3 Monetary Board members confirmed

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III yesterday confirmed the appointment of Antonio Abacan Jr. to the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas as well as the return of Peter Favila and retention of Felipe Medalla to the policymaking body.

Abacan, Favila and Medalla “will serve a fixed term of six years each as provided under the New Central Bank Act,” Dominguez said in a statement.

Currently sitting as group vice chair of the Metrobank group, Abacan was also president of Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. and of the Philippine Savings Bank and Unibancard Corp.

The newcomer to the MB also previously served as a senior adviser at First Metro Investment Corp., Federal Land and Toyota Manila Bay Corp. as well as chair of Toyota Financial Services (Philippines) Inc.

Favila returns to the MB, which exercises the powers and functions of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), following a first term that ended in 2014.

A former secretary of trade and industry, Favila was president of Allied Banking Corp. and chief executive of Philippine National Bank as well as chair and president of the Philippine Stock Exchange.

“Abacan and Favila replaced Armando Suratos and former Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) chair Alfredo Antonio who are scheduled to step down this year,” said Dominguez, head of President Duterte’s economic team.

Medalla, former economic planning secretary and chief of the National Economic and Development Authority, first joined the board in 2011.

A professor and former dean at the University of the Philippines’ School of Economics, Medalla served as a director of Asia United Bank Corp.

The three appointees complete the seven-member MB, along with Dominguez himself as well as Juan de Zuniga Jr. and Valentin Araneta.

Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. takes over as concurrent MB chair and BSP governor as two-term chief Amando M. Tetango Jr. relinquishes his office on July 3.