The Philippines ranks second best among countries belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) when it comes to good corporate governance, with companies owned by some of the country’s richest families leading the pack.
A total of 11 Philippine publicly listed firms made it to the region’s top 50 companies practicing good governance as graded by the Asean Capital Markets Forum (ACMF).
Thailand had the most number of listed firms that made it to the top 50 with 23. The Philippines, which was second with 11, was followed by Singapore with eight, Malaysia with six, and Indonesia with two.
Among the 11 Philippine corporations that made it to the top 50, four are owned by the Ayala group. These firms were Ayala Corp., Ayala Land Inc., Globe Telecom Inc., and Manila Water Co.
The Manuel Pangilinan-led group had the second highest number of companies practicing good governance with three, namely Manila Electric Co., Philex Mining Corp., and Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co.
The other firms that were part of the list were Aboitiz Equity Ventures of the Aboitiz clan, George Ty’s GT Capital Holdings, Inc. and the Sy family’s SM Prime Holdings and BDO Unibank Inc.
“Out of the 50, 11 Philippine listed companies are included so that’s a good showing as far as we’re concerned. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been trying to initiate more measures to really encourage these Philippine firms to see to it that they do practice good corporate governance that are comparable within the region or even globally. We know that it is only by being a good corporate citizen that you can compete regionally and globally,” SEC director Justina Callangan said.
The companies that made it to the top 50 were graded based on specifications that include rights of shareholders, equitable treatment, role of stakeholders, disclosure and transparency, board responsibilities, and bonuses and penalties.
The ACMF is composed of capital market regulators from 10 Asean jurisdictions namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos PDR, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Source: Philstar Image: Wikimedia Commons
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