A new record was set for cash dispensed in a single day when users of the Commercial Bank’s ATM network withdrew a mammoth Rs 2.05 billion on Friday, 11th April 2014, beating the Bank’s own record set a year previously, by Rs 263 million.

The new one-day record was the peak of a record breaking 12-day period for Sri Lanka’s largest private bank, whose 585-terminal ATM network dispensed Rs 15.438 billion between the 1st and 12th of April 2014, as the country prepared to celebrate the Sinhala and Hindu New Year.

Emphasising this point, the total value of cash dispensed on the 10th and 11th of April 2014 was Rs 4.023 billion, the highest ever value dispensed by the Bank over two days.

The previous record for the highest value dispensed in a single day was Rs 1.79 billion, set on 10th April 2013. The Bank reports that the average ticket size of a withdrawal on 10th April 2014 was Rs 10,400, as against Rs 6,500 on the same day last year, an increase of 60%.

The number of transactions processed by the network on 11th April 2014 as it set the new 24-hour record was 245,000, the highest number in a day for this season. This was lower than the Bank’s single-day record of 325,000, and was attributable to the higher daily withdrawal limits offered to Cardholders, the Bank said.

During the weekend of 12th – 15th April, Commercial Bank’s ATMs dispensed Rs 2.922 billion, which is also the highest value the Bank has ever dispensed during a weekend. The previous highest value for a weekend was recorded during the weekend of 29th – 31st March '14, and the value dispensed was Rs 2.278 billion.

“What these figures reiterate is the invaluable role the Commercial Bank plays in the day to day lives of millions of people all over Sri Lanka,” said Jegan Durairatnam, the Bank’s Chief Operating Officer. “They also underline the value of the technology as well as the capacity, robustness and reliability of the our ATM network, factors that assume greater importance during peak shopping seasons such as the Sinhala and Hindu New Year and Christmas.”

The Commercial Bank ATM network is the largest automated cash dispensing facility owned by a single bank in Sri Lanka. Holders of Commercial Bank’s standard ATM cum Shopping Debit Cards can withdraw up to Rs 40,000 from the Bank’s ATMs per withdrawal. The Bank also offers customers the option of setting their own ATM withdrawal limits up to a maximum of Rs 100,000 a day, and a point-of-sale limit of up to Rs 500,000.

The largest private bank in Sri Lanka and the only Sri Lankan Bank to be listed three years consecutively in the world’s Top 1,000 Banks, Commercial Bank operates a network of 235 branches in Sri Lanka. Ranked the most valuable private sector brand in Sri Lanka in 2014, the Bank has won multiple awards as the country’s best bank over several years.