Category: Philippine Star

Senator Christopher ‘Bong’ Go has pledged stronger support for the professionalization of the Philippine real estate industry, vowing to push Senate Bill 1292 or the ‘Real Estate Salesperson Registration Speed Act of 2025’- a measure aimed at simplifying the accreditation process for sales agents across the country.

Speaking at the opening of the National Real Estate Convention 2025 at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino on Sunday, October 19, Senator Christopher ‘Bong’ Go, who chairs the Senate Committee on Housing, said the proposed law aims to remove bureaucratic barriers that have long delayed the registration of salespersons, calling it a ‘significant step forward’ in strengthening the property sector’s workforce.

Faster registration means more opportunities for Filipinos to build sustainable careers in real estate and serve clients more efficiently,’ Go said in a pre-recorded message to participants.

The bill is expected to accelerate the entry of new agents into the industry-seen as critical amid robust expansion in residential, commercial, and mixed-use developments nationwide.

Industry welcomes reform push

Anthony Gerard O. Leuterio, founder and chief executive of Filipino Homes, the country’s largest real estate brokerage network, welcomed Go’s initiative, stressing that digitalizing the process would greatly improve efficiency and accessibility.

‘The registration system is actually good already. What we need is to make it fully online,’ Leuterio said. ‘In other countries, you can complete registration in 20 minutes. If we can achieve that here, we will save time and make the system work better for brokers and agents alike.’

Leuterio, whose nationwide network counts over 14,000 registered salespersons under 730 licensed brokers, said the measure could also help address the growing issue of job migration by opening up more livelihood opportunities locally.

‘People are leaving the country because they want to find better income opportunities abroad,’ he noted.

‘Real estate offers Filipinos a decent way to earn here at home. With government support, we can help more people build stable careers in this field.’

Professionalization and compliance

Leuterio also stressed the importance of compliance with existing professional standards, including continuous professional development (CPD) and proper accreditation under the Real Estate Service Act (RESA).

‘Even as we expand, we follow the law,’ he said. ‘As a big company, it’s crucial that we uphold government requirements and promote ethical practice among our sales force.’

The National Real Estate Convention, also known as NatCon, serves as an annual gathering for Filipino Homes’ network of brokers, agents, and developers.

This year’s edition highlights not only fellowship and knowledge exchange but also the recognition of top-performing agents and brokers for exceptional sales and service achievements.

‘This event is a celebration of excellence and an opportunity to equip our agents with strategies to thrive in an increasingly dynamic market,’ Leuterio said.

With over 100 offices nationwide, Filipino Homes has established itself as a one-stop real estate solutions provider-reflecting the company’s broader mission to modernize and professionalize the Philippine property sector through technology, training, and collaboration.

Motorists traveling across Luzon’s expressways will no longer need to maintain multiple radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags, following the launch of the government’s ‘One RFID, All Tollways’ system.

On Tuesday, October 21, the Department of Transportation and service providers Autosweep and Easytrip launched a system that allows the use of any of the two RFID tag on tollways.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. led the lauch ceremony in Laguna, together with San Miguel Corp. CEO Ramon Ang and Metro Pacific Investments Corp. CEO Manny Pangilinan. Ang’s firm owns and operates the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), while Pangilinan’s company owns the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX).

‘Reduce unnecessary stress. Reduce unnecessary delays,’ Marcos ordered during his speech.

The president said the unified system was made possible by years of consultation among the the DOTr, Toll Regulatory Board and private concessionarires.

From two tags to one. Prior to the unified system, the Autosweep RFID is needed for the Skyway, SLEX, NAIAX, STAR Tollway, MCX and TPLEX.

EasyTrip, meanwhile, is used for NLEX, SCTEX, CAVITEX, and CALAX.

How to avail of a unified RFID

Using the unified system is free and optional. Motorists can take just a few steps:

Register online through the websites of Autosweep or Easytrip. QR codes leading to their registration pages will also be available on-site and on official social media pages.

