Available information shows that 39 out of the 77 companies that delisted from the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) since 1989 were loss-making hotels, plantations and textile companies. Little is known about why some companies went private and what has become of them today.
Six textile companies delisted after the phasing out of US trade quotas for clothing exports. Sixteen hotel and travel companies delisted, with four of them going bust after the 2004 tsunami and five others being absorbed into their parent companies.
Foreign-controlled companies Coca-Cola, Glaxo Wellcome, Reckitt Benckiser, Finlays, Associated Motorways and Suntel went private to downsize or restructure operations. A spurt of delistings took place between 2004 and 2006, when the stock exchange removed 11 companies for violating listing rules by not filing financial reports.