Friday Nov 14, 2025
Friday Nov 14, 2025
Thursday, 13 November 2025 00:30 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Chairman Sharhan Muhseen (left) and Managing Director/CEO Sanath Manatunge
Commercial Bank of Ceylon group has reported a net profit of Rs. 16.86 billion in the third quarter of 2025, up 33.4% from a year ago. The group reported a gross income of Rs. 268.49 billion and net interest income of Rs. 103.48 billion at the end of 3Q 2025, with strong year-on-year (YoY) growth of 34.60% in the loan book and curtailed interest expenses, contributing to an impressive nine-month performance.
Comprising of Sri Lanka’s largest private sector bank, its subsidiaries, and an associate, the group reported that interest income grew by 6.96% to Rs. 221.53 billion for the nine months ending 30 September 2025, while interest expenses for the period remained static at Rs. 118.05 billion as a result of the lower cost of funds and continuing improvement in the Current and Savings Account (CASA) ratio.
Consequently, net interest income at Rs. 103.48 billion for the nine months reviewed grew by 16.30% in contrast to the 11.08% growth in gross income. In 3Q, gross income grew by 16.37% to Rs. 91.46 billion, while interest income for the three months improved by 10.35% to Rs. 74.88 billion, with the loan book growing by 10.14% at a monthly average of Rs. 58.51 billion.
ComBank Chairman Sharhan Muhseen said: “Our commitment to lending remains undiminished, because we believe that our capacity to support national economic growth targets must be fully leveraged within prudential limits. The group’s performance reflects the impacts of this approach, and we expect similar strong growth in the final quarter of the year, in line with the trajectory of economic and business recovery.”
ComBank Managing Director Sanath Manatunge said the bank’s ability to sustain growth in the loan book, backed by a focus on yield management and cost optimisation, helped the bank to post these strong results for the nine months reviewed. He said that the bank maintained a strong focus on the CASA ratio, which stood at 39.92% as at 30 September 2025, compared to 38.07% at end-December 2024 and 39.60% a year ago, helping the bank to keep the cost of funds under control.
Total operating income increased by 21.41% to Rs. 140.49 billion for the nine months while the group’s impairment charges and other losses for the period declined by 28.21% to Rs. 14.37 billion primarily due to the previous year’s figure including an additional provisioning for the Sri Lanka International Sovereign Bonds (SLISBs) held by the bank.
For 3Q 2025, the group reported a total operating income of Rs. 47.74 billion, an improvement of 24.13%.
The group posted a net operating income of Rs. 126.13 billion for the nine months, reflecting an impressive growth of 31.79%, while keeping operating expenses at Rs. 39.41 billion, an increase of only 8.00%, resulting in operating profit before taxes on financial services growing by a noteworthy 46.46% to Rs. 86.71 billion.
Taxes on financial services increased by 50.72% to Rs. 13.36 billion, leading to group profit before income tax of Rs. 73.35 billion for the nine months with a growth of 45.71%. Income tax increased by 34.71% to Rs. 25.33 billion, resulting in a net profit of Rs. 48.02 billion for the group during the nine months reviewed, representing an impressive bottom-line growth of 52.27%.
Taken separately, Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC reported a profit before tax of Rs. 70.57 billion and profit after tax of Rs. 46.02 billion for the nine months reviewed, recording growths of 44.83% and 51.51% respectively.
Total assets of the group increased by Rs. 357 billion or 12.40% during the nine months to reach Rs. 3.23 trillion, as at 30 September 2025. Asset growth over the preceding 12 months was Rs. 469 billion, or 17%.
The group’s continued impetus in lending saw gross loans and advances growing by Rs. 381 billion, or 25.01% over the nine months to Rs. 1.9 trillion, at a monthly average of Rs. 42.39 billion. Loan book growth over the preceding 12 months was Rs. 490 billion, with YoY growth of 34.60%, averaging Rs. 40.85 billion per month.
Deposits grew by 12.26% to Rs. 2.6 trillion in the nine months, an increase of Rs. 283 billion at an average monthly growth of Rs 31.40 billion, and recorded YoY growth of 16.27%, with monthly average growth of Rs 30.18 billion, over the preceding 12 months.
In other key performance indicators, the Bank’s Tier 1 and Total Capital Ratios stood at 13.391% and 17.282% respectively as at 30 September 2025, both comfortably above the statutory minimum ratios applicable for the bank of 10% and 14% respectively.
In terms of profitability, the bank’s net interest margin increased to 4.53% for the nine months compared to 4.27% reported at end 2024 and 4.38% a year ago. The bank’s return on assets (before tax) improved to 3.19% compared to 2.47% a year ago, while the return on equity improved to 21.03% from 17.42% as at 30 September 2024.
The bank’s cost to income ratio excluding taxes on financial services stood at 27.95%, as against the normalised ratio of 33.85% for 2024, while the figure inclusive of taxes on financial services was 37.69% for the period, in comparison with the normalised ratio of 41.89% for the preceding year, when the effect of the net loss on restructuring of Sri Lanka International Sovereign Bonds is discounted.
In terms of asset quality, the bank’s impaired loans (Stage 3) ratio improved further to 1.79% compared to 4.08% a year ago, while its impairment (Stage 3) to Stage 3 loans ratio for the reviewed period improved to 71.43%, as against 64.61% as at 31 December 2024 and 53.54% as at 30 September 2024.
