President AKD repeats Ranil’s error in citing reserve increase since 2022

Fact Check

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake stated that, unlike in 2022, Sri Lanka now has close to USD 7 billion with the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL).

To verify this claim, FactCheck.lk consulted CBSL weekly economic indicators.

FactCheck.lk reads this as a composite claim: (1) that the CBSL did not have dollars in 2022, and (2) that it now has close to USD 7 billion. Taken together, this asserts that Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves increased by close to USD 7 billion.

The president’s end-point figure is based on CBSL’s gross official reserves for March 2026, which stood at USD 7,026 million. However, this figure includes a currency swap arrangement with the People’s Bank of China valued at approximately USD 1,436 million (refer additional note 2). This swap is classified as “unusable” as it is “subject to conditionalities on usability”.

Excluding the PBoC swap, Sri Lanka’s reserves stood at USD 5,590 million in March 2026. Therefore, even if the president’s starting point is accepted, the increase in reserves cannot be the USD 7,026 million implied by his statement.

The president’s statement therefore overstates the increase in Sri Lanka’s reserves by relying on a reserve figure that includes an unusable swap facility.

Therefore, we classify the president’s statement as FALSE.

Additional note 1: This is the same error made by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe in his June 2024 special address to the nation, where he claimed, reserves had risen to USD 5.5 billion “from dried up” reserves in April 2022. See our previous fact check: https://factcheck.lk/fact-check-on-president-ranil-wickremesinghes-special-address-to-the-nation-on-june-26-2024/

Additional note 2: IMF reporting across the current programme has consistently indicated that the PBoC swap has not been usable as a reserve asset up to the present. However, the most recent IMF review, released on 27 May 2026, projects the swap as becoming usable by the end of 2026. This reflects an expectation that the conditions attached to its usability will be met by that time. Therefore, while the swap may legitimately qualify as part of Sri Lanka’s usable reserves in the future, that is not the current position.

*FactCheck.lk’s verdict is based on the most recent information that is publicly accessible. As with every fact check, FactCheck.lk will revisit the assessment if new information becomes available.