DFCC Bank PLC and National Development Bank PLC (NDB) announced that DFCC, DFCC Vardhana Bank PLC and NDB have jointly agreed to terminate the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) entered into on 24 March 2014 related to the intended amalgamation of DFCC, DVB and NDB with effect from 11 May 2015.

The termination of this MoU would enable these banking groups to pursue their respective business and expansion strategies unfettered by the provisions of the MoU. But this would not preclude the re-examination of the feasibility of amalgamation at a future point of time once the government’s policy and stance become clearer.

Earlier last year, when this amalgamation had been proposed, NDB Bank head Sunil Wijesinghe told AdaderanaBiz that work on selecting an international consultant was in progress and could be finalized soon. This was under a programme last year to merge Sri Lanka’s banks and financial institutions.

The Sri Lanka Central Bank held discussions with the regional representatives and senior managements of foreign banks operating in Sri Lanka on the merger of the financial sector and these banks had pledged to actively contribute towards Sri Lanka’s economic activities.