The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission published a recap of reforms implemented under Chairperson Emilio B. Aquino as his seven-year term concludes, centring on a multi-wave digital transformation of core SEC services and parallel initiatives to broaden access to capital, strengthen investor protection, and promote corporate governance and sustainability. Digitalisation efforts launched in 2021 introduced automated tools for company registration, annual report submissions and payments, including the Electronic Simplified Processing of Application for Registration of Company (eSPARC), One Day Submission and Electronic Registration of Companies (OneSEC), the Electronic Filing and Submission Tool (eFAST) and the Electronic System for Payments to the SEC (eSPAYSEC), followed by additional waves of reforms in 2023, 2024 and 2025. The SEC reported 52,604 new company registrations in 2024 and an eFAST-enabled compliance rate of almost 70% in 2024, up from 26% in 2022, and linked higher compliance to improved beneficial ownership data that supported the Philippines’ exit from the Financial Action Task Force grey list earlier in 2025; it also recently launched the Hierarchical and Applicable Relations and Beneficial Ownership Registry (HARBOR) and introduced an AI-enabled chatbot, SEC AInnovation. On capital formation, the SEC reported reaching a target of 888 companies tapping the capital market by 2024, running MSME roadshows across 21 cities from 2023 to 2025 that facilitated PHP 2.21 billion for more than 1,000 projects over a two-year period, and launching the SEC Strategic Sandbox in 2024, with Macodimarc Technology Corporation (Pluang PH) and G-Xchange, Inc. admitted as the first participants in June 2025; it also cited new crypto-asset securities and crypto-asset service provider guidelines issued under SEC Memorandum Circular Nos. 4 and 5, Series of 2025. Enforcement highlights included a 2023 conviction in the Kapa Community Ministry International case involving alleged collections exceeding PHP 50 billion, and the revocation of corporate registrations of over 2,000 lending companies for conducting lending activities without the necessary licence.
Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission 2025-06-05
Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission recaps Aquino-era digitalisation, sandbox and enforcement reforms as chair’s term ends
The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission ended Chairperson Emilio B. Aquino's term with reforms in digital transformation, capital access, investor protection, and corporate governance. Initiatives included automated tools for registration, aiding the Philippines' exit from the Financial Action Task Force grey list, and new crypto-asset guidelines. Enforcement actions involved a major conviction in the Kapa Community Ministry International case and revoking over 2,000 lending companies' registrations.