Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairperson Emilio B. Aquino has been named as the first ever Public Sector Innovator Awardee in the 2023 Mansmith Innovation Awards.
In a statement, the SEC said this is in recognition of his pioneering digital transformation efforts in the government.
Aquino was recognized alongside five other top innovators for their contributions in microlending, product innovation in food supplements, product innovation as a nongovernmental organization, online stock trading, and innovative business model during the awarding ceremony held on Nov. 17.
“I am honored to be the first-ever recipient of the Public Sector Innovator Award, a recognition that affirms the positive impact of the innovations that we at the Securities and Exchange Commission have advanced over the last few years,” Aquino said.
He added that, “more than that, I hope that this recognition will also inspire future innovators both in the public and private sectors, who can contribute more to the realization of our shared aspirations as a nation, that is, a strongly rooted, comfortable and secure life for every Filipino.”
Now on its third year, the Mansmith Innovation Awards is organized by training and consultancy firm Mansmith and Fielders, Inc. to support initiatives toward innovation, improve the Philippines’ global innovation ranking, and address the low number of patents in the country.
Since taking on the helm as SEC chairperson and CEO in 2018, Aquino has incorporated digital transformation and innovation into his plans and programs for the Commission.
Guided by the Digital Transformation and Technology Modernization Roadmap under his SuperVision 2028, the SEC embarked on a journey to automate 26 key process of the SEC and establish a unified and integrated database for the Commission and its stakeholders.
The first wave of its digital transformation roadmap included the launch of the online company registration system called Electronic Simplified Processing of Application for Registration of Company (eSPARC) and its subsystem, One-day Submission and E-registration of Companies (OneSEC).
Thanks to eSPARC, the SEC has seen a record number of company registrations in 2022 at 42,926. eSPARC was recently recognized as one of the best company registration systems in the world, during the 2023 Corporate Registers Forum in Malta.
Other digital services include the Electronic Filing and Submission Tool (eFAST) and the Electronic System for Payments to the SEC (eSPAYSEC).
In 2023, the SEC continued to demonstrate its commitment to digital transformation with the launch of five new advanced online systems to further streamline and simplify the Commission’s services.
These new digital initiatives include the Electronic SEC Universal Registration Environment (eSECURE), SEC CheckApp 2.0, Electronic SEC Education, Analysis, Research Computing Hub (eSEARCH), SEC API Marketplace, and the Electronic Registration Application for Market Participants (eRAMP).
Previously, Aquino was also named CEO of the Year for the Philippines during the 2022 International Data Corporation Future Enterprise Awards for leading the digital transformation of the SEC.
“Our digital transformation journey has just begun, and we will continue to innovate to remain competitive while providing excellent service to our kababayans,” Aquino said.