Sarvodaya Development Finance records historic year

Sarvodaya Development Finance PLC ( SDF) which made history in 2021 by becoming Sri Lanka’s first impact investment company to list on the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE), has reported its best profits to date, for the financial year 2021-22.

SDF made its debut onto the Main Board of the CSE on November 23, 2021, by raising Rs. 1 billion in equity from its Initial Public Offering (IPO). The IPO was over- subscribed by noon, indicating the high level of investor interest and trust in the Sarvodaya Movement’s financial services arm, despite the prevailing global economic uncertainty, the organisation said in a media release.

SDF has a tried and tested mechanism to channel funds into the development of micro, small and medium enterprises, a majority of which are located outside the Western Province. SDF’s lending activities are restrained by the Sarvodaya principles. SDF does not lend towards activities deemed anti-social and/ or inhumane. These excluded sectors include butcheries, alcoholrelated businesses, drugs and gambling etc.

Fuelled by growth in the lending portfolio, SDF recorded a profit after tax of Rs. 215.5 million, which is a 17.5 per cent growth compared to the profit after tax of Rs. 183.3 million reported in the previous year. Total lending grew by 25.03 per cent while agriculture sector remained the largest recipient of SDF credit, absorbing 48 per cent of total disbursements during the year, which was Rs 3.91 billion. This is an increase of 87 per cent from the previous year. “SDF concluded the financial year 2021- 22 by demonstrating its true potential to support the country’s economic recovery in this challenging juncture. As the financial services arm of the Sarvodaya Movement, SDF is committed to do everything within its power to create wealth for the nation, and looks forward to supporting the country’s entrepreneurs in the new financial year,” said its Chairman Channa de Silva.