IMF report raises concern as Dayasiri Jayasekara questions a US$ 808 million discrepancy linked to Sri Lanka’s balance of payments.
The IMF report has raised serious concern after former Minister and Parliamentarian Lawyer Dayasiri Jayasekara claimed that over US$ 800 million had left Sri Lanka through the Central Bank.
Speaking at a special media briefing in Colombo on June 05, Jayasekara said the matter represented a major problem if such a large sum had in fact left the country.
He stated that under the current government, money had leaked from several state institutions over the past period, and that nearly US$ 1 billion leaving the country was a serious issue.
According to Jayasekara, the International Monetary Fund has indicated that this value should be zero.
Referring specifically to the incident involving US$ 2.5 million from the Ministry of Finance, Jayasekara said the Secretary to the Ministry of Finance had not mentioned that matter in his annual report either.
He also stated that he would request the Parliamentary Committee on Public Finance to conduct a special investigation into the US$ 808 million financial discrepancy.
Jayasekara said the 143-page report submitted by the IMF on the current government’s activities contains a separate section on the “net errors and omissions” item.
He explained that this item is used to balance discrepancies when all transactions in a country’s balance of payments do not match.
According to him, the report clearly shows a deficit of US$ 808 million.
He further stated that the previous year’s figure had been recorded as negative 254, while for 2025 it had been presented as negative 808, and for the future it had been stated as zero.
Jayasekara said his position is that such a discrepancy should not exist.
He questioned whether US$ 808 million had left the Central Bank in some form during 2025, whether some form of destruction had taken place, or whether another unexplained financial issue had occurred.
He insisted that the Central Bank must reveal the truth to the country.
Jayasekara further said experts had expressed the opinion that, based on the facts contained in the report, it was clear that US$ 808 million had left the country.
He added that such incidents have been reported under the current government, making the issue one that requires urgent explanation and investigation.
