The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has announced another initiative under its Green lending portfolio to support customers who share the Bank’s commitment towards the environment.
Green Home Loans of up to Rs 50 million are now available for the purchase of homes that have been granted Green Building Certificates by the Green Building Council of Sri Lanka (GBCSL), or for the construction of houses that will be so certified. Loans of up to Rs 5 million are available for the purchase of solar power systems, solar net metering systems or for any other green initiative such as waste or rain water management or composting, that leads to Green certification, the Bank said.
The first home loan product of its kind in the market, Commercial Bank’s Green Home Loans will carry a special concessionary interest rate that would be 1% lower than the published ‘Platinum’ rate, and customers would only pay 50% of the documentation charges applicable. The Bank has also already secured discounts of up to 10% from five leading solar power system providers in Sri Lanka for customers who obtain Green Home Loans.
The loans are repayable in up to 15 years and can also be topped up periodically for maintenance or upgrades that improve eco-friendliness, the Bank said.
Commenting on this latest Green Lending initiative, Commercial Bank’s Deputy General Manager – Retail Banking & Marketing Hasrath Munasinghe said: “As Sri Lanka’s first carbon neutral bank, Commercial Bank is committed to leading the way in promoting planet-friendly consumption, and one of the best ways to do that is by incentivising investments in going Green through our lending. We launched Green Personal Loans and Green Leases five years ago and have been working with institutions like the IFC to develop Green Financing products. The Green Home Loans scheme with the Green Building Council supplements these efforts.”
Applicants for Commercial Bank’s Green Home Loans should be between 18 and 60 years of age. Besides the competitive interest rates and the 50% discount on documentation charges, the Bank also offers quick approval of loan applications.
Commercial Bank also recently signed a milestone agreement with the Seoul-headquartered Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), a leading international inter-governmental technical advisor on sustainable finance initiatives, for a sustainable finance collaboration programme that enhances Commercial Bank’s readiness to mobilise green and blue investment opportunities for Sri Lanka’s private sector.
Sri Lanka’s first 100% carbon neutral bank and the first Sri Lankan bank to be listed among the Top 1000 Banks of the World, Commercial Bank operates a network of 271 branches and 957 automated machines in Sri Lanka. Commercial Bank is the largest lender to Sri Lanka’s SME sector and is a leader in digital innovation in the country’s Banking sector. The Bank’s overseas operations encompass Bangladesh, where the Bank operates 20 outlets; Myanmar, where it has a Microfinance company in Nay Pyi Taw; and the Maldives, where the Bank has a fully-fledged Tier I Bank with a majority stake.