SRI LANKA SEEKS TO LIST FINANCE, INSURANCE FIRMS: REGULATOR

The head of Sri Lanka's markets regulator said it wants to attract new listings, especially of finance and insurance firms, and also plans to demutualise the Colombo Stock Exchange.

Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Udayasri Kariyawasam told an investor forum in Singapore that the initiatives were part of the island's capital markets development plan following the end of its ethnic war.

"We are trying to demutualize the Colombo Stock Exchange and attract new listings, in particular the registered finance companies and also the insurance companies," Kariyawasam said.

The SEC, in a statement, said the investor forum targeting overseas fund managers based mainly in Singapore, was the first of several planned by the regulator to promote investments in post-war Sri Lanka.

There was heavy participation of large scale institutional investors and fund managers, it said.

It quoted Kariyawasam as saying that the end of the war meant there were new investment opportunities available in Sri Lanka.

Government forces defeated Tamil Tiger separatists in May, raising hopes of an economic revival after 30 years of conflict.

The statement also quoted Ajith Nivard Cabraal, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, as saying the end of the war created an environment for better economic planning.

He said that Sri Lanka, known for being a high inflation country for a long time, had now managed to bring down inflation and high inflation expectations.

"We can take a lot more pragmatic decisions going into the future," Cabraal said.

Inflation has fallen steeply to about one per cent levels after hitting 28 per cent around the middle of last year.