Sri Lanka’s investment culture has long been held back by a simple confusion: treating savings and investing as the same thing. First Capital has spent years working to change that, through publishing research free of charge, financial literacy programmes, and a broader push towards digitalisation.
First Capital returns to the 100 Most Valuable Brands list for 2026, and Echelon sat down with Dilshan Wirasekara, Managing Director/CEO at First Capital Holdings PLC, and Randinith Madanayake, Head of Marketing, to talk about consumer insight, portfolio innovation, and what it will take to get more Sri Lankans investing.
How important is consumer insight for your decision-making? How have you used consumer insight to empower customers?
Dilshan Wirasekara: It’s critical, not just in our industry, but in any industry. The people you serve essentially dictate what they want, what their expectations are, and companies then look at fulfilling those expectations. First Capital is no different.
Over the last few years, we’ve used consumer insight more rigorously than we may have in the past. It comes from a fundamental principle: you don’t develop products and then see how you can sell them to clients. You find out what the requirement is, and then examine how you can best deliver.
First Capital takes a lot of pride in using consumer insight, on the product development side and specifically on the delivery side, to fulfil those expectations. When certain business opportunities arise, we communicate clearly to clients what our products and services offer and how they can access them.
One insight we’ve come to learn over the years is that there’s a misconception in Sri Lanka that people think savings is equal to investment. That misunderstanding has plagued this country for the longest time. We’re trying to break that myth and educate our clients and the public that these are two different things. If your objective is savings, you can go to the conventional products out there. But if your objective is investment, specifically to grow your wealth, savings won’t suffice, because a key principle of growing wealth is to beat inflation and keep your wealth growing.
We started by understanding the pitfalls. Why do consumers think like this? I think there’s a sense of fear or reluctance; you don’t know, so you’re afraid to get into it. There’s a lot of complex financial jargon in our industry, and macroeconomic indicators can be confusing if you haven’t studied economics or worked in the field. The information is out there, but people don’t always interpret it accurately. What we’re trying to do is break that down.
One thing we do differently is educate our customers on what’s out there, what the market is, what the products are, and what best suits them. This is something we’re passionate about, and it’s done at an industry level. We’ve been successful in taking financial literacy, what capital markets are all about, out to the public.
We publish our research in the public domain, free of charge, unlike any other investment institution in the market. We’re now trilingual: English, Sinhala, and Tamil, and I haven’t seen any other institution do that. The English-speaking, educated community is a minority of our customer base; the majority speak the local languages. That’s what we’re trying to reach.
So consumer insight is very important. Without it, we couldn’t have made the journey we’ve embarked on.
First Capital shares research insights with the public. Why disseminate research that other businesses charge for, and what do you gain?
Randinith Madanayake: We believe that knowledge is the foundation of financial inclusion. Our vision goes beyond providing investment products; we want to empower people with the confidence and understanding needed to participate in capital markets.
Historically, investing has often been perceived as complex or accessible only to a limited segment of society. By making our market research and educational content freely available, we are working towards democratising access to financial knowledge.
Our objective is to simplify financial concepts, explain market movements, and help individuals make more informed investment decisions. A more informed investor community creates a stronger and more resilient capital market ecosystem.
From First Capital’s perspective, this approach strengthens trust and credibility. We want to be seen not only as an investment solutions provider, but also as a partner that supports investors.
Ultimately, when people understand the opportunities available through capital markets, we can help shift the mindset from traditional savings alone towards a more diversified approach to wealth creation. This benefits individuals, businesses, and the broader economy.
Investors expect diversified portfolios that actively balance risk and reward. Where is First Capital innovating in portfolio construction to sustainably grow a client’s wealth?
Dilshan: We do this on multiple fronts, but the short answer is that we tailor-make solutions based on the client’s requirements. We don’t take a one-size-fits-all approach. That said, customised portfolios make more sense at a higher ticket size; it’s not applicable for everyone. Certain retail investments are mass market; a unit trust product, for example, can’t be customised. But the funds themselves are diversified, where they invest in different investment classes, making it a great choice for those who are looking for diversification but unable to diversify personally due to limitations of knowledge, not having adequate time, and not having enough money.
When it comes to wealth management, we customise portfolios and provide access to multiple investment classes, including government securities, funds, and equity, through private wealth management services where there’s a lot of customisation.
We start by understanding who the customer is, their investment objectives, and risk appetite. Taking all of that into account and tailoring a solution that fits is what we do at First Capital. That’s the differentiator.
The second piece is research. A lot of people will say a product is good, a market is good, interest rates will go up or down, equity markets will move one way or another, without backing that with fundamental data. What we do differently is build research deeply into our decision-making process. We take nothing for granted and keep retesting our methodology to make sure it’s the best prediction we can make. We’re also not afraid to say when we’re wrong. For us, it’s important to stay transparent with clients. However, we’ve also got it more right than wrong.
My track record speaks for itself. Recalibrating a view and changing course when the situation changes is normal.
