The combined value of Sri Lanka’s 100 most valuable brands has risen 17 percent to a record Rs. 652 billion, moving past the pre-crisis 2019 peak of Rs. 630 billion, according to the Sri Lanka 100 2026 report published by brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance.
“Sri Lanka’s brands have demonstrated remarkable resilience,” said Ruchi Gunewardene, Chairman of Brand Finance Lanka. “Surpassing the country’s pre-crisis peak is more than a financial milestone; it reflects renewed confidence in the economy and the institutions driving its recovery.”
He added that the next phase of growth would depend on “greater diversification, continued digital transformation and the successful adoption of AI across industries.”
Banks dominate the table
The banking sector accounts for 42 percent of the ranking’s total brand value — Rs. 275 billion, up 14 percent year on year. Six of the ten most valuable brands are banks.
State-owned Bank of Ceylon holds first place for a second consecutive year at Rs. 65.5 billion. Commercial Bank is second, up 18 percent to Rs. 54.9 billion, cited for its digital payments infrastructure and its position as the country’s largest interbank-payments processor.
The top ten by brand value:
| Rank | Brand | Industry | Value (Rs. m) | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BOC | Banking | 65,454 | AAA |
| 2 | Commercial Bank | Banking | 54,908 | AAA |
| 3 | Dialog | Telecommunications | 41,123 | AAA |
| 4 | People’s Bank | Banking | 40,444 | AAA- |
| 5 | NSB | Banking | 26,653 | AA |
| 6 | Keells | Retail | 26,354 | AAA |
| 7 | Sampath Bank | Banking | 26,004 | AA+ |
| 8 | HNB | Banking | 25,358 | AA+ |
| 9 | Cargills Food City | Retail | 22,463 | AA+ |
| 10 | Lion Beer | Beers | 21,491 | AA |
Dialog takes the strength crown
Separately from value, Brand Finance scores brands on a Brand Strength Index. Dialog — the third most valuable brand at Rs. 41.1 billion, up 16 percent — overtook Keells as Sri Lanka’s strongest brand with a BSI score of 89.4 out of 100 and an AAA rating.
Keells slipped to second on strength with 88.5, also AAA, while Commercial Bank held third at 87.
Among other movers, Sampath Bank rose 5 percent to Rs. 26 billion, noted as the first Sri Lankan bank to integrate PayPal withdrawals. Nations Trust Bank posted the sharpest gain in the report at 35 percent, reaching Rs. 9.9 billion after completing its acquisition of HSBC Sri Lanka’s retail banking business.
Recently listed ride-hailing platform PickMe grew 11 percent to Rs. 4.8 billion, which Brand Finance attributed to digital payments, AI-driven pricing and demand forecasting, multilingual AI customer support and added safety features.
Recovery backdrop
The Daily FT reported that the brand performance tracks Sri Lanka’s wider recovery from the 2022 sovereign debt crisis, noting the economy held 5 percent growth in 2025 on stabilising inflation and improving foreign reserves — despite Cyclone Ditwah in late 2025, which the report put at an estimated US$ 4.1 billion in damage.
