-By LeN Investigative Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -16.July.2025, 10.30 PM) In a country battered by economic collapse, rampant inflation, and decades of political corruption, a question now haunts the corridors of Colombo’s power elite: How did Sri Lanka’s richest man – casino magnate, industrialist, and tile kingpin – funnel millions into the SLPP’s political campaign machinery without so much as a whisper of financial scrutiny?
At the heart of this brewing scandal is a corporate titan whose influence spans from five-star hotels and manufacturing plants to casinos, ports, and boardrooms across Colombo’s business elite. He is a man who allegedly purchased a former Australian High Commission residence for personal use, chairs a powerful Board of Investment entity, and commands the type of wealth that can shift party loyalties, hijack policy agendas, and finance entire political movements.
But now, a trail of undisclosed campaign financing, under-the-table payments, and suspected money laundering threatens to shatter his image – and possibly take down the political machinery that he helped bankroll.
The man in question – whose name is whispered in Sri Lankan business and political circles with a mixture of awe and fear – rose from modest roots, a university graduate from Moratuwa, who started in small-time lending before building a multi-billion-rupee empire.
Today, he owns or controls a hotel chain widely believed to include the Kingsbury brand, has a stranglehold on the nation’s ceramic and tile imports, and allegedly uses his casino businesses to channel massive volumes of unregulated cash.
Now, investigators and whistleblowers claim this fortune was quietly tapped to fund the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) campaign war chests in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 election cycles – at both the national and grassroots levels.
“He was the shadow financier,” one senior political insider told The Times, requesting anonymity for fear of retaliation. “You could not print a poster or run a village-level rally without going through his intermediaries. Everyone knew where the cash came from – but no one wanted to declare it.”
Under Sri Lankan electoral law and campaign financing regulations, all political donations must be transparently declared. Yet in the SLPP’s recent electoral filings, there is little to no mention of large-scale individual donors beyond token contributions from business syndicates.
This raises serious questions: where did the millions for campaign rallies, transport, media airtime, and grassroots operatives come from?
“If the money wasn’t declared, and it clearly was spent, then someone violated campaign finance laws,” said Nalaka Gunasekara, an anti-corruption researcher at Verité Research. “And if the funds originated from casinos, or were laundered through shell companies, then you’re looking at a textbook case of political money laundering.”
Sources within Sri Lanka’s Department of Elections say they were never notified of any large individual donation from the corporate figure in question. Nor were any direct links disclosed in SLPP’s financial disclosures.
Regulatory documents obtained by The Times show that several of the tycoon’s casinos – which operate in a legal grey area in Colombo – recorded highly suspicious financial activities between 2022 and 2024. These included massive cash withdrawals from “VIP gaming accounts,” deposits in shell subsidiaries, and sudden transfers to dormant holding companies.
A retired central banker familiar with the files stated bluntly: “This was cash-based finance at its dirtiest. The only explanation is political facilitation or bribery. It didn’t go through proper accounting procedures. And it certainly didn’t get taxed.”
While Sri Lanka’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) has launched preliminary inquiries into these transactions, there has been little follow-through – a reality critics blame on the tycoon’s political protection.
“He owns a political party,” one senior compliance officer at a local bank joked. “Not officially, of course. But when you control the campaign purse, you control the leadership.”
Beyond the casino realm, the corporate figure is accused of leveraging his political donations to obtain monopolistic advantages.
In the tile and ceramics sector, multiple importers and distributors allege they were squeezed out through sudden regulatory changes, customs harassment, and unofficial blacklisting – all of which coincided with SLPP’s return to power.
“He literally said, ‘This is my tile market now,’” a former competitor told The Times. “He pushed the government to impose tariffs and import restrictions, then used that vacuum to flood the market with his own tiles. You couldn’t compete unless you kissed the ring.”
At the same time, the tycoon was expanding his real estate portfolio – purchasing historic properties, including what is believed to be the former Australian High Commission’s diplomatic residence, now converted into a palatial private home.
The implication is clear: political loyalty purchased with cash returned massive personal gains through regulatory capture.
While he has not yet officially declared a run for public office, insiders claim the businessman has used his political investments to position himself for either a presidential nomination or a key national list MP slot under the SLPP.
A leaked memo circulating within SLPP circles proposes his name as a "national development advisor" with cabinet-level privileges – a role that would bypass traditional elections and place him at the heart of economic policy.
“He wants to be the Sri Lankan Berlusconi,” one party strategist said grimly. “Big money, big media, and zero accountability.”
At the centre of this explosive saga is the allegation that the campaign funds were funneled through unregulated channels: casino earnings, offshore holdings, and domestic front companies.
According to financial auditors who spoke off the record, the cash spent on SLPP campaigns – including luxury transport fleets, provincial rallies, LED screens, and youth influencers – vastly exceeded any documented contributions.
“If this money was not declared, and if it was spent on a political campaign, then that’s a dual violation: first of election law, and second of the anti-money laundering statutes,” said a Colombo-based legal analyst.
Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Money Laundering Act explicitly criminalises the use of proceeds from “unlawful or unregulated activities” – including gambling – for political or business influence.
Yet, as of mid-2025, there has been no official charge or investigation by the Attorney General’s Department, the Bribery Commission (CIABOC), or the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID).
The political winds in Sri Lanka are shifting. With the NPP-led government promising anti-corruption reforms, a new special investigative unit has been proposed to examine undisclosed political financing.
The tycoon – who has previously flaunted his immunity by boasting “Kingsbury is mine, Haley’s is in my pocket” – may soon find himself under the microscope.
“If investigators are serious,” said former CIABOC director Lakshman Jayasinghe, “they will need to break open his safes, trace the casino books, and freeze offshore accounts. Because this isn’t just campaign finance – it’s systemic state capture.”
Yet critics fear the system will protect its own.
“This man has funded too many campaigns, paid too many middlemen, and bought too many loyalties,” warned a whistleblower from within the BOI. “He might buy his way out of this too.”
For a country still recovering from the corruption-fuelled economic collapse of 2022, this case may serve as a litmus test.
Can Sri Lanka investigate its most powerful businessmen? Can political money be traced back to its unlawful roots? Or will another scandal be buried beneath layers of patronage, silence, and fear?
As the public awaits answers, one thing is clear: money talks in Sri Lanka – but this time, it may have spoken too loudly to ignore.
-By LeN Investigative Correspondent
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by (2025-07-16 17:00:59)
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