Business

THE Department of Transportation (DOTr) and the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) signed a credit line agreement with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) last May 14  to settle P3.6 billion in contractual obligations to Light Rail Manila Corporation (LRMC), the private operator of LRT-1. This initiative follows a directive from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for the DOTr to …

THE Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) recorded an impressive 170 percent increase in net income for the first quarter of 2026, reaching P43.6 billion compared to P16.1 billion in the same period last year. Total income for the quarter surged by 43.83 percent to P95.8 billion, driven primarily by P56.6 billion in insurance revenue from growing member contributions and a …

By DIEGO C. CAGAHASTIAN Government law enforcers raided the Philippine Sanjia Steel Corp. and closed the company’s 22.7-hectare steel manufacturing facility inside the PHIVIDEC Industrial Estate in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental. The May 15 raid was led by Executive Director Undersecretary Benjamin Acorda Jr. of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Armed Forces …

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas is urging businesses to actively promote the Personal Equity and Retirement Account (PERA) program, highlighting its tax incentives and long-term benefits for both employers and workers. BSP Deputy Governor Lyn Javier said in a statement that encouraging PERA participation can help employees build stronger retirement savings while also improving workplace retention and satisfaction. “By promoting …

The Land Bank of the Philippines has reduced its InstaPay transfer fee for person-to-person transactions from ₱15 to ₱8, in a move aimed at making digital financial services more affordable and widely accessible. The new rate took effect on May 21 and applies to transfers made through the Landbank Mobile Banking App and iAccess platform. To further ease costs for …

The Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) will dispose of 44 real properties across Visayas and Mindanao through an electronic public bidding (e-bidding) scheduled next month, as part of its continuing effort to liquidate assets of closed banks. In a statement last week, PDIC said bid submissions will be accepted from 9 a.m. on June 17 until 1 p.m. on June …

The Metropolitan Bank & Trust Company is boosting returns for savers by increasing the interest rate of its Online Time Deposit (OTD) to as high as 5% per annum, as more Filipinos seek safer and more structured ways to grow their money amid rising living costs. The bank said the higher rate is intended to encourage disciplined saving and help …

East West Banking Corporation has gathered its Priority clients for an exclusive market briefing titled “Partnership Perspectives: Guiding You Through Today’s Markets,” aimed at providing timely investment insights amid global economic uncertainty. The session featured an outlook from Chief Investment Adviser Bede Gomez, who discussed major global risks such as geopolitical tensions, oil price fluctuations, and persistent inflation pressures that …

By DIEGO C. CAGAHASTIAN The local semiconductor industry stands to realize unprecedented growth when plans for the Luzon Economic Corridor under the Pax Silica initiative of the United States materializes, although many sectors have expressed concern if these developments will indeed result in blessings for Filipinos. The Marcos administration has reserved 1,619 hectares of land in Tarlac for the establishment …

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been actively helping the Philippines, its small businessmen and entrepreneurs, along with ordinary Filipinos, in these times of great hardship and economic challenges. In a meeting between ADB President Masato Kanda and President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. at the Malacañan Palace,  the multilateral lender vowed it is ready to provide more funding as the country …