📈 People’s Bank Crowns ‘BizTeen’ 2025 Winners & Launches Youth Banking

People's Bank, in partnership with the Industrial Development Board (IDB), concluded the ‘BizTeen’ Entrepreneurship Challenge 2025, aimed at fostering entrepreneurial thinking and SME development among school students nationwide. • Competition Highlights: • Organized under the National School Industry Entrepreneurship Circles Programme involving the Ministries of Industry and Education. • Evaluated via business proposals and national-level presentations. • 13 national winners selected for innovation and business potential. • Top Award Recipients: • 1st Place: W.K. Vinuka Yasith (Urubokka National School) – LKR 250,000. • 2nd Place: Dasini Sanupama Karunathilaka (Anuradhapura Central College) – LKR 150,000. • 3rd Place: K.D. Nethmi Prarthana Dissanayaka (Thalawa Maha Vidyalaya) – LKR 100,000. • Merit: 10 students received LKR 25,000 each to support their concepts. • New Financial Product: • Launch of 'People’s YES TEEN', a dedicated banking solution for ages 13–18. • Features a branded debit card with a LKR 20,000 daily transaction limit. • Focuses on financial literacy and discipline by balancing parental oversight with digital banking independence. • Strategic Impact: This initiative strengthens the human capital pipeline for Sri Lanka’s future startup ecosystem and encourages financial inclusion from an early age.