The Sri Lankan government has greenlit several major proposals this week, including a Rs195.8 million scrap metal disposal program, cryptocurrency regulatory oversight, infrastructure projects, and constitutional amendments affecting judicial retirement age.

Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers has approved the sale of accumulated scrap metal from the state-run Transport Board to six steel companies for a combined value of Rs195.89 million. Ashok Steel Industries secured the largest contract at Rs89.42 million, followed by S.R. Steel and IWW Steel Industries at Rs47.58 million and Rs39.43 million respectively. Three additional firms—Udaya Industries, Kalana Tech Engineering, and Ceylon Steel Casting—completed the procurement awards based on Cabinet-approved recommendations from the High-Level Procurement Committee.

In financial sector developments, the Cabinet designated the Securities and Exchange Commission as the regulator for virtual assets and cryptocurrency service providers, bringing digital trading platforms under formal oversight for the first time. The move addresses concerns that local traders have relied on unregulated offshore and peer-to-peer platforms. Under the new framework, virtual asset service providers must comply with anti-money laundering requirements, customer due diligence protocols, and mandatory transaction reporting in coordination with the Central Bank's Financial Intelligence Unit and the Inland Revenue Department.

On infrastructure, the government approved approximately Rs15 billion in contracts for the first phase of the Ruwanpura Expressway, connecting Kahathuduwa to Ingiriya with planned completion within 2026. A separate approval established a state-owned company to manage the country's multimodal transport hubs, operating existing facilities at Makumbura and Kadawatha while overseeing construction of new hubs in Anuradhapura and Kandy.

The Cabinet also approved constitutional amendments to raise the statutory retirement age for judges, prompting opposition from the Bar Association of Sri Lanka and the Judicial Service Association. While government officials denied the measure targets any single judge, critics widely view it as aimed at extending the sitting chief justice's tenure. The legal framework amendments are now being drafted for implementation.