Choose your preferred provider. If you already have both tags, remove the one you will no longer use – preferably at a service center. If you have none, installation can be done at partner service centers.

Start using your unified RFID. Once linked, your account will be valid across all Luzon expressways.

Physical registration will also be available at select RFID service centers and toll plazas.

Tala marked a new phase of growth with the announcement of its expansion in Latin America that started with the launch of its services in Guatemala.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, it continues to serve the global majority, or the portion of the world’s population who has historically been excluded from accessing financial services, across three continents.

Leveraging AI to deliver financial services to customers here and around the world, the company’s proprietary software Tala in a Box now allows for rapid geographic expansion. This enables Tala to scale its platform across new markets simultaneously, fulfilling its mission to address insufficient access to essential financial products like credit among the global majority.

‘This marks the start of Tala’s next chapter, grounded in the belief that potential exists everywhere and that technology and data can unlock immense value for underserved people and markets,’ said Shivani Siroya, CEO and founder of Tala.

‘Over the past few years, starting in 2020, we’ve built a next generation data engine and proprietary software platform that takes full advantage of Tala’s data moat-billions of data points from a decade of customer relationships across multiple geographies,’ Siroya said.

Championing credit access, financial literacy for Filipinos

Considered as one of its key markets, Tala’s presence continues to grow in the Philippines where it has over 4 million customers. It has disbursed more than 26 million loans totaling to around P129 billion since entering the country in 2017.

While this growth can be attributed to Filipinos becoming more open to using credit, it is also anchored on the increasing positive perception of customers to the impact of financial services to their day-to-day lives.

Tala’s latest Impact Report has revealed that 91% of borrowers in the Philippines felt improvement in their quality of life due to their digital loan, particularly when it comes to affording household expenses and bills, accessing finance and reducing stress over money.

Beyond credit, Tala actively promotes financial literacy through the TALAkayan with Salve Ibañez workshop series and digital content series. Over 1,200 participants across 14 workshop sessions have learned basic financial concepts such as saving, budgeting and investing, and been equipped with knowledge of online credit.

Furthering its commitment, Tala Philippines also partnered with non-profit organization Project PEARLS to conduct an outreach, financial education and a scholarship program in Tondo, Manila, raising further awareness on the importance of financial literacy for the global majority while supporting the needs of partner communities.

‘As Tala continues to expand in the Philippines, we are focused on leveraging our technology and products to meet the diverse needs of our customer base in the Philippines, empowering them to grow and achieve their goals through increased access to credit and financial education. All these are aligned with our mission to bridge the financial inclusion gaps in the country,’ said Moritz Gastl, general manager of Tala Philippines.

A slowdown in luxury spending may benefit the economy as demand could shift to locally-produced goods, according to the Department of Economy, Planning and Development (DEPDev).

‘I like that if there’s a slowdown in those areas, because these are very import-dependent anyway,’ DEPDev Secretary Arsenio Balisacan told reporters.

Balisacan said luxury goods, which are being imported by the country, generate little domestic economic activity.

‘If our consumers are shifting to locally produced goods that are not as luxurious. then it creates more economic activity,’ he said.

Balisacan was asked to comment on luxury spending amid a government probe on anomalous flood control projects that has also put the lavish lifestyles of those allegedly involved and their children under public scrutiny.

Michael Ricafort, chief economist at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., said in an email that the actions being taken by the government to address flood control corruption issues could impact luxury spending in the country.

Among the steps taken by the government is the creation of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure to investigate and recommend appropriate charges against government officials or individuals involved in anomalies in flood control and related projects in the last 10 years.

‘Spending on big ticket luxury items such as vehicles, homes, among others could be potentially adversely affected by the recent anti-corruption measures, as some of the alleged funds from corruption are channeled or allegedly laundered to these high-end luxury items,’ Ricafort said, noting it is still a wait-and-see situation.

In recent years, Ricafort said legitimate sources of wealth including gains from financial markets, property and business sales, as well as inheritance have helped sustain demand for high-end or luxury products in the country.

