Ceylinco Consolidated
| Limited | |
| Industry | Finance |
| Founded | 1938 |
| Headquarters | Colombo, Sri Lanka |
|
Key people
|
Deshamanya Dr Lalith Kotelawala, Group Chairman |
| Products | Banking, Insurance, Non- Banking Finance, Investment Banking, Housing & Property Development, Travel & Leisure, Communication & Information Technology, Education and Healthcare |
 US$ 120 million 12.5 billion Rs (2006–8)
|
|
| Total assets |
 US$ 250 million (2006–8)
|
| Owner | Lalith Kotelawala |
|
Number of employees
|
more than 30,000 people |
| Website | www |
Ceylinco Consolidated is one of Sri Lanka's oldest and largest business conglomerates.
The original company, Ceylon Insurance Company, was founded by Hugh Weerasekere and Cyril E. S. Perera (UNP member for Colombo North. It was the first ceylonese company to be registered under the Companies Ordinance of 1938. The company commenced business on 3 April 1939, providing life and general insurance services.
Due to the Perera's political stance against the SLFP's divisive "Sinhala Only Act" the Ceylon Insurance Co. was eventually politically persuaded to relinquish control by the then SLFP government of Mrs. Bandaranayake to Senator Justin Kotalawela then on the board of Ceylon Insurance. Justin Kotelawala gained control of Ceylon Insurance Co. from Alice Farmacia Perera, the widow of Cyril E. S. Perera, and from Violet van Dort, the widow of Hugh Weerasekere. Many people at the time were under the impression Ceylon Insurance Co. was not a profitable company due to what people were led to believe, when, in fact, Ceylon Insurance Co. was and still is a significant player in Sri Lanka's economy. Cyril E. S. Perera also co-founded (with the Berenger family) another significant Sri Lankan company, Ceylon Chocolates Limited, known for its Kandos brand, which was named after Kandy where they first produced chocolate bars, in combination with the Latin word for money "dos". Kandos also went under the same SLFP reformation, with control eventually being transferred into the hands of Upali Wijewardana for no monetary value.
Justin Kotelawala and his son Lalith built the renamed Ceylinco into a major company which includes over 500 subsidiary companies. It has more than 450 offices with over 30,000 employees. In 1987 the company’s name was changed to Ceylinco Ltd. when it was registered as a public company. Ceylinco commenced business on 14 January 1988. A few of the many companies incorporated with Ceylinco are listed below.
The Ceylinco conglomerate is in a crisis as it has lost the trust of the people due to the collapse of the Golden Key Credit Card Company. Financial institutions under the Ceylinco Group was in the danger of collapsing due to the withdrawal of money by depositors. Hence, the managements of the Seylan Bank and the Three Finance Companies under this institution was taken by Government institutions.
...
Wikipedia