The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has issued a prohibition order on a resident of Polonnaruwa named Hettiarachchilage Sahan Akalanka for accepting cash deposits from the people without any CBSL approval.

Sahan Akalanka, the Director of Athens International Education Center (Pvt.) Ltd., residing at No. 45/5 A, Second Cross Street, New Town, Polonnaruwa, has accepted cash deposits from the public without the approval of the Central Bank, an investigation conducted under Section 42 of the Finance Business Act, No. 42 of 2011 has revealed.

Accordingly, the Monetary Board of the CBSL has ordered the concerned company and the individual not to continue accepting deposits and carrying out monetary transactions through the issuance of memorandums of understanding or in any other way.

The CBSL has already prohibited this company and individual from receiving deposits or money, granting loans, making new investments, selling or transferring assets, and conducting all transactions related to any account, property or investment.

Information revealed that Sahan Akalanka has accepted more than Rs.3,000 million as deposits from over 1,000 people all over the country.

Many aggrieved people have held protests outside his office in Polonnaruwa and in several other cities due to his unauthorized money acceptance process which has been carried out in the form of a pyramid scheme.

The suspect has accepted deposits from people claiming to give interest of up to 90 per cent, and the depositors have complained to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) regarding non-repayment of the money or interest.

He had also paid several TV channels to get programmes broadcast in order to promote his unauthorized financial institution.