One example: in January we published our 2026 outlook. No one planned for the Middle East crisis, and that took us far from what we’d advocated. We were the first to release a realigned outlook for the rest of the year. Constantly navigating unplanned developments, backed by data-driven research, advising customers, and customising portfolios — that’s how we’ve grown their wealth.
Investing is not a habit the majority of Sri Lankans practise. What is First Capital doing to induce it?
Dilshan: Our approach is very clear, and it comes down to three things: educate, create access, and build confidence.
Education starts at the university level, through a programme called InvestEd, Investment Education, run in collaboration with educational institutes around the country and backed by almost all the government universities. With the University of Kelaniya, we run a collaborative course for undergraduates in the management faculty, and that’s created a lot of traction; we’ve covered approximately 1,500 undergraduates through InvestEd. From there, education expands into digital mediums, monthly webinars for the general public, and educational video content on our YouTube channel for anyone who’s missed a session.
“Access is created through our digital platforms and the research we publish, all free of charge, so that knowledge isn’t something people have to pay to access.”
– Dilshan Wirasekara, Managing Director/CEO, at First Capital Holdings PLC
Confidence is built by making the actual experience of investing simple. One big barrier has been account opening and form filling; even digitally, people aren’t always clear on what to do. So beyond standard digital onboarding, we now offer what we call assisted onboarding, which gives clear instructions at every step to make the process convenient. We’ve also made it possible to start small; you can begin investing in our unit trust funds with as little as Rs1,000, which removes a real barrier for people who assume investing requires a large amount of capital upfront.
First Capital conducts the “InvestED” fin-lit series for university students. What do you expect from such an initiative?
Randinith: We believe financial literacy is a key enabler of financial inclusion. InvestED was created to target young Sri Lankans before they enter the workforce and begin making long-term financial decisions.
Today, Sri Lanka has a significant opportunity to expand participation in capital markets. While we have a population of over 22 million people, participation in investment markets remains relatively limited. The Colombo Stock Exchange has approximately 800,000+ CDS accounts, while the unit trust industry has around 160,000 investors. A large majority of Sri Lankans are yet to actively participate in the wealth creation opportunities offered through capital markets.
Universities provide a powerful platform to bridge this gap. Every year, thousands of graduates enter the workforce, representing the next generation. By introducing them to concepts such as investing, capital markets, financial planning, and wealth creation early in their journey, we hope to create a generation that is more financially aware and confident.
The goal of InvestED is not to immediately create investors, but to create informed individuals who understand their financial choices. We want to democratise access to investment knowledge and ensure that opportunities in the financial ecosystem are not limited to a sliver of society.
Through InvestED, we are building a culture of investment that is accessible to anyone with the right knowledge and guidance.
What does First Capital have planned that the rest of the market isn’t doing yet, to live up to this vision? What can the country expect from First Capital, and what are you doing to get people to invest?
Dilshan: The first thing is to break the myth that investing is only for the elite. We have made progress, but there is still more to do. The majority of the public remain hesitant to invest, whether that stems from a lack of knowledge, a reluctance to put themselves forward, or simply not understanding the jargon. In most of the developed world, people do not think twice about investing; if there is a good IPO that is underpriced, nothing holds them back. In Sri Lanka, the instinct is still which institution to approach, what forms need to be filled, whether one knows someone there.. Changing that, democratising investment for every Sri Lankan, is something I am very passionate about.
That shift has to happen at an ecosystem level, not through any single institution. The industry needs to work cohesively towards promoting investment, not to grow individual bottom lines, but because it serves the country’s broader interest. At present, savings pools are directed inefficiently towards growth. If Sri Lanka is to grow at 7 to 8%, rather than 5%, the evidence from countries like India and China shows that this shift comes from opening up capital markets and enabling people to invest, earn returns, and reinvest that capital back into the economy. This is not yet happening in Sri Lanka, and it requires one cohesive industry strategy.
I am encouraged to see both the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka and the Unit Trust Association undertaking initiatives to raise public awareness of investing in unit trusts and to dispel the myths associated with it. In my thirty years in capital markets, this is the first time I have seen this level of coordination, and it is a meaningful step forward. The same needs to extend to the government securities market and the equities market; when a regulator communicates to the public what is worth considering, that carries far more weight than any single institution saying the same thing, particularly given that Ponzi and pyramid schemes remain active.
Convenience is equally important. Take KYC, for instance: it currently has to be redone at every financial institution where an account is opened. In a regulated environment, if verification has already been completed once at a regulated entity, there is no reason it cannot sit in a shared database, so that once a client is cleared, they are cleared everywhere. This alone would remove a great deal of friction for clients.
“At First Capital, our approach to digital transformation has been centred around customer convenience. Innovation is not about reducing friction in a customer journey.”
– Randinith Madanayake, Head of Marketing, at First Capital Holdings PLC
Investors treat wealth creation as something experts handle at a distance, not something they run. What mindset shift does First Capital want to see in how investors relate to their own money?
