LTTE operated 11 bank branches in North before its defeat

The vanquished Tamil Tigers had a well placed chain of financial institutions called 'Eelam Banks' which provided loan and credit facilities to the people of north and east Sri Lanka, officials have said.

The LTTE operated 11 bank branches in Northern Sri Lanka with claims of prompt service and various loan facilities prior to its annihilation in May last year.

Police investigations say that the LTTE had operated these branches of the Eelam Bank mainly in the East and in the Wanni in the North. The entire Eastern Sri Lanka was captured by security forces from the LTTE in July 2007.

"The Bank of Tamil Eelam shows the way to your prosperity and the Economic Development of the Tamil Homeland," a bank's advertisement recovered recently said.

Three of the branches were at Kokkaticholai in Batticaloa, two
at Sampur in Trincomalee and five other branches in Wanni.
     
However, these banks ceased to function following the liberation of the East and the gradual fall of Wanni areas held by LTTE, with the police unaware of the fate of several millions of rupees deposited by the people.

According to the Sri Lanka's Central bank governor Ajith Nivard Cabral, the north has been an untapped market for years due to the war.

"We are seeing a lot of interest from financial companies (after the war) to expand into that area," he told a gathering. The rebels ran their own banking system with 11 branches before their defeat, an official statement said.