Seylan Bank Achieves Historic Profit: LKR 12.1 Billion PAT in 2025!

Seylan Bank isn’t just closing the books on 2025; it’s rewriting the record books! We are thrilled to announce our strongest financial performance yet, underscoring a year of resilience, strategic growth, and unwavering commitment to our stakeholders. This landmark achievement solidifies Seylan Bank’s position as a robust and forward-thinking financial institution.

Unprecedented Profitability and Strategic Growth

For the year ended 31 December 2025, Seylan Bank reported a **Profit Before Tax (PBT) of LKR 19.6 billion**, a robust 22.3% increase from LKR 16.0 billion in the previous year. Following this, our **Profit After Tax (PAT) soared to LKR 12.1 billion**, marking a substantial 20.5% growth over the LKR 10.0 billion recorded in 2024. This LKR 12.1 billion PAT stands as the highest annual profit in the Bank’s 37-year history, a true testament to our sustained growth trajectory and strengthened financial performance.

Driving Revenue through Core Operations

Our Net Interest Income (NII) saw a modest growth of 4.21%, reaching LKR 38.3 billion in 2025 from LKR 36.7 billion in 2024. This growth was primarily fueled by an expanding loan book, alongside the strategic repricing of loans, deposits, and government securities amidst fluctuating market interest rates. While our Net Interest Margin (NIM) moderated slightly to 4.50% from 4.90% in 2024, our Net Fee-Based Income demonstrated exceptional vitality, growing by 16.34% to LKR 8.3 billion. This surge was predominantly driven by strong performances in Cards, Remittances, Trade, and other financial services. Overall, the Bank’s total operating income for 2025 increased by 13.00% to LKR 48.1 billion, showcasing a healthy and diversified revenue stream.

Prudent Cost Management and Superior Asset Quality

Despite a general increase in market prices for consumables and services, total operating expenses grew by a well-managed 8.53% to LKR 21.4 billion. Personnel expenses saw a 10.40% rise to LKR 11.3 billion, reflecting higher staff-related costs, while other operating expenses increased by 6.54%. We continue to implement targeted cost optimization initiatives to ensure efficient expense management across all operations.

A significant highlight is the drastic reduction in impairment charges on Loans & Advances, Other Financial Assets, and Credit-related commitments, which stood at a mere LKR 0.6 billion in 2025, a remarkable improvement from LKR 6.3 billion in 2024. This reflects prudent provisioning practices and a healthy loan portfolio. Our asset quality ratios remain exceptionally strong, with the Impaired Loan (Stage 3) Ratio significantly improving to 1.03% (from 2.10% in 2024) and the Stage 3 Provision Cover Ratio at an impressive 86.33%, among the highest in the banking industry.

Strengthening the Balance Sheet

Seylan Bank’s total assets expanded robustly from LKR 780 billion in 2024 to an outstanding LKR 921 billion in 2025, marking steady growth. This expansion was supported by active pursuit of new-to-bank loans and deposits, alongside strong retention of our existing customer base. Loans and Advances grew by LKR 137 billion to LKR 600 billion, while deposits increased by LKR 86 billion to LKR 733 billion. Our CASA ratio was successfully maintained at 30%, underpinning stable and cost-efficient funding.

Robust Capital and Liquidity

As of 31 December 2025, Seylan Bank remains exceptionally well-capitalized, with Capital Adequacy Ratios comfortably exceeding regulatory minimums. Our CET1 and Total Tier 1 Capital Ratios stood at 12.39%, and the Total Capital Ratio was a strong 17.89%, reflecting a solid capital base. Furthermore, our liquidity position is unassailable, with the All Currency LCR Ratio and Rupee LCR Ratio maintained at 229.92% and 227.99% respectively, significantly above statutory requirements.

The Bank’s Return on Equity (ROE) improved to 15.89% (2024: 15.35%), and Return on Average Assets (before tax) stood at 2.31% (2024: 2.14%). Earnings per Share also saw a healthy increase to LKR 19.05 in 2025 from LKR 15.81 in the previous year, further highlighting the value created for our shareholders.

Beyond the Numbers: Community and Future Outlook

Our commitment extends beyond financial performance. In 2025, Seylan Bank expanded its flagship CSR initiative by opening 24 new “Seylan Pahasara Libraries”, bringing the total to 289 libraries. This initiative underscores our dedication to fostering education and empowering underprivileged schools across the island.

On the strategic front, the Bank successfully raised LKR 15 billion through Basel III compliant, Tier 2 debentures, which were oversubscribed on the very day of issuance. This reflects strong investor confidence in Seylan Bank’s future. Further testament to our strength and stability, Fitch Ratings upgraded Seylan Bank’s National Long-Term Rating to ‘A+(lka)’ by two notches with a Stable Outlook in 2025.

This monumental achievement in 2025 is a testament to the dedication of our entire team, the unwavering trust of our customers, and the effectiveness of our strategic initiatives. As we look ahead, Seylan Bank remains committed to fostering financial prosperity for all our stakeholders and driving sustainable value creation for the nation.