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Market Report | Apr 16, 2026
CSE Banking Sector 2026: NPLs, ISB Restructuring & Balance Sheets
The Colombo Stock Exchange banking sector shows signs of stabilization in 2026 following the December 2024 ISB restructuring. COMB, HNB, and Sampath Bank managed sovereign exposures differently, with varying impacts on balance sheets and asset quality. NPL ratios improved across the board but remain a watchpoint amid selective lending.
Auto | Apr 16, 2026
2022 Structural Break: Auto's CSE Survivors vs Dead Money
The 2022 crisis delivered a permanent structural break in Sri Lanka’s economy. Rupee depreciation and IMF-driven reforms favoured companies earning hard currency through exports while punishing those burning dollars on imports. The auto sector became the clearest case study: banned vehicle imports crushed distributors, yet survivors like United Motors Lanka staged dramatic comebacks once restrictions lifted. This narrative traces the divide, the winners, the dead money, and the portfolio lessons that remain relevant four years later.
Market Pulse | Apr 16, 2026
CSE close: ASPI +1.47%, breadth positive on 2026-04-16
ASPI finished +1.47% while S&P SL20 closed +0.90%. Breadth ended 186/52/49 (adv/dec/unch), keeping the tape positive rather than broad-based. Turnover totalled LKR 4,962,736,132 with 41.1K trades. The read-through is that index drift did not fully align with participation, pointing to selective conviction. When liquidi
Market Report | Apr 16, 2026
How to Trade the CSE Heatmap: Spotting Institutional Accumulation
The TaprobaneFi CSE heatmap translates raw order flow into visual signals of accumulation and distribution. By pairing it with Level 2 depth and spotting artificial sell-walls, retail investors gain an edge in anticipating institutional block trades without direct access to proprietary feeds.
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Market Pulse | Apr 15, 2026
CSE close: ASPI +0.60%, breadth positive on 2026-04-15
ASPI finished +0.60% while S&P SL20 closed +0.36%. Breadth ended 149/90/51 (adv/dec/unch), keeping the tape positive rather than broad-based. Turnover totalled LKR 3,051,798,503 with 30.4K trades. The read-through is that index drift did not fully align with participation, pointing to selective conviction. When liquidi
Analysis | Apr 14, 2026
Sri Lanka 2021-2023 Financial Crisis: Causes, Collapse and Recovery
Sri Lanka’s 2021-2023 financial crisis began with pre-existing debt vulnerabilities worsened by 2019 tax cuts, the 2021 organic farming ban and COVID-19 tourism collapse. Foreign reserves fell to USD 1.9 billion by early 2022, inflation hit 69.8 percent and the government defaulted on external debt in April 2022. Political upheaval followed, but a March 2023 IMF Extended Fund Facility of USD 3 billion, paired with debt restructuring, restored reserves and slowed inflation. The recovery remains fragile and conditional on sustained fiscal discipline.
Analysis | Apr 14, 2026
Prompt Injection Ransomware: Poisoning AI Models Costs Millions
Prompt injection attacks overtook traditional ransomware as the top LLM threat in OWASP’s 2025 rankings. Indirect injections and model poisoning deliver persistent control without encryption keys. Enterprises face multimillion-dollar bills to detect, isolate, and retrain tainted models. A handful of cybersecurity startups now sell runtime firewalls and integrity tools that command premium pricing as boards demand proof of AI resilience.
Analysis | Apr 14, 2026
AI Hallucination Liability: Who Pays When Chatbots Cost Millions?
A wave of AI hallucinations in professional work has triggered multimillion-dollar claims and a sharp insurer response. Verisk ISO and Berkley introduced broad exclusions in 2025-2026 that remove coverage for generative AI outputs under CGL, E&O, and D&O lines. Professional services firms and AI startups now face coverage gaps, prompting a scramble for specialized policies. The result is a shifting liability landscape where clients, developers, and service providers are left to negotiate who ultimately pays.
Market Pulse | Apr 10, 2026
CSE close: ASPI +1.30%, breadth positive on 2026-04-10
ASPI finished +1.30% while S&P SL20 closed +1.26%. Breadth ended 198/53/34 (adv/dec/unch), keeping the tape positive rather than broad-based. Turnover totalled LKR 5,016,119,098 with 36.5K trades. The read-through is that index drift did not fully align with participation, pointing to selective conviction. When liquidi
Market Pulse | Apr 09, 2026
CSE close: ASPI -0.33%, breadth negative on 2026-04-09
ASPI finished -0.33% while S&P SL20 closed -0.24%. Breadth ended 63/153/64 (adv/dec/unch), keeping the tape negative rather than broad-based. Turnover totalled LKR 2,965,753,683 with 23.7K trades. The read-through is that index drift did not fully align with participation, pointing to selective conviction. When liquidi
Market Pulse | Apr 08, 2026
CSE close: ASPI +4.21%, breadth positive on 2026-04-08
ASPI finished +4.21% while S&P SL20 closed +4.42%. Breadth ended 248/18/24 (adv/dec/unch), keeping the tape positive rather than broad-based. Turnover totalled LKR 6,613,858,541 with 41K trades. The read-through is that index drift did not fully align with participation, pointing to selective conviction. When liquidity
Market Pulse | Apr 07, 2026
CSE close: ASPI -0.45%, breadth negative on 2026-04-07
ASPI finished -0.45% while S&P SL20 closed -0.49%. Breadth ended 98/130/57 (adv/dec/unch), keeping the tape negative rather than broad-based. Turnover totalled LKR 1,878,957,829 with 19.2K trades. The read-through is that index drift did not fully align with participation, pointing to selective conviction. When liquidi