Maharlika Investment Corp. (MIC), which runs the Philippines’ first sovereign wealth fund, is preparing to make significant investments within the next six months, focusing on nation-building sectors while assuring the public of multiple layers of oversight to allay corruption concerns.
MIC vice president for investments Kheed Ng said the agency has a “robust” pipeline of deals that the public could expect to see realized soon.
“In the next six months you can expect some deals to come through that the public will be quite happy with,” Ng said, adding that these investments are expected to support nation-building.
MIC chief legal officer Paul Salanga said the agency is committed to prudence and oversight. “We are very prudent we are very careful because we are very mindful that this is public funds that we are investing,” Salanga told reporters.
He said any investment should contribute to national development. “It’s quite important that there is a national development impact. It’s not just a matter of returns,” he said.
The fund’s investments generally cover infrastructure, energy, mining, climate, social infrastructure such as healthcare, digital infrastructure and agriculture.
Ng said the MIC’s investments are typically private, which heightens the need for careful review.
“Our investments are all private. It’s not the stock market where you can buy and sell. This is one where, if your money is tied to a bad investment, you can’t exit,” he said.
“So for us making sure that we do the proper due diligence take our time make sure we go through everything…before we make an investment,” said Ng.
While the fund has considered investing in companies planning an initial public offering (IPO), Ng said this could be challenging.
“We’ve looked at some IPOs. A bit difficult because management’s so busy talking to all the investors so it’s hard for us to gain access to the level of diligence that we need to be able to invest. But we look at them yes,” he said.
MIC president and chief executive Rafael Consing earlier said the agency’s investments are subject to strict due diligence and guided by a long-term development perspective.
