reserves.

The new unit has been assigned to study the methodology of restructuring the national carrier SriLankan Airlines and make recommendations to the Cabinet of Ministers, the government said.

The Cabinet of Ministers has decided to handover the responsibility of studying the methodology of restructuring SriLankan Airlines and making recommendations to the said unit.

It was proposed to re-activate the Statement of Corporate Intent (SCI) process for 50 key SOEs, excluding the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), and the national carrier— SriLankan Airlines, as they are under different efforts to restructure to closely monitor the set targets.

The objective of the new unit is to help to identify ways to reduce the financial burden on the Treasury and to provide necessary guidance and support in the restructuring process of the SOEs.

“The performance of State-owned commercial enterprises has not been satisfactory for a long time and some SOEs are incurring losses due to various reasons,” a statement of weekly Cabinet Decisions issued by the Government Information Department noted.

Sri Lanka’s Central Bank continues its unending aggressive” dollar buying spree has prevented sharp appreciation of the rupee, dealers say, as the rupee is under upward pressure amid negative credit and the lifting of a surrender rule.

The statement approving Sri Lanka’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) by the IMF this week said the Central Bank aims to buy up to US $ 1.4 billion from the market and rebuild the external reserves to US $ 4.4 billion by the end of the year.

The spot rupee, which opened around 320 against the US dollar, fell further to 317 to 318 levels by mid day trading yesterday, a day later the International Monetary Fund (IMF) opened up the nearly US $ 3.0 billion life line to the crisis-hit country.

The rupee, which gained around 12 percent, lost some ground last week to end at around Rs.337 to a dollar.

But the news on the IMF deal approval and the optimism over further inflows from other bilateral and multilateral sources improved sentiments, sending the rupee higher against the US dollar by mid trade yesterday.

By the week ended on March 17, the rupee was up about 7 percent from the start of the year but by yesterday, it extended its gains to 12 percent again.

The currency traders and economic analysts expect the rupee to continue to gain and trade in a band between 280 and 300 to the US dollar.

The country also awaits a large decline in fuel prices in a few weeks, amid the sharp dip in global oil prices, which to an extent could alleviate the hardships faced by the public and small businesses.

The rupee is trading between 312-318 against the US dollar compared to 360 level a week ago, showing a near 15 percent rise.

“The rupee would have easily hit 275 rupees against the dollar if not for the central bank’s aggressive buying,” a currency dealer said asking not to be named.

“This is mainly due to exporters selling their dollar holdings to have cash inflows for the future without borrowing at a high cost after the central bank raised the interest rates.”

Other analysts said the central bank has bought more than $100 million from the market in the last three days.

“The current rupee also appreciation comes amid a fall in exports. In January 2023, exports fell to 978 million US dollars from 1,103 million US dollars. In 2022 when the country experienced severe forex shortages, exports went up.Related Sri Lanka exports rise 20-pct in June 2022 amid forex shortages

The rupee rise has led to a reduction in the price of several imported goods including wheat flour sugar and milk powder.

The Central Bank in February bought US $ 287.0 million in foreign currency and sold US $ 33.4 million, remaining a net purchaser of foreign currency so far this year. In January too, the Central Bank bought US $ 348.8 million and sold US $ 137.6 million.

Meanwhile, although no official data is available yet, the Central Bank has bought dollars to the tune of US $ 500 million since the surrender rule in place for the exporters was initially relaxed and done away a week later.

In the first week itself, since the rule was relaxed from 25 percent to 10 percent, the Central Bank had bought US $ 308 million, the most for any five-day period.

“We have now bought around US $ 500 million,” told Central Bank Economic Research Director Dr. P.K.G. Harischandra, joining in a television talk show a couple of weeks ago.