According to Ricafort, some foreign buyers also contribute to the demand for luxury products within the bounds of the law.

The country’s favorable demographics and economic growth story are also seen to support demand for luxury items.

When it comes to luxury vehicle sales, Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. first vice president for marketing Elijah Marcial said the segment continues to make up 0.7 percent of the entire Philippine automotive market as of September.

Lexus is Toyota’s luxury brand.

Marcial said that while they observed a slowdown compared with the same period last year, ‘it can be attributed to the weather.’

At least 56,023 police officers and personnel from other security forces will secure the annual tradition of Undas or visits to the dead on Nov. 1 and 2, the Philippine National Police said yesterday.

PNP information officer Brig. Gen. Randulf Tuaño said they would deploy 25,359 police personnel to maintain peace and order in 5,175 cemeteries, memorial parks and columbaria nationwide for All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days.

Tuaño said at least 8,265 personnel from the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Bureau of Fire Protection and Philippine Coast Guard would join the security contingent for Undas.

He added that up to 22,399 force multipliers composed of barangay public safety officers and members of non-government organizations would assist government security forces, although the number could still increase depending on the daily field assessment.

Apart from securing cemetery goers, Tuaño said police officers would manage public safety in transportation hubs, bus terminals, seaports and airports with the anticipation of the exodus of passengers traveling to and from the provinces.

To make it easy for the public to seek help, the PNP will put up 5,293 police assistance desks in cemeteries and other places of convergence along with 1,616 motorist assistance centers to help travelers across the country.

Kram Airam Carpio ensured the country of a first medal in the 3rd Asian Youth Games by overpowering Indian Sakshi Thakur, 83-17, in pencak silat over the weekend at the Exhibition World Bahrain here.

That triumph assured the Asian Championship silver medalist of at least a bronze and possibly better if she hurdles Kazakh Aliyam Azizova in their girls’ 51 to 55-kilogram semifinal.

Earlier, Carpio dumped Iranian Nazaninfatemeh Kolasangiani, 36-22, in the round-of-16 of the sport that is in its debut in this quadrennial meet for athletes aged 14 to 17 years.

Also jump-starting the campaign of the 141-strong Philippine squad was Alas Pilipinas, which shell-shocked regional powerhouse South Korea, 25-21, 19-25, 25-22, 22-25, 15-10, at the Hall B of the Isa Sports City Sunday.

The Filipinas, represented mostly by the country’s undisputed high school champion National University, shoot for a Group D sweep and outright quarterfinal qualification as they battle the Thais, their SEA rivals, today.

Early results weren’t all roses as Jelou Eluna, the country’s only other pencak silat entry, and kurash’s Elijah Mendoza and Syrine Mae Bacani all fell by the wayside.

Eluna succumbed to Muhammad Raqib Darwisy of Uzbekistan, 40-13, in the boys’ 59-63 kg division.

Mendoza and Bacani, for their part, were shown the door by Tajikistan’s Abubar Turaev in the boys’ -65kg class, 10-0, and Iran’s Mahsa Barzegar in the girls’ -70kg section, 10-0, respectively, at the Gilam A.

The Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) has extended its long-standing partnership with Adrenalin, a leading enterprise human capital management (HCM) solutions provider, to strengthen its human resource (HR) capabilities and drive next-generation workforce transformation.

The Yuchengco-led bank will adopt Adrenalin 2.0, designed to create a more seamless, data-driven and connected HR experience that supports both the bank’s workforce and business transformation goals. It will support more than 7,900 employees across 450 branches nationwide.

Adrenalin Max 2.0 is the next-generation HCM platform designed to help enterprises create connected, intelligent and personalized talent experiences. It unifies all core HR functions-including talent acquisition, development, operations, remuneration and engagement-within a single, configurable system that delivers faster implementation, enterprise-grade governance and actionable insights powered by artificial intelligence (AI).

The HCM platform is trusted by more than 2,000 enterprises worldwide and offers payroll compliance across 40 countries. The company has a strong global presence across Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Africa and the US. It powers RCBC’s web-based HCM system, myHRIS, recognized as one of the most flexible and configurable HR systems in the market.

