Our Business Strategy

As a testament to excellence and progress, over the past decade, from 2011 to 2020, CDB has experienced a remarkable growth phase, witnessing assets grow tenfold. The incredible journey has enabled the company to achieve a significant milestone, with the balance sheet now boasting an impressive LKR 100 billion.

Entering the current decade, extending from 2021 to 2030, CDB has embarked on an exciting new journey to become a quarter trillion asset base (QTAB) company. The bold vision demonstrates CDB’s unwavering dedication to reaching new heights and expanding to serve customers even better.

At the core of CDB’s strategy are two vital pillars: sustainability and tech disruption. CDB firmly believes that these are the driving forces to propel toward the QTAB goal. As CDB forward on this path, CDB intend to continue being a socially impacting organisation while aspiring towards a Net Zero status by 2030. The strategy places a significant emphasis on the team, believing in extraordinary results through ordinary people.

Tech disruption pillar – a vital partner in the sustainability journey

Our tech-driven strategy has revolutionised CDB’s operational capacity without the need for physical expansion, creating a resource-efficient organization. Over the past five years, CDB has abstained from opening a single new branch but has effectively more than doubled capacity through virtual expansion. This tech-centric approach has been instrumental in reaching the most remote, rural, and base of the pyramid market segments, becoming a net lender to the rural economy and promoting financial inclusion.

We are at the forefront of adopting cutting-edge technologies, including API capabilities, BOTs, RPA, ERP, OCR/ICR, and the initial stages of ML and AI. Utilising advanced technology has radically enhanced our speed of service and customer convenience, ensuring our presence is seamless and unobtrusive. Automated credit decisions and paperless processes have become integral aspects of CDB operations, extending from the back office to the frontline and our business is increasingly becoming invisible.

Sustaining the efforts towards a platform-oriented mindset and a crowdsourcing strategy is the www.patpat.lk platform, designed to transform services into a novel client experience. These initiatives are on a continuous improvement trajectory, in addition to optimising our operations and reducing carbon emissions. It aligns perfectly with CDB’s Net Zero aspirations, where technology plays a pivotal role as an enabling pillar.

Our Sustainability Agenda

Our comprehensive sustainability approach, ‘CDB Advance’, is at the core of our business strategy. With a focus on seven of the seventeen United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs), CDB Advance is executed through eight verticals that drive progress towards a greener economy and a more inclusive society operating under the pillars of Net Zero and Social Conscious.

Further, we are committed to transforming our internal teams and adding value to external stakeholders to drive meaningful and lasting sustainable change. To accelerate the drive towards Net Zero emissions, we actively promote sustainable financing solutions for greater de-carbonization.

Our business strategy emphasizes ‘extraordinary results through ordinary people’ and ‘strategy bets on people.’ To uphold these principles, we recruit and build a team of members from diverse backgrounds, providing equal opportunities for employment, fostering a positive working culture, and offering extensive training and development programs. We strongly believe that a mindful and engaged team are a core area of achieving our business strategy and sustainability goals.

 

Contributing to the UN Sustainable Development Goals