Biz Buzz: Still vacant
The Duterte administration seems to be in no rush to fill the coveted post of Philippine Ambassador to the United States, if the latest reports are anything to go by.
Thursday, the President said that he didn’t “feel like sending” an envoy to the US, when asked by reporters about the lingering vacancy which has set of some wild jockeying among aspirants, especially after word emerged that would-be appointee Jose Manuel “Babe” Romualdez turned down the offer (for a second time, mind you).
Incidentally, word from our source had the President supposedly replying to Romualdez’s “health reasons” excuse with “I’m not in a hurry anyway”—meaning the media and PR practitioner may still get the ambassadorship when he recuperates fully from his eye surgery in six months.
But then again, it remains unclear if Romualdez would really want the stress associated with the job going forward, given the events in Washington nowadays. While the post is seen as a prestigious one from the Philippine perspective, it involves a lot of backbreaking work (and expenditures) on the ground in the US.
In particular, the next Philippine Ambassador to the US might have to deal with the headache of repatriating an estimated 300,000 undocumented Filipinos living in the US if President Trump’s crackdown on immigrants continues, and the stress involved there would easily overwhelm any prestige upside.
In any case, Biz Buzz heard that other names being considered for the post include Estrada-era Defese Secretary and former Senator Orlando Mercado and Ramos-era Interior and Local Governments Secretary Rafael Alunan.
Meanwhile, there’s also talk that the post may again be offered to career diplomat and current Palace protocol chief Marciano Paynor whom everyone agrees is perfect for the job. Except for the “deep pockets/fat wallet” that the job requires, of course. —DAXIM L. LUCAS
But Mr. AA’s camp says…
New sources have weighed in on last Wednesday’s Biz Buzz item about a possible new appointee as Philippine ambassador to the US, now that media executive Jose Manuel “Babe” Romualdez had declined the post.
It turns out that Mr. Ambassador Aspirant (AA), described as a prominent figure in the local business industry, is not really seeking, much less “salivating” on the post after all.
But observers say he is the logical shoo-in because of his experience and stature.
A source close to him said the business leader was busy working to link businesses with the government to bring more investments to the country.
Sources said this businessman’s company was really never in the intensive care unit years ago. It appears that his company not only has raised several billions of equity from capital markets in the last six years, but also has reduced its cost of debt from its wide range of creditors.
All of its projects are all significantly pre-sold and completing on time.
In fact, it has recently tied up with a renowned Japanese keiretsu to undertake new projects in the Metro, and are expected to ground break on their next one very soon. Stay tuned! —DAXIM L. LUCAS
Bancassurance chief
Former National Treasurer Omar Cruz is back in the local financial services industry, this time as the chief bancassurance officer of Insular Life Assurance Co. Ltd. (Insular Life), the only Filipino-owned firm which is among the top three players in the protection business. He is joining the organization led by fellow ex-Citibanker Nina Aguas, CEO of Insular Life.
Cruz had been out of circulation in the last few years, having spent some time doing consultancy work in Hong Kong. Now, he will be busy building the fledgling bancassurance partnership between Insular Life and Aboitiz-led Union Bank.
During a media party hosted by Union Bank (which posted a record-high profit breaching P10 billion in 2016) on Wednesday night, Cruz made his public debut as part of the Insular Life-Union Bank project.
The structure for the bancassurance partnership hasn’t been finalized yet and will still have to be discussed with regulators. We heard that unlike the route taken by other banking peers, Union Bank isn’t keen on creating a new legal vehicle or joint venture because it will only add cost. As Insular Life is part owner of Union Bank, this already solves the cross-ownership requirement for the cross-selling of insurance products using the Union Bank branch network. Whatever the structure will be, Cruz will effectively be the CEO of the bancassurance operation.
After his stint at the Bureau of Treasury from 2005 to 2007, Cruz joined the insurance industry as CEO and president of BPI-Philam for The Philippine American Life and General Insurance Company (Philam) and likewise served as the chief investment officer of Philam.
Through this partnership, Insular Life is seen to benefit from UnionBank group’s network of over 300 branches and offices with more than six million customers while Union Bank is seen to create a new revenue stream that will immediately make a significant contribution on year one. —DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA
New blood
Following a bleak period in its history—its involvement in the $81-billion money laundering case that thrust the country into a negative light last year (and cost it a P1-billion penalty)— Yuchengco-led Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. has turned a new leaf with the revamp of most of its senior management team.
Under its new president Gil Buenaventura, RCBC is rewriting its playbook by infusing new blood to its senior management team. Most recently, RCBC beefed up its antimoney laundering team by hiring an antimoney laundering expert, a former Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) official, no less.
RCBC has appointed as its new chief compliance officer Richard David C. Funk III, formerly deputy director/group head of the compliance and investigation group of the AMLC Secretariat. He replaced Rafael Danilo Ranil Reynante, who stepped down to join a government financial institution as chief legal counsel.
Funk (Lyceum Law graduate Class of 1992) has more than 20 years of professional experience in providing legal guidance on the statutory and regulatory framework impacting business operations, particularly in the areas of banking insurance and related fields such as antimoney laundering, regulatory compliance, corporate governance and corporate social responsibility. Before joining RCBC, he was compliance officer and concurrent head of the legal and recovery office of PNB General Insurers Co. Inc.
RCBC also appointed Juan Gabriel R. Tomas IV as customer service support segment head for the operations group, with the rank of senior vice president. He has more than 20 years of professional experience in loans, custody and treasury operations, IT application, development and support, capital markets, customer service, process standardization, automation and re-engineering in the banking industry and consulting firm. Meanwhile, Cecilia Natividad was named group head for the marketing group, with the rank of SVP. —DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA
New and improved
Commuters at the Light Rail Transit Line 1 are getting a rehabilitated train station, and a history lesson all at once.
LRT-1’s private operator Light Rail Manila Corp. said it was inaugurating on Monday the “improved” Doroteo Jose Station.
This is the so-called pilot rehabilitation project as part of the company’s P500-million plan to improve stations at the LRT-1, considered the oldest mass transit train in Southeast Asia.
Commuters basically get an almost-new station: structural repair, working escalators and elevators, better lights, a new paint job, and the all-important “general cleaning” are part of the package.
But the Ayala Corp.-Metro Pacific Investments Corp. consortium that now runs LRT-1, among the previous administration’s public private partnership projects, wants to inject a sense of culture and history as well.
The new station would also open with an LRT-1 exhibit paying tribute to national artist and architect Francisco “Bobby” Mañosa, who designed the original LRT-1 stations way back in the early 1980s.
To be featured are design sketches of Mañosa and even a scale model of the train.
Fans of design and history —and, of course, all commuters — are welcome. —MIGUEL R. CAMUS
