Brown and Company PLC, sometimes called Browns Group, is a
conglomerate
Conglomerate or conglomeration may refer to:
* Conglomerate (company)
* Conglomerate (geology)
* Conglomerate (mathematics)
In popular culture:
* The Conglomerate (American group), a production crew and musical group founded by Busta Rhymes
** Co ...
holding company
A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...
in
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
. The company was founded by James Brown, a 25-year-old engineer and mechanic from London who arrived in Ceylon in 1872. In 1892, the company was incorporated and in 1991 the company became a listed company on the
Colombo Stock Exchange
The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) ( si, කොළඹ ව්යාපාර වස්තු හුවමාරුව, translit=Kolamba Vyapara Vasthu Huvamaruva; ta, கொழும்பு பங்கு பரிவர்த்தனை) i ...
. The company was included in
S&P Sri Lanka 20 Index in June 2021. Brown and Company is one of the ''
LMD 100'' companies, an annual list of Sri Lankan listed companies by revenue, having ranked 42nd in the 2020/21 edition.
History
The company was founded by James Brown, a 25-year-old engineer and mechanic from
Hampstead
Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...
,
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
who arrived in
Ceylon
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
in 1872. Brown and Company was established in 1875 and the company engaged in importing and repairing agricultural machinery. In 1892, Brown and Company was
incorporated as a limited liability company. The company expanded to
Nawalapitiya
Nawalapitiya ( si, නාවලපිටිය, ta, நாவலப்பிட்டி, translit=Nāvalappiṭṭi) is a town in Kandy District, Sri Lanka. It is governed by an Urban Council. It is away from Kandy and from Colombo, at a he ...
and Colombo in 1897. in 1947, the company was renamed Brown and Company and brought the total share of
Hatton National Bank
Hatton National Bank PLC (commonly abbreviated as HNB) is a private bank in Sri Lanka with 255 branches and 794 ATMs. The bank traces its origin to 1888 when Hatton Bank commenced its operations in Hatton, Sri Lanka.
See also
* List of banks in ...
and Hatton Transport and Agency Company. In 1959, the company became a "Ceylonese Company" with a Ceylonese trader's licence. Manufacturing of automotive batteries was commenced in 1961 by the company.
In 2012, LOLC acquired a controlling stake of Brown and Company for LKR1.32 billion. In 2015, Brown & Company set up a
green tea
Green tea is a type of tea that is made from '' Camellia sinensis'' leaves and buds that have not undergone the same withering and oxidation process which is used to make oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China, and since the ...
factory at
Norwood Estate owned by Bogawantalawa Plantations PLC.
Operations
Browns Investments PLC, an
investment company
An investment company is a financial institution principally engaged in holding, managing and investing securities. These companies in the United States are regulated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and must be registered under the ...
, is a subsidiary of Brown and Company. With an LKR10 billion investment Brown and Company increased its stake in the subsidiary to 46% from 33% in 2020. In 2022 March, the company announced a
debenture
In corporate finance, a debenture is a medium- to long-term debt instrument used by large companies to borrow money, at a fixed rate of interest. The legal term "debenture" originally referred to a document that either creates a debt or acknowl ...
issue worth LKR2 billion. LOLC Holdings provided the corporate guarantee for the issue and
National Development Bank A national development bank is a development bank created by a country's government that provides financing for the purposes of economic development of the country.
List of development banks Americas
* Business Development Bank of Canada
* Brazili ...
was the manager of the issue.
ICRA Lanka adjudged the issue as an A Credit Enhancement
rating
A rating is an evaluation or assessment of something, in terms of quality, quantity, or some combination of both.
Rating or ratings may also refer to:
Business and economics
* Credit rating, estimating the credit worthiness of an individual, c ...
with a stable outlook. The company was awarded the silver award in the trading companies category at the 54th Annual Report Awards in 2018. The awards ceremony is organised by the
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (''CA Sri Lanka'') is a professional accountancy body in Sri Lanka. The Institute was established by Act of Parliament, No. 23 of 1959 as the sole organisation in Sri Lanka with the right to a ...
and the ceremony was held at
Shangri-La Colombo
Shangri-La Colombo is a Star_(classification)#Hotel_ratings, 5-star hotel in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Owned by Shangri-La Hotels, the property is part of the larger One Galle Face development project at the site of the Old Army Headquarters, Colombo ...
. Due to the
bullish prospects in the
apparel industry
Clothing industry or garment industry summarizes the types of trade and Industry (economics), industry along the production and value chain of clothing and Ready-made garment, garments, starting with the textile industry (producers of cotton, wool ...
, the company is planning to invest LKR15.3 billion in a
state of the art
The state of the art (sometimes cutting edge or leading edge) refers to the highest level of general development, as of a device, technique, or scientific field achieved at a particular time. However, in some contexts it can also refer to a level ...
textile plant in
Kurunegala District
Kurunegala is a district in North Western Province, Sri Lanka. Consists of and consists 30 Divisional Secretariats, 1610 Grama Niladari Divisions and 4476 total Villages. It consists of 14 Electorate Divisions, 02 Municipal Council, 19 Urban C ...
.
James Finlay
James Finlay was a Scotland international rugby union player.Bath, p136
Rugby Union career
Amateur career
Finlay played for .
Provincial career
Finlay was capped for Edinburgh District, playing in the very first inter-city match in 187 ...
, a company that conducted business in Sri Lanka since 1895, divested its stake at Hapugastenne and Udapussellawa Plantations, two tea plantation companies, to Browns for LKR1.9 billion in 2022.
Controversies
A national audit has revealed irregular dealings at the Hingurana
sugar factory
A sugar refinery is a refinery which processes raw sugar from cane or beets into white refined sugar.
Many cane sugar mills produce raw sugar, which is sugar that still contains molasses, giving it more colour (and impurities) than the white ...
which is run as a public-private partnership between the government of Sri Lanka, Brown and Company, and LOLC Holdings. It has revealed that billions worth of loans were taken from LOLC-associated companies at higher interest rates. A
forensic audit
A financial audit is conducted to provide an opinion whether "financial statements" (the information is verified to the extent of reasonable assurance granted) are stated in accordance with specified criteria. Normally, the criteria are internat ...
carried out by
KPMG
KPMG International Limited (or simply KPMG) is a multinational professional services network, and one of the Big Four accounting organizations.
Headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, although incorporated in London, England, KPMG is a net ...
revealed that the
Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) had bought stocks in Brown and Company worth LKR737 million without approval from its investment committee. In some cases, the deal ticket of the transaction was unsigned, therefore the dealer could not be identified. As a result, EPF has made a loss of LKR1.1 billion.
Quoted subsidiaries
Source: Annual Report, 2022/23 (pp. 119–120)
See also
*
*
References
External links
Official website
{{All Share Price Index
1875 establishments in Ceylon
Conglomerate companies established in 1875
Companies listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange
Holding companies of Sri Lanka
Conglomerate companies of Sri Lanka