National People’s Power (NPP) Parliamentarian Lakshman Nipuna Arachchi has announced that a new bill has been submitted to Parliament with the objective of addressing the persistent issues associated with microfinance loans.
Speaking at an event held in Colombo, the MP emphasized the severity of the crisis, stating that about 200 women have reportedly died by suicide after being overwhelmed by microfinance-related debt.
Meanwhile, reports have surfaced regarding a large-scale financial fraud involving the unauthorized use of the name and logo of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE).
Niroshan Wijesundere, Senior Vice President of the CSE, confirmed that the scam was carried out through a fraudulent mobile application that falsely represented itself as being affiliated with the exchange.
According to officials, the fraudulent operation has been active since November last year and has resulted in substantial financial losses to unsuspecting investors. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has launched a comprehensive investigation into the incident.
Wijesundere urged the public to exercise extreme caution when investing and to verify the authenticity of trading platforms through official CSE channels in order to avoid falling victim to such scams.
