Sri Lanka’s External Debt Climbs to $37.2bn as Repayments Intensify
- CNL Reporter
- December 11, 2025
- News, Political
- Sri Lanka
- 0 Comments
Sri Lanka’s external debt stock rose to $37.24 billion by end-September 2025, an increase of $100 million from the previous quarter, according to the latest Quarterly Debt Bulletin issued by the Public Debt Management Office.
Despite being shut out of global capital markets, the country continues to access financing from multilateral lenders including the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, which remain its largest development partners.
During the first half of 2025, Sri Lanka settled $1.36 billion in external debt—about 55% of the $2.45 billion due for the year leaving $1.09 billion to be paid in the second half, official data show.
Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe has warned that annual external debt servicing will average $2.75 billion until 2027 before climbing to $3.2–3.5 billion, with some years approaching $4 billion.
Multilateral lenders account for 37% of Sri Lanka’s external debt, followed by 34% commercial and 29% bilateral borrowings. International Sovereign Bonds continue to dominate commercial liabilities.

