The Central Bank of Sri Lanka has placed Entrust Securities, one of the country’s largest non-banking dealers, under the management of state-run National Savings Bank. The action follows reported misselling of government securities by the firm and its failure to take corrective action in spite of warnings. According to central bank officials, Entrust Securities had incorrectly promised investors higher yields on government securities than those offered by the central bank. It had also not issued official documents to investors. Central Bank governor Arjuna Mahendran said the firm missed the deadline set by the regulator and failed to provide any restructuring proposals. National Savings Bank will now manage the day-to-day affairs of the firm under the guidance of the central bank. Entrust Securities has a market capitalization of Rs 792 million, or 0.03% of the total market capitalization of the bourse.
