Bank of Ceylon only bank to win 3 gold awards for 2017 Annual Report at Int’l ARC Awards 2018

The Bank of Ceylon’s 2017 Annual Report ‘ABC of BOC’ won three Gold Awards at the 32nd annual celebration of the world’s best annual reports – International ARC Awards 2018 held recently in Germany organised by the Mercomm Inc. USA as the Mercomm Annual Reporting Competition – the ARC Awards have achieved a world-wide recognition for their integrity and fairness in their judging procedures. Therefore it is globally recognised, providing the platform for the highest standards in the annual report industry. It is also the world’s largest international competition honouring excellence in annual reporting which is also known as the ‘Academy Awards of Annual Reports’.

The Bank of Ceylon was named as Gold Winners for;

• Financial Data: Banks; International. 
• Written Text: Banks: International. 
• Traditional Annual Report: Banks: International. 

“As for Bank of Ceylon Integrity and Reputation matters the most. We have preserved such for over 79 years now and we have ensured that such character is explicitly communicated through Annual Reports. It is therefore a pleasure to be among the elite winners once again. Having competed among many organisations from over 60 countries across the globe we regard this as an exemplary achievement of our commitment and creativity in reporting whilst adhering to standards expected from a No. 1 Bank,” stated CEO/General Manager Senarath Bandara.  

The Bank ensures that its Annual Report complies with the standards set by regulatory bodies and international reporting guide lines such as International Integrated Reporting (IIR) framework issued by the International Integrated Reporting Council and G4 guidelines issued by the Global Reporting Initiatives (GRI) for sustainability reporting. 2017 ‘ABC of BOC’ is an early adaptation of GRI standards that needs to be followed by July 2018 onwards. Having always subscribed to the principles of stipulated reporting standards BOC’s Annual Report for 2013 named ‘Bank Beyond’ has also won three awards then as; Gold Winner for the Financial Data in bank – international sector, Silver Winner for Written Text in bank-international sector, Silver Winner for Traditional Annual Report in bank – international sector. 

This unique competition is judged on the annual reports success in communicating its company story based on the values of creativity, clarity, effectiveness and excellence as symbolised by the ARC Awards. Judges consider special elements such as cover design, President’s letter, interior design, clarity of written text, presentation of corporate information, expression of financial data and how well the spirit of the organisation is communicated. 

Each entry goes through a stringent process of three separate evaluations done at the preliminary rounds and it is required to pass above the minimum score at each round to be qualified for an award. If no such entry reaches the stipulated score, no award will be granted under that category. The independent panel of judges coming from around the world consists of leaders in relevant fields, who bring-in a vast amount of exposure and insight to enrich the evaluation process thus elevating the value of the award ceremony altogether.