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Lanka Sathosa, the State-owned retail chain that a considerable amount of Sri Lankans rely on for affordable groceries, has been at the centre of a public and political debate over its years of heavy losses and unpaid supplier debts. Against that backdrop, a series of social media posts claimed that Sathosa lost Rs. 22 billion in 2025 alone, more than 20 times its loss in 2024. Fact Crescendo checked the claim against audited accounts; Parliament records and the Minister’s own figures. Here are the posts that carried it.
Social Media Posts:
The post stated that Sathosa’s loss in 2024 was Rs. 1.09 billion and its loss in 2025 was Rs. 22 billion.
Another Facebook account posted a message stating “Sathosa’s loss is Rs. 22 billion”.
Claim examined: Sathosa lost Rs. 22 billion in 2025 alone, which is 20 times its 2024 loss (Rs. 1.09 billion).
Fact Check:
We checked whether official, reliable sources and mainstream media had reported these figures, and if so, how.
Lanka Sathosa has not yet issued an official annual report or financial statement for 2025. The most up-to-date document available is the National Audit Office letter accompanying the audited financial statements of Lanka Sathosa Ltd for the year ended December 31, 2024. The Finance Ministry’s key State-owned enterprises page lists it as “Audited Financial Statements 2024”, with no link for 2025. See the document here and the list here.
According to those audited statements, Sathosa’s net loss for 2024 was Rs. 776,083,216 (Rs. 776.08 million). The accumulated loss as of December 31, 2024, was Rs. 21,412,773,813 (Rs. 21.41 billion), compared with Rs. 20,570,970,526 as of December 31, 2023. It rose by about Rs. 842 million in 2024, made up of the net loss of Rs. 776 million and an actuarial loss of Rs. 66 million on retirement benefits (our calculation).
The Rs. 1.09 billion figure for 2024 came from an unaudited draft
The post’s figure is based on Sathosa’s draft 2024 financial statement, published in the Finance Ministry’s financial reports archive. This is a draft, not a final audited report. See the draft here.
According to that draft, which was presented before audit, Sathosa’s loss for the year ended December 31, 2024, was Rs. 1,096,634,160 (about Rs. 1.096 billion). Its accumulated loss as of December 31, 2024, was shown as Rs. 21,667,604,686 (Rs. 21.66 billion).
Because that document is labelled only a draft, the figures that can be accepted as accurate are those in the audited financial statements issued with the National Audit Office letter. On that basis, Sathosa’s audited loss for 2024 was Rs. 776 million.
Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe told Parliament the 2025 loss was Rs. 721 million
On October 7, 2026, Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Wasantha Samarasinghe made a statement in Parliament on Lanka Sathosa’s losses, including for 2025. Mainstream media reported it as follows.
According to data the Minister disclosed in Parliament, Lanka Sathosa recorded an annual loss of Rs. 776 million in 2024 and Rs. 721 million in 2025.
The 2024 figure matches the audited statements. Audited statements for 2025 have not yet been published, so the Rs. 721 million figure should be treated only as the Minister’s statement. Even so, none of these figures supports the post’s claim that Sathosa’s 2025 loss was Rs. 22 billion.
The reports describe Rs. 22 billion as the accumulated loss built up from continuous losses over many years, as of the end of 2025. See the media reports by Hiru News and The Morning.
The claim that Sathosa lost Rs. 22 billion in 2025 alone is therefore misleading. The Rs. 22 billion is the sum of losses over many years up to 2025.
Accumulated loss is the total of losses built up over many years
Accumulated loss is not one year’s loss. It is the total of losses built up over many years. The audited 2024 financial statements show that Sathosa’s accumulated loss had already exceeded Rs. 21 billion by the end of 2024.
Put simply, accumulated loss is the net loss that remains, from the day a business started until now, after its net profits and net losses are offset against each other. Items such as actuarial gains or losses on retirement benefits also affect this balance, besides the net loss.
So according to the audited 2024 data, Sathosa’s accumulated loss had exceeded Rs. 21 billion by the end of 2024. The Rs. 22 billion reached by 2025 is that accumulated figure, not the loss Sathosa incurred in 2025 alone.
About 80% of the accumulated loss had built up by the end of 2019
According to the 2019 annual report presented to Parliament, the accumulated loss was Rs. 14.7 billion at the end of 2018 and Rs. 17.9 billion at the end of 2019 (Rs. 14,742,629,777 and Rs. 17,884,556,952). The 2019 net loss was Rs. 3.16 billion. The Auditor General gave an adverse opinion on that report and noted that the institution’s survival was doubtful without Treasury funds.
Adding the 2025 annual loss of Rs. 721 million to the audited accumulated loss of Rs. 21.41 billion at the end of 2024 gives about Rs. 22.13 billion (our calculation). This is close to the Rs. 22 billion the Minister cited.
