The last three years have proved the ultimate stress-test for banks everywhere, but particularly in Sri Lanka. As pandemic-related turmoil gave way to social unrest in 2022 and early 2023, Commercial Bank of Ceylon was uniquely positioned to weather the financial storm thanks to its first-mover advantage in digitalization.
Arguably no bank in Sri Lanka was earlier with world-class digital platforms and mobile apps. That well-established tech footprint meant Commercial Bank was better placed than peers when work-from-home edicts became the norm in 2020 and 2021, and bricks-and-mortar branches fell silent.
For most Sri Lankan banks, the pandemic was a digital wake-up call to increase app functionality and security. Not just to serve existing individual and corporate customers, but to facilitate the unprecedented disruption to staffing and internal functions. As peers scrambled to add programmers and tech engineers, the bank, under CEO Sanath Manatunge, continued to build on its existing infrastructure.
In 2021, the bank rolled out its digital road map strategy. At its heart lay the creation and commercialization of new products, services and touchpoints for retail customers with the aim of ensuring business growth, generating new growth opportunities and expanding the bank’s digital footprint.
That