Sampath Bank’s focus on adding value to the nation helped it emerge among Most Admired Companies

Sampath Bank representatives at the ceremonial launch of the ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ initiative in Kokunnewa 

Running any business, anywhere in the world, is replete with challenges. Yet, a good product or service brought to life with commitment by a talented team armed with the right strategy and resources can help a business generate wealth. There are businesses around us that have defied all odds to thrive in the marketplace and deliver considerable financial returns to their owners and investors. 

However, to be able to sustain this in the long run, businesses need to think beyond profits and strive to earn the trust and respect of their customers and other stakeholders. In doing so, they stand to gain the admiration of the communities they serve and thereby create more value for all stakeholders in the long run.

Sampath Bank is one such organisation that has stayed true to its Sri Lankan roots, maintaining a perfect balance between innovation and upholding traditions, between creating wealth for its shareholders and delivering value to the nation. Renowned for leveraging emerging technologies to create market relevant solutions, the Bank has always remained committed to serving the community and deliver more value to the country and its citizens through its business activities as well as its community outreach efforts.

The Bank’s commitment to serving the nation was brought to the fore once again during the current global pandemic. Sampath Bank rolled out a host of community support initiatives around helping individuals and small businesses recover from the impact of the pandemic and environmental protection. Delivering on its ongoing commitments, the Bank also initiated several new projects to help revive the nation during a challenging year.

Sampath Bank continued to work on restoring life-giving tanks that were built by kings during ancient times, through its flagship ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ initiative, despite the economic challenges faced by the world. In 2020, the Bank set out to restore the Kindagalle Wewa in the Kokunnewa area of Bibile in the Monaragala district. The 15-acre tank was providing water to 62 acres of paddy fields, benefitting 60 farmer families. Post restoration, it is set to cater to 262 acres of farming land, thereby directly benefiting 260 families.

The ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ program forms one pillar of Sampath Bank’s community capacity building initiatives and aims to deliver sustainable agriculture solutions to dry zone farmers to cultivate their paddy land and harvest both the Yala and Maha paddy seasons, annually, thus enhancing the livelihoods of rural agricultural communities. Through the project, the Bank seeks to encourage organic farming as a feasible means of maintaining a sustainable livelihood through agriculture and will also contribute to the Bank’s triple bottom line as it enriches the lives of the community in the area, improves the water capacity of the tank and develops the surrounding eco-system and empowers agri-entrepreneurs by making them financially inclusive. 

Right from its inception, the Bank has been committed to promoting entrepreneurship and supporting the SME sector. A series of free webinars hosted under the ‘Sampath Saviya’ entrepreneurship development programme saw top professionals and bank officers share insights on how SMEs could recover from the impact of the COVID-19. The Bank also engaged with undergraduates of the Rajarata University of Sri Lanka to help convert job seekers into job creators. 

The Bank also extended its support to the nation’s health in response to the global pandemic. Sampath Bank donated a state-of-the-art PCR laboratory to the Army Hospital in Colombo at a cost of approximately Rs. 32 million in partnership with the CBL Group and WSO2. With a testing capacity of 600 samples per day, the lab has helped expand the national testing capacity, thereby enabling health authorities to expand their testing base, identify those infected and provide treatment.

Just as our economy was beginning to recover from the impact of the tragic events of April 2019, COVID-19 delivered a severe financial blow to the world at large. As a responsible financial service provider, the Bank worked with all stakeholders to extend much needed assistance to businesses and individuals affected by the crisis through its core business activities as well. The Bank did so despite being aware of the pandemic’s possible impact on its own performance. 

Sampath Bank introduced a wide range of relief measures including moratoriums on certain loan repayments, fee waivers on cheque return and stop payment charges, assistance with lease and personal loan repayments. Special business loans and gold loans were introduced at significantly lower interest rates under the Bank’s Revive Sri Lanka initiative.

These are just few of the innumerable ways in which Sampath Bank has strived to help uplift the nation and its people, in the midst of a global health and financial crisis. The Bank has continued to support the community while continuing to generate value for its investors and other stakeholders. In doing so, the Bank has earned the love and respect of all Sri Lankans. This is reflected in the innumerable awards and accolades bestowed on the Bank, both in Sri Lanka and around the world. 

Most recently, Sampath Bank was recognised amongst the Most Admired Companies of Sri Lanka by the International Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (ICCSL), the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and the Daily FT. The coveted award recognises companies, both listed and unlisted, that are a cut above the rest in terms of not just their financial performance but also the value they create for their shareholders, customers, employees and the wider community in general.

Sampath Bank representatives taking part in religious observances during the launch of the ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ initiative in Kokunnewa

Sampath Bank representatives and other invitees breaking ground at the Kindagalle Wewa during the ceremonial launch of the ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ initiative in Kokunnewa

Members of the clergy and the local community taking part in religious observances held during the launch of the ‘Wewata Jeewayak’ initiative in Kokunnewa