BIZ BUZZ: Changing of the guard at sports commission

Richard Bachmann is out; John Patrick Gregorio is in as head of the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).

Biz Buzz sources say that Gregorio was chosen to take on the top post at the PSC due to his unique background in both the corporate and the sports worlds.

With the MVP Group, for instance, he was head of sports marketing at Smart Communications Inc. and was head from 2010 to this year of the MVP Sports Foundation. He also became alternate governor of TNT Giga Basketball Team of the Philippine Basketball Association.

Then in the sports world, Gregorio is president of the National Rowing Association and a trustee of the National Academy of Sports, not to mention a member of the management committee of the UP Men’s Basketball Team.

And these are just some of the highlights of the career of Gregorio, a TOYM (The Outstanding Young Men) awardee and an outstanding alumnus of the University of the Philippines.

Indeed, the curriculum vitae of Gregorio is long and encompasses different fields from corporate to sports to tourism, public service and even entrepreneurship that will provide him a wider view and insight into how to deliver on PSC’s mission to, among others, promote sports development at the grassroots level.

What’s more, he already knows the workings of the PSC, having worked with the institution as secretary general of the Philippine Olympic Committee and as acting chef de mission (chief of mission) of the highly successful Paris Olympics 2024.

With Gregorio at the helm, it will likely be just a matter of time before the country produces even more gold medalists like Carlos Yulo and Hidilyn Diaz. —Tina Arceo-Dumlao

A digital banking license? It’s a no for Security Bank

Security Bank is not interested in getting a digital banking license, saying it can also do things that virtual lenders are capable of.

“There is no difference between a digital bank and an institutional bank in today’s day and age. Ten years ago if you would have asked the question, I’m sure the answer would have been different,” Lucose Eralil, chief operating officer of Security Bank, told Biz Buzz.

“A digital bank could build technology much faster. That was the only difference. There is no other difference. They could do a mobile [platform] in six to eight months. I just released my [digital] retail channel in 10 months,” Eralil added. “So if I can do that being in an institutional bank, why would I need a digital bank?”

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas will reopen the application window for new digital banks on Jan. 1 next year. Watch this space! —Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral