Banking excellence redefined: HNB clinches top spot in Business Today rankings

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa presenting HNB Chairman Dinesh Weerakkody and HNB Managing Director/CEO Jonathan Alles with the award for No. 1 Ranking on the Biz Today Top 30

HNB Plc secured the top ranking in the prestigious ‘Business Today Top 30’, further consolidating a remarkable reputation for excellence and a legacy of innovation in the Sri Lankan banking industry.

The award was presented to HNB Chairman Dinesh Weerakkody and HNB Managing Director/CEO Jonathan Alles by Chief Guest at the Business Today Top 30 for 2020, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, in the presence of luminaries and respected leaders from across Sri Lanka’s corporate sector.

“We are both happy and deeply humbled to have topped the Business Today rankings, and at the outset, I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to the entire team at HNB for powering our remarkable journey to the top. For over 130 years, we have supported Sri Lankans from all walks of life to pursue their aspirations and achieve their fullest potential, while also making impactful contributions towards developmental goals on a national scale.

“Our position at the top of this year’s rankings stands as further validation of the ambitious transformational journey which HNB has commenced. Our nation too is at a crossroads and we cannot afford to waver in our mission to spread sustainable development and prosperity to all parts of the country. HNB remains totally committed to serve as a true partner in progress in this important journey,” Alles stated.

HNB’s victory at this year’s awards marks the second time that the bank has topped the Biz Today Top 30 rankings since 1997. Business Today’s Top 30 Rankings were compiled following a series of stringent evaluations of all applicants by a panel of respected corporate sector veterans. Each of the nominees for this year’s rankings was assessed on their quality of growth, corporate governance and long-term vision.

During the period in review, HNB’s strong financial performance and proven ability to introduce novel technology-enabled capabilities, products and services also helped the bank secure the top spot in the most recent rankings.

Moreover, the Biz Today ranking is the latest in a string of accolades bestowed on HNB for its transformational approach to banking. Over the recent past, HNB was declared the Best Bank in Sri Lanka for 2019 for the third time by Euromoney Magazine, even as The Asian Banker Magazine bestowed the rare triennial honour of recognising HNB as the Best Managed Bank. HNB also has the unique distinction of receiving the awards for Best Retail Bank in Sri Lanka and Best Micro Finance Bank in Sri Lanka for two consecutive years at the International Finance Awards 2019.

HNB was also ranked among the World Top 1000 Banks list compiled by the prestigious UK-based Banker magazine for three years running up to 2019, further strengthening its status as Sri Lanka’s preeminent private sector bank.

Recently, HNB was recognised among the ‘Top 10 Most Admired Companies in Sri Lanka’ by the International Chamber of Commerce, Sri Lanka and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). HNB’s remarkable track record of excellence secured it the first place ranking ahead of all Sri Lankan banks included in the LMD Top 100 Club, a position which was evaluated based on its performance over the past 25 years.

Operating through 251 customer centres across the country, HNB was also the first Sri Lankan bank to obtain an international credit rating and was assigned a foreign currency issuer rating of B1 on par with the sovereign rating by Moody’s Investors Service, while it has a national long-term rating of AA- (lka) by Fitch Ratings (Lanka) Ltd.

Parliamentarian Prof. G.L. Peiris, HNB Chairman Dinesh Weerakkody and HNB Managing Director/CEO Jonathan Alles with the HNB Corporate Management team