‘For more than a decade, we’ve built a resilient HR backbone. Onboarding Adrenalin Max 2.0 elevates that foundation with enhanced capabilities that personalizes every employee journey from candidate to alumni,’ first senior vice president and head of RCBC Human Resources Group Rowena Subido said.

‘By unifying data and automating routine work, our HR teams can focus on more strategic people initiatives, workforce readiness and improved employee experience. Most importantly, empowered employees drive better customer experiences-fuelling RCBC’s next phase of growth,’ she further said.

Srinivasa Bharathy, managing director and CEO of Adrenalin, said the company aims to set a new benchmark for talent experience with RCBC that ‘powers service excellence and drives sustainable growth.’

‘The Philippines is a strategic market for us and we’re deepening local investments in product, partners and talent to deliver future-ready employee experiences,’ he further said.

Senators Raffy Tulfo and Imee Marcos were among the representatives of the Philippines at the 151st Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly last Sunday at the Geneva International Conference Center.

Tulfo first participated in the Asean+3 meeting, which aimed to strengthen relations and cooperation among Southeast Asian countries. This was followed by the Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Geopolitical Group, where legislators discussed pressing global concerns such as cybercrime, the spread of fake news, online bullying and human trafficking.

The senator called on Cambodian authorities to immediately tighten border security, noting that human traffickers often use routes from the Philippines to Cambodia to exploit Filipino workers in scam hubs.

He also urged Cambodian authorities to identify and arrest the masterminds and criminal syndicates behind the rising number of Filipino victims of human trafficking in Cambodia.

‘We call on the Cambodian authorities to strengthen their borders… these traffickers, they use these routes of going to Cambodia from the Philippines, trafficking these Filipino workers, and this should be addressed immediately,’ Tulfo said. ‘This is becoming a serious issue and they should be vigilant and make sure to identify these traffickers.’

For decades, executives have called reputation their organization’s most valuable asset. Yet for all its proclaimed importance, few can say precisely what it is worth or how it grows, erodes or translates into financial outcomes. We measure profitability, productivity and market share, but reputation remains intangible, existing somewhere between perception and performance.

That gap between importance and measurement inspired the creation of RepCap, short for Reputation Capital Formula: a model I introduced during the PRSP’s 32nd National PR Congress and which is now fondly called the Jabal Formula. It was designed to quantify and monetize reputation by connecting stakeholder trust directly to business performance.

At its core, RepCap provides a mathematical way of expressing how credibility creates capital:

Reputation Capital (P) = ((Trust × Credibility × Resilience) ÷ Risk) × Annual Revenue

This equation reframes reputation not as an abstract virtue, but as a measurable, monetizable driver of enterprise value.

Each component of RepCap represents a dimension of organizational behavior that shapes trust and, by extension, value creation.

Trust: The confidence stakeholders have in the organization’s integrity and purpose, measured through surveys, sentiment analysis and employee engagement. It reflects both emotional goodwill and cognitive assurance.

Credibility: The perception of competence, reliability and leadership, assessed through media visibility, investor confidence and thought leadership. It answers the question: Can they deliver?

Resilience: The organization’s ability to withstand and recover from crises, measured through risk audits, crisis response and recovery time. This determines whether trust can endure turbulence.

Risk: The exposure to reputational threats such as product failures, governance lapses, ESG scrutiny or social volatility. It moderates the formula, recognizing that higher risk diminishes capital value.

Annual revenue: The financial baseline that anchors reputation value to business scale, allowing its worth to be expressed in peso terms.

Through this formula, reputation is no longer symbolic. It becomes a quantifiable form of capital that can be tracked, benchmarked and optimized much like financial, human or intellectual capital.

The RepCap formula establishes a direct link between trust and enterprise value. It illustrates that trust multiplies, credibility validates, resilience sustains and risk moderates the overall reputation equation.

In practical terms, organizations