| <!-- base --> | | | | welcome for the bank internationally and received the |
| <!-- base --> | | | | provision of numerous banking facilities abroad which |
| | | | | would be the envy of long-established institutions. The |
| Anniversary tribute | | | | late S de S Gunatilleka, former Additional General |
| People's Bank and W H Solomons | | | | Manager of the bank, in an assessment of Solomons |
| Witten by Padmasiri de Silva | | | | mentions "It is given to few people to have their |
| Edited by Wendell W Solomons | | | | memory perpetuated as a result of their day-to-day |
| | | | | work. Fewer still have the good fortune of this being |
| The People's Bank which was inaugurated in year 1961 | | | | done by means of an institution they helped to build. |
| will soon complete 50 years of service to the nation. It | | | | Wilmir Herft Solomons undoubtedly belong to this |
| is the second largest state-owned bank in Sri Lanka. | | | | select band of people and People's Bank is the undying |
| The People's Bank is the brainchild of the late T B | | | | edifice to his memory". |
| Illangaratne. The Bank which was formed to foster the | | | | There were many traits which set W H Solomons |
| co-operative movement and help the poor, has | | | | apart from other bankers of his day. During the time |
| widened its scope and has become a vibrant | | | | he was working at the Bank of Ceylon he visited the |
| commercial bank undertaking a large number of | | | | Soviet Union while his colleagues went to UK and USA |
| national and international banking transactions. | | | | for training. At that time the establishment of the |
| Illangaratne was on the lookout for a dynamic banker | | | | People's Bank was not even thought of. |
| who could launch the bank which he visualised; a bank | | | | The success of the bank particularly in the formative |
| which could fulfill the aspirations of the poor hitherto not | | | | years was due to Solomons' competence and stature |
| given much help by the existing commercial banks. | | | | as a banker. Solomons was personally responsible for |
| Wilmir Hurft Solomons was not the archetypal banker | | | | attracting some of the most valuable business which |
| with a colonial mentality. Although trained by | | | | even today constitutes the base on which the Bank's |
| British-oriented traditional bankers at the Bank of | | | | fortunes are built. |
| Ceylon where he was the Chief Inspector of | | | | The People's Bank from the inception carried out |
| Branches, Solomons had the foresight and the | | | | transactions in Sinhala. It was a gargantuan task to |
| courage to lead an intrepid team of dedicated bankers | | | | translate banking terms to Sinhala. This was |
| drawn from diverse disciplines to launch the People's | | | | undertaken by a dedicated team under the direct |
| Bank on July 1, 1961. | | | | supervision of Chairman Vincent Subasinghe. |
| Bank Chairman the late Vincent Subasinghe from | | | | Solomons though not too fluent in Sinhala gave all |
| Sandalankawa was from the co-operative sector and | | | | encouragement for implementing the work in Sinhala. |
| was a much-respected personality. He was given the | | | | He could read Sinhalese and I remember how he read |
| responsibility of running the People's Bank which was | | | | Sinhala letters slowly asking the meaning of difficult |
| established by the Parliament Act No. 29 of 1961. In | | | | words before signing them. He had implicit trust and |
| introducing the legislation in Parliament, Commerce, | | | | faith in his carefully chosen staff and they in turn |
| Trade Food and Shipping Minister late T B Illangaratne | | | | worked tirelessly working late into the night including on |
| asserted that the People's Bank was designed as an | | | | public holidays, to make People's Bank a cogent entity. |
| entity to transform the rural economy so that rural | | | | Solomons had a rough exterior and would shout at |
| poverty will be ultimately eliminated. | | | | employees if they failed to keep up to his rigid |
| The capital of the bank was made up with 50 percent | | | | standards. However at heart he was a caring and |
| of the subscriptions from co-operative societies with | | | | sympathetic person who would go out of his way to |
| the balance 50 percent from government. Lending to | | | | help any deserving employee or customer. Traditional |
| the poor and to the co-operatives carried a fair | | | | bankers are considered to be heartless but like in |
| amount of risk and the bank had to augment its | | | | many other fields Solomons tread a different path. It is |
| resources by getting into the lucrative commercial | | | | unfortunate that there were many who took |
| banking sector which was the prerogative of the Bank | | | | advantage of his kindness, placing him sometimes in |
| of Ceylon and the foreign owned commercial banks at | | | | embarrassing positions. |
| the time. | | | | People's Bank today is a well established, profit-making |
| The People's Bank advent into the commercial banking | | | | entity servicing the co-operatives and the rural sector |
| arena at the outset was viewed with concern by | | | | with a large number of branches covering most of Sri |
| some as they felt that the bank did not have the | | | | Lanka including the North and the East. The bank |
| expertise to venture into areas of International Banking | | | | which celebrated its 49th anniversary on July 1, 2010 |
| including Forex trading. However, Solomons was equal | | | | will be a lasting monument to the memory of W H |
| to the task. His personal stature in the international | | | | Solomons, the First General Manager of the Bank. |
| banking community resulted in an almost instant | | | | |