About 80% of the accumulated loss (17.88 ÷ 22.13; our calculation) was therefore built up before the end of 2019. Conversely, adding the annual losses of Rs. 4.46 billion from 2020 to 2025 to the Rs. 17.88 billion at the end of 2019 gives Rs. 22.34 billion.
The draft financial statements for 2023 showed an accumulated loss of Rs. 20.571 billion at the end of 2023 (see here), and the comparative column of the 2024 audited statements carries the same value. The closing balance in the 2024 draft was Rs. 21.668 billion, but the audited balance was Rs. 21.413 billion.
Annual loss and accumulated loss, year by year
The values in the table below follow the sources from which they were taken. Blank cells mean we have no verified value.
| Year | Net loss (Rs.) | Accumulated loss at year end (Rs.) | Source |
| 2018 | 2,888,463,273 | 14,742,629,777 | 2019 annual report |
| 2019 | 3,158,544,037 | 17,884,556,952 | 2019 annual report |
| 2020 | 1,387,666,643 | Auditor General’s 2021 report | |
| 2021 | 840,281,278 | Auditor General’s 2021 report | |
| 2022 | 35,424,509 | 19,801,830,055 | 2023 financial statements (comparative column) |
| 2023 | 695,233,136 | 20,570,970,526 | 2023 financial statements and 2024 audited statements |
| 2024 | 776,083,216 | 21,412,773,813 | 2024 audited statements |
| 2025 | About 721 million (Minister) | About 22 billion (Minister); our calculation 22.13 billion | Not audited |
Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe’s statement in Parliament on Sathosa’s updated 2025 financial data
Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe made this statement on Sathosa’s financial data in Parliament on October 7, 2026, in reply to a question from opposition MP Ravi Karunanayake.
The Minister said the loss was Rs. 1,387 million in 2020, Rs. 840 million in 2021, Rs. 35 million in 2022, Rs. 695 million in 2023, Rs. 776 million in 2024 and Rs. 721 million in 2025. The 2020 to 2024 figures match the audited statements. The 2025 figure is not audited.
He stated that Sathosa’s total accumulated loss stood at Rs. 22 billion by 2025.
Parliament live broadcast, October 7, 2026 (from about the 50-minute mark)
The Minister’s statement also shows that the 2025 loss (Rs. 721 million) was lower than the 2024 loss (Rs. 776 million).
The Minister’s Media Secretary confirmed that Rs. 22 billion is a many-year total
We also asked the Media Secretary to Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe, at the Ministry of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development. He said that, by audited 2024 data, Sathosa’s total loss was Rs. 776 million. He confirmed that the Rs. 22 billion was not Sathosa’s loss in 2025 alone but the sum of its losses over many years. He added that Sathosa’s 2025 loss was Rs. 721 million, somewhat lower than its 2024 loss.
Limits of evidence: Audited financial statements for 2025 have not yet been published. The Rs. 721 million figure is the Minister’s statement, and we hope to update this report once audited Sathosa accounts are presented.
Sathosa’s financial problems are real, and they did not begin in 2025
The audited 2024 statements show revenue of Rs. 52.82 billion (2023: Rs. 58.18 billion), gross profit of Rs. 6.56 billion, finance costs of Rs. 707 million, a bank overdraft of Rs. 5.61 billion and negative equity of Rs. 9.63 billion. The Auditor General gave an adverse opinion on the 2019 annual report and a disclaimer of opinion on 2021, and the 2021 report says the institution’s survival was uncertain without Treasury funds.
The Daily FT reported that after Sathosa took a Rs. 14 billion loans for rice imports in August 2014, the Treasury approved paying Rs. 8.7 billion in 2016 (2016 report).
According to the Minister, amounts payable to suppliers in December 2025 were Rs. 14 billion and stock value was Rs. 5.8 billion, with 250 of 452 outlets running at a loss. After restructuring, 212 of 423 outlets were at a loss (Hiru News).
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Conclusion:
Our fact check found that the social media posts misleadingly presented Sathosa’s 2025 loss as Rs. 22 billion and its 2024 loss as Rs. 1.09 billion.
Rs. 22 billion is the accumulated loss built up by the end of 2025. According to Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe, the 2025 annual loss was Rs. 721 million. The Rs. 1.09 billion for 2024 comes from an unaudited draft, while the audited statements issued with the National Audit Office letter show a 2024 net loss of Rs. 776 million. The claim that the 2025 loss rose 20 times above 2024 is therefore untrue. The 2025 loss (Rs. 721 million) was slightly lower than the 2024 loss (Rs. 776 million).
Even so, the accumulated loss, negative equity and supplier debts show that the institution’s financial position is weak. We will update this report when audited statements for 2025 are released.
Title: Sathosa Rs. 22 Billion Loss Is Accumulated Over Many Years, Not 2025 Alone
Written By: B.P Hansani
Result: Misleading
