Sri Lankans confined to their homes by the COVID-19 pandemic were able to withdraw money virtually at their doorsteps thanks to the deployment of mobile ATM units by the Commercial Bank of Ceylon.
The Bank’s mobile cash service units traversed a total of 119 different routes in three weeks and covered 672 locations, reaching homes in many areas where travelling to a bank branch was not possible due to the curfew.
Sri Lanka’s largest private bank reports that these units processed more than 6,000 transactions during this period, enabling customers to make withdrawals as well as deposits and to check their account balances, while adhering to the safety precautions advised by the government.
The Rs 100 million dispensed by the Bank’s mobile units was in addition to the very much larger amounts withdrawn from its ATM network in locations and at times where the curfew was relaxed, the Bank said. Total withdrawals between 1 st and 20 th April from the mobile units deployed by the Bank exceeded Rs 103 million, while the units received deposits of more than Rs 8.9 million during this period, demonstrating the important role they played in supporting the banking needs of people.
Commercial Bank’s Bank-on-Wheels units offer the convenience of cash withdrawals via ATM cards as well as passbooks, in addition to other basic over-the-counter banking services. The Bank also has mobile units that only offer the services of ATM terminals. Apart from these units, the Bank also deployed several vehicles with Point-of-Sale (POS) machines to enhance the penetration of this service in the on-going curfew situation.
Besides these units, Commercial Bank opened all branches located in areas where the curfew was temporarily lifted to provide essential banking services, and also operated a select number of branches during curfew times for staff to attend to the most urgent requirements of customers.
In March this year Commercial Bank also made it easier for customers to access its Online Banking
portal and to open ‘Flash’ Digital Accounts by permitting self-registration for these facilities, removing the need to visit a branch to get started. The first Sri Lankan Bank to be listed among the Top 1000 Banks of the World and the only Sri Lankan bank to be so listed for nine years consecutively, Commercial Bank is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. The Bank, which won more than 50 international and local awards in 2019, operates a network of 268 branches and 865 ATMs in Sri Lanka.
Commercial Bank’s overseas operations encompass Bangladesh, where the Bank operates 19 outlets; Myanmar, where it has a Representative Office in Yangon and a Microfinance company in Nay Pyi Taw; and the Maldives, where the Bank has a fully-fledged Tier I Bank with a majority stake.
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