Vision 2030: Banking Sri Lanka into a more competitive future

AS the end of the calendar year approaches, Sri Lanka has at last moved from stabilisation into a brittle but very real recovery. The economy is nearing its second full year of positive GDP growth with inflation broadly under control, while foreign reserves are on track to reach around $ 6.5 - 7 billion. A powerful rebound in external inflows - especially a 20% year-on-year increase in worker remittances to nearly $ 6.5 billion by October 2025 — has given our nation badly needed breathing room.

- By HNB MD/CEO Damith PALLEWATTE

Yet even as our export sectors and tourism have shown admirable resilience, Sri Lanka's continued dependence on remittances is a reminder that deeper reforms remain overdue. Many families are still one shock away from falling back into hardship. Thousands of SMEs are working harder than ever simply to stay afloat. Meanwhile, global supply chains are being rewritten amidst geopolitical headwinds, technology is reshaping industries, as our regional competitors race to embed digital infrastructure and high-value production into their economies.

Sri Lanka’s road to 2030 will therefore be defined not only by how we repair the damage of the past, but by how effectively we reposition our nation to compete in this new global economic paradigm.

The opportunity cost of cash — and why digital is a competitiveness agenda

Budget 2025 set a clear and aggressive vision — to grow the digital economy to 12% of GDP by 2030. That implies expanding ICT export revenues from about $ 1.2 billion today to around $ 5 billion, and growing the tech talent pool from 85,000 to roughly 200,000 professionals. Together with a new Digital Economic Authority, a Rs. 3 billion allocation for digital-economy development, and investments in Digital Public Infrastructure — from Secure Transaction Registries (STR) and a national digital ID to the digitisation of Government payments — the direction of travel is clear.

But these are ambitious goals, and they cannot be achieved unless the banking and financial services industry lifts itself to match that ambition. Our growth plans as banks can no longer run on separate tracks; they must be consciously aligned with the country’s 2030 vision.

Despite progress, Sri Lanka is still heavily cash-dependent, with around Rs. 1.5 trillion in circulation and an estimated 1.5% of GDP spent just to print, move and secure notes and coins — almost as much as we allocate to education and higher education combined.