

Since banks are now excluded from the DDO, they can focus on lending very aggressively and revive the economy.

Any more stress would have put the entire economy in danger. Banks are also paying close to 50 percent as tax with a rising Non-Performing Loan (NPL) ratio of 13.2 percent. In a re-profiling scenario, banks have to take a massive day one loss that could lead to a capital erosion and put the entire banking system under pressure. Some of these funds were deployed in T-bonds for liquidity management purposes by banks. 4 trillion of the entire Treasury bond portfolio of Rs. Without this, Sri Lanka will have inadequate funds for development needs and growth in the medium term will be hampered.īanks hold over Rs.

Thus, the government will have to aggressively drive revenue collection to a reasonable level to sustain the economy. We have achieved a fair amount of debt relief targets through the DDO process – still is a significant pressure on interest cost. Looking at the interest burden and for Gross Financing Needs to be at 13 percent by 2027, DDO was essential. If we get all the required parties aligned, we can aim to complete the entire debt restructuring process by September/October of this year. We congratulate the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank for achieving this critical milestone in the overall debt restructuring process. Sri Lanka Banks’ Association Chairperson Bingumal Thewarathanthri

Their opinions could shed light on what the DDO entails and the potential outcomes it may bring to their respective industries and to the overall economy. Mirror Business, seeking to gain insights into the DDO, reached out to various sectors and sections of the business community, trade unions and academia. Opinions on the matter are divided, with some expressing confidence in positive outcomes, while others foresee additional challenges ahead. The Domestic Debt Optimization (DDO) or Domestic Debt Restructuring (DDR) proposal, which received parliamentary approval last Saturday, has generated significant discussion within the general public, business community, trade unions, economists etc.
