CDB now in Business Today Top 30- For the First Time
Having been a trailblazing pioneer in challenging times during its courageous 24-year corporate journey, Citizens Development Business Finance PLC (CDB) etches its presence indelibly among the prestigious Business Today Top 30 for the first time in its history.
Taking the mantle of innovation as its primary tool in moving into a technologically driven future, MD/CEO Mahesh Nanayakkara explains that CDB has become a dominant disruptor in the financial intermediary business. “Being recognized among the Top 30 corporates by Business Today assures us that we are journeying the right path and that our fundamentals are well entrenched. Having revolutionized and disrupted our industry with radical technological innovation and transformational mindset, CDB intends on exploiting these building blocks to become an incumbent company within the next five years. Our passionate team which has pioneering leadership genes as part of their DNA are ever ready for this task.”
Divulging some of CDB’s historical vignettes, Nanayakkara commends his unrivalled team for their boldly daring spirit in the past. CDB is a financial entity that inherited an extremely challenging financial status in 2001/02 including negative net assets, negative net interest income and losses overriding revenue, since its incorporation in 1995. “By 2004, the team had produced our first profitable year with just Rs 10 Mn but nevertheless a cause for much elation, while net assets turned positive in 2005 with a small but rewarding Rs 175,000. The CDB Team made it their mission to build an enduring admired company, turning the corner in every possible way, until a devastating corporate challenge struck a blow in 2008. But yet again, that indomitable team spirit and resilience kicked in to take maximum advantage of Sri Lanka’s post war economic boom, CDB today showcases a balance sheet and revenue that has grown over 10 times in the last decade and after-tax profits 25 times.” CDB has inked stability, soundness, governance, accountability and transparency into its fabric, holding its place among the Top Five largest NBFIs in the country. For Nanayakkara this recognition of being in the Business Today Top 30 is a refreshing reward for an unrelenting team that reflects hard work, commitment and passion.
