Sri Lanka sees new award winners

BEST BANK COMMERCIAL BANK

All the reasons why Commercial Bank wins this award every year remain in place. It is Sri Lanka’s best private sector bank an accolade, a title equity market investors continue to bestow as well via a price-to-book valuation premium averaging 1.3 times its nearest competitor.

Commercial Bank’s long-term strategy did not change much during 2017, but it continues to be extended and refined. Consumer and SME both remain a big focus in a country where many of the biggest companies are still state-owned.

Digitisation is also deepening, although the bank is still opening branches to catch up with big state-owned...