If there is one thing that has united consumers in recent months, it is not a national holiday or a collective celebration: it is the shared shock and frustration of opening their electric bills. For the millions of subscribers of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), every billing cycle has become an...
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) found a surge in quality management deficiencies among the nation’s largest accounting firms in its latest multiyear inspection cycle, even as individual corporate audits showed signs of improvement. The regulator’s 2026 SEC Oversight Assurance...
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is exploring the imposition of higher tariffs by at least 13 percentage points (ppt) on certain rice imports from four of its major suppliers, including Vietnam, as a safeguard measure to mitigate the impact of rising imports on the domestic rice industry. Upon...
Pakistan, one of the Philippines’ top rice suppliers, has questioned whether the Philippine government is complying with global trade rules in its plan to impose safeguard measures to restrict rice imports and shield local farmers. During the Tariff Commission’s (TC) preliminary conference on...
The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is pushing back against the securities regulator’s decision to open the door to cryptocurrency trading, warning that the move risks siphoning individual investors away from traditional equities and undermining capital market development. The critique follows...
The Philippines remains energy insecure as its growing dependence on Middle Eastern crude oil and tightening power reserves leave the country increasingly vulnerable to global fuel supply disruptions as well as power supply risks, according to state-run think tank Philippine Institute for...
Underwriters managing the planned ₱92.3 billion initial public offering (IPO) of Mynt Inc., the operator of the mobile wallet GCash, are in discussions with regulators to reduce or eliminate a mandatory 20 percent share allocation for local trading participants. The push to modify the rule comes...
The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) has imposed a fine of ₱2.17 million on the Boracay Business Administration of Scuba Shops (BBASS) and its members for engaging in anti-competitive behavior by means of price-fixing on the popular island destination. In a statement on Friday, July 3, the...
The value of the country’s merger and acquisitions (M&A) notifications rose by six percent to nearly ₱860 billion in 2025, driven largely by proposed deals in wholesale and retail trade, according to the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC). In its annual report, the PCC said it received 52...
The Office of the Vice President (OVP) on Thursday, July 2, said it received an unmodified opinion from the Commission on Audit (COA) for calendar year 2025, marking its fourth consecutive such audit opinion under Vice President Sara Duterte, days before her impeachment trial is scheduled to begin...
The Tariff Commission (TC) has initiated a formal investigation to determine whether to impose a definitive safeguard measure on imported rice to provide relief to the local industry, which has been reeling from the surge in foreign shipments. In a notice, the TC announced it launched the probe...
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a cease-and-desist order (CDO) against Bridge Cash, directing it to stop engaging in unauthorized lending activities. In its order, the SEC Enforcement and Investor Protection Department (EIPD) ordered Bridge Cash to immediately stop...
