MO MARKETPLACE APP IS BRINGING AI TO SRI LANKAN COMMERCE
While most of Colombo was focused on stocks and investments, a very real shift in how Sri Lankans buy and sell things was quietly underway.
MO Marketplace, launched in June 2024 by founder and CEO Anika Wijesuriya, is Sri Lanka’s first dedicated buying and selling mobile platform, growing faster than most boardrooms have noticed. Already live on Google Play and the App Store, the platform has recorded over 45,000 downloads and 12,000 registered users in under a year. For a market reliant on Facebook groups, WhatsApp forwards, and roadside signage, this is not a minor shift.
The timing is significant. Sri Lanka’s middle class is digitising fast. Smartphones are no longer a luxury, they are a must. Trust in digital transactions, once the domain of the young and risk-tolerant, is expanding rapidly. The competitive edge is tangible. SMEs on larger platforms pay commissions of 15% to 30%. MO’s maximum is 10%, the lowest in the market, and that difference matters enormously to small sellers.
MO also handles delivery and payment end to end, keeping both buyers and sellers protected through every transaction. It is built on trust, a structural advantage most platforms underestimate. With AI-powered listing tools and automated image enhancement launching in July, MO is raising the bar on what a local selling app can do.
Sri Lankans have always bought and sold this way, in WhatsApp groups, Facebook posts, and word of mouth. MO Marketplace is simply the first platform built to do it properly, giving it the infrastructure it never had.