Dilshan: Without education, you don’t have knowledge; without that, people don’t invest on their own. Everything we do is meant to address that. In the rest of the world, capital markets are introduced at a young age; it’s part of the curriculum.
We’ve been lobbying for the longest time to have capital markets included as part of the school curriculum, because this is where the real change needs to begin. National education reform is essential if we want investing to become second nature to the next generation, the same way it does in many developed economies.
Right now, a student going through school knows nothing about capital markets, and grows up thinking the financial system is defined by a handful of institutions. That needs to change, and it has to start at the curriculum level.
Culturally, we’re also fairly conservative as a nation. We don’t take the risks other nations take. Sri Lanka’s level of entrepreneurship is one of the lowest in South Asia. That comes from valuing stability over risk, even at the cost of a higher reward.
There’s an old analogy that captures this well: when a child climbs a tree, the first instinct is to tell them to get down, because it’s seen as risky and they might fall. But a child’s climbing skill never improves unless they take that chance. It’s the same as taking to water; you need to take the first plunge. Culturally, Sri Lankans could think differently, and as generations progress, I’m hoping the newer ones won’t shy away from letting their kids explore and experiment, even in investing.
When growing up, I was told to save in a piggy bank. That’s a wasteful way to hold onto money. However, the culture is changing. If you look at who’s opening new accounts, more than 75% belong to the 18-to 30-year age bracket. When that generation has children of their own, they’ll take a different approach to educating them, and hopefully this shift won’t take too long.
What innovations have taken place in recent times to improve customer experience?
Dilshan: The first step was making innovation a core value of the organisation. It is now our fifth value at JXG (Janashakthi Group), alongside integrity, collaboration, respect, and drive for performance. We have embedded it into our culture and made clear to our staff that innovation is expected of them, and we have introduced innovation awards at group level to encourage people to think beyond convention.
Much of this has taken shape through technology. We are in the process of transitioning from manual systems to digital ones, which represents a significant part of our current work. We have invested considerably in our digital capability and are replacing legacy systems that have been in place for roughly 25 years. Alongside this, we are modernising the digital experience layer that sits on top of that core: our website, mobile application, and online portal, to better reflect today’s expectations.
We have also automated a great deal of the client journey. One development I am particularly proud of is our use of WhatsApp: I doubt there is another entity in Asia using the platform for investing the way we do. Through a simple WhatsApp message, clients can invest in or redeem unit trust funds; no one else offers this, and it is convenient enough that it is now how I manage my own investments.
Beyond this, mobile is central to everything we do. Clients increasingly expect to manage their investments without needing anything beyond their phone, and we are working to make all our products accessible on that basis.
The next frontier is integration across the wider financial ecosystem. At present, our financial markets operate in silos: banks, finance companies, insurance companies, and the capital markets space, itself divided between fund managers, primary dealers, and stockbrokers. Unlike some other countries, we do not have a financial markets association that represents this ecosystem collectively, and I believe this is something the industry should champion. Such integration would allow seamless movement of funds across the system, for instance, redeeming a unit trust to pay an insurance premium, or selling a treasury bill to settle a credit card bill.
In Sri Lanka, there is still a tendency to view a larger balance sheet as the measure of success. Elsewhere, the emphasis is different: it is about how efficiently capital is deployed and redeployed into the next opportunity for growth. I am hopeful that our regulators will recognise the case for wider integration of our financial systems, including with the banking payment infrastructure. Technologies like Google Pay and tap-to-pay already exist on people’s phones; there is little reason our industry should not be part of that same conversation. Ultimately, this requires looking at the bigger picture and doing what is right for the country as a whole.
“We believe financial literacy is a key enabler of financial inclusion. InvestED was created to target young Sri Lankans before they enter the workforce and begin making long-term financial decisions.”
– Randinith Madanayake, Head of Marketing, at First Capital Holdings PLC
First Capital lets customers request withdrawals directly over WhatsApp. What made this channel the right place to rebuild the withdrawal experience?
Randinith: At First Capital, our approach to digital transformation has been centred around customer convenience. Innovation is not about reducing friction in a customer journey.
WhatsApp was a natural choice because it is already one of the most widely used digital communication platforms in Sri Lanka, with over 16 million users. Rather than asking customers to adapt to a new platform, we wanted to bring key services closer to platforms they already use every day.
The withdrawal process is critical in an investor’s journey, as it directly impacts confidence and trust. By initiating withdrawal requests through WhatsApp, we have made the process more accessible and convenient while ensuring that the necessary security and compliance measures remain.
This is part of a larger digital transformation journey. From our smart assisted onboarding platform, online account opening, WhatsApp Channels for trading insights and rate communications, to our redesigned website and digital education platforms, we are continuously looking at ways to simplify investing.
Ultimately, our goal is to make investing more approachable by reducing complexity at every stage. When financial services become simpler and more accessible, we can encourage greater participation.