Pan Asia becomes first Sri Lankan bank to accept fingerprints in verifying pensioners

Pan Asia Bank Director/CEO Nimal Tillekeratne and National Pensions Department Director Jagath Dias 

 The first two pensioners to experience this facility 

In line with the manifesto of the new Government “Vision for Prosperity”, which promotes use of technology to enhance efficiency in the State sector, the Department of Pensions reached another landmark milestone recently with the introduction of a facility that enables pensioners to use their fingerprint instead of the tedious process of having to provide a life certificate.

Obtaining the annual life certificate is considered an important component in regulating the process of pension payments. The main objective of this process is verifying the pensioner’s details and minimising the overpayments caused by not informing the Department of Pensions of the demise of the pensioner.

The period from 1 January to 31 March every year has been designated the period of obtaining Pensioner Life Certificates. In 2020 it is expected that 6,410,000 pensioners scattered islandwide will be required to furnish Pensioner Life Certificates through their respective Grama Niladharis after verifying their addresses. Therefore, all pensioners will be mailed applications for Pensioner Life Certificates and that application has to be completed, certified by the Grama Niladhari and sent to the Divisional Secretariat which is a costly and time-consuming exercise. In the new method, pensioners have the opportunity to place their fingerprint at any of the designated places equipped with an electronic device to capture same that will be accepted as equivalent to submission of a life certificate. Accordingly, in the first stage, this methodology is to be made available for pensioners who have retired after 1 January 2016.  During the initial phase, pensioners were given the opportunity of obtaining the relevant facility from any Divisional Secretariat. At the second stage of this program, pensioners will be given the opportunity to place their fingerprint at permitted branches of State and private banks as well. 

Accordingly, Pan Asia Bank made history on 13 February when it became the first bank permitted to provide this facility to the pensioner community. Initially, this facility will be provided through 40 selected branches of the Pan Asia Bank scattered all over the island, and in the next stage, through all 85 branches of the Pan Asia Bank to over 78,000 pensioners throughout Sri Lanka.  

The launch of this program was officially held at the Maharagama Branch of the Pan Asia Bank under the aegis of the Pensions Director General Jagath Dias and Pan Asia Bank Chief Executive Officer Nimal Tillekeratne, in the presence of a large gathering of pensioners. Furthermore, this project was initiated in parallel to the 25th anniversary of the Pan Asia Bank which, as a truly Sri Lankan bank, remains firmly committed to uplifting the living standards of all Sri Lankans alike through its products and services.