A new, aspiration targeted investment plan that enables account holders to build up a minimum balance of Rs 1 million within a specific period without a high initial investment, has been launched by the Commercial Bank of Ceylon, the largest private sector bank in Sri Lanka.
The first savings product of its kind in the local banking sector, the ‘Commercial Bank Millionaire’s Account’ guarantees the depositor a balance of Rs 1 million or multiples of Rs 1 million up to Rs 10 million in three, four, five, or six years, depending on how much he or she is willing to deposit each month.
Designed principally to cater to a segment that needs to fast track savings for specific purposes such as the purchase of assets, children’s or own education orweddings, the new product is a flexible, easy to manage investment plan with a clear goal,that generates expected returns within a targeted period of time, the Bank said.
“To many salaried workers with day-to-day expenses, becoming a millionaire in three to six years may seem out of reach,” said Mr Chandana Gunasekera, Commercial Bank’s Deputy General Manager – Personal Banking.
“With the Millionaire’s Account, we show how it can be done, with the support of Commercial Bank -- one of the country’s strongest and most stable financial institutions.”
“Some people save in an unplanned manner, with no target balance in mind, and deplete their savings when needs arise.
Our new product encourages taking a structured approach that can be customised to suit the payment capacity of the depositor and the duration of his or her choice.”
Available to any Sri Lankan over 18 years of age, the Commercial Bank Millionaire’s Accountthat generates a balance of Rs 1 millionrequires a monthly deposit of Rs 25,000over three years, Rs 18,100 a month for a four year plan, Rs 13,950 per month for a five year plan and just Rs 11,225 a month for a plan maturing in six years.
Depositors who wish to raise more than Rs 1 million may increase their monthly deposit according to the number of millions they wish to raise, up to a maximum of Rs 10 million.
Depositors can also nominate beneficiaries to receive the total amount invested in the event of their demise before maturity.
“We are very excited about the potential for this new product,” Mr Gunasekera added.
“Most other investment options that offer above average rates of return require a high initial investment.
With this new product, depositors can invest as they earn, and their monthly commitment will diminish in significance as their regular earnings increase over the duration of the plan.”
Commercial Bank ended FY 2014 with deposits of Rs 529.4 billion, following growth of Rs 78.3 billion or 17.34% over 12 months at an average of Rs 6.5 billion per month.
The Bank’s assets stood at Rs 795.6 billion as at 31st December 2014.
The only Sri Lankan bank to be ranked among the Top 1000 banks of the world for four consecutive years (2011-2014), Commercial Bank has won multiple awards as Sri Lanka’s best bank over several years, and was adjudged one of the country’s 10 best corporate citizens by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce in 2013 and 2014.
The bank has been rated the Most Respected Bank in Sri Lanka by LMD for the past 10 years, has been the second Most Respected Corporate entity in the country overall for the past four years, and been rated No 1 in Sri Lanka for Honesty in 2013 and 2014 by the magazine.
