In response to the news articles circulating on Total Pay and ICTA, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) wishes to clarify matters to the public and provide an accurate account of events which transpired regarding the National Payment Platform (NPP), in order to deliver a holistic understanding of the prevailing situation.

The CBSL requested for more information about the NPP when it was presented on 13.05.2016 at the Central Bank, and the request was made in order to gather details on system development, operation manuals, system security, compliance with system standards and the external system audit framework. This request was made in an attempt to gather further knowledge regarding the NPP, so that CBSL could make an informed decision on its feasibility. However, there has been no response regarding these concerns from ICTA, to date. Therefore, CBSL is not in a position to comment on the viability of the NPP in the absence of a response from ICTA, as the concerns raised have an impact on customer, transaction and information security.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka has permitted licensed banks to grant concessions to their borrowers who have been affected by the recent floods, adverse weather conditions and connected circumstances with a view to facilitating the recommencement of their businesses and normalization of their activities.

Accordingly, licensed banks can;

• Grant a concessionary period of up to 3 months in respect of repayment of all performing credit facilities of such borrowers as at 25 May 2017, and
• Waive the penal interest for this period

Based on the information received by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, many borrowers who have been affected by the recent floods are not aware of this concessionary scheme and therefore, have not received these concessions. Accordingly, such borrowers are informed to contact their bank branches in this regard.