EPF suffered a Rs. 8.4bn loss due to stock market investment

Colombo (News1st): A 2016 report of the Employee's Provident Fund (EPF) reveals that a loss of Rs. 8449 Million has been incurred after EPF money was invested in the stock market in 2015 and 2016. In the annual report of the EPF for the year 2016, the losses incurred by the Fund between 2015 and 2016 is mentioned under the Auditor Generals observations. In 2015, the fund has incurred a loss of Rs. 4310 Million after investing in stocks. In the year 2016, the loss stood at Rs. 4139 Million. The Auditor General says that the fund which stood at 83.57 Billion in 2015 and 79.87 Billion in 2016 has not received a return for the investments it has carried out. The recommendations of the Auditor General further notes that the losses incurred by the investments in stocks resulted in the reserves of the fund to reduce. The report says that the reduction in the stock value of 6 companies that the fund had been investing over a long period of time incurred a loss of 5232 million rupees to the fund in the year 2016. Former senior banker Rusiripala Tennakoon commenting on the matter stated that the investments in bonds and the stock market were withdrawn in large quantities following the 2015 Bond scam.  He accused the Government of " disrespectfully" using the EPF to prop up the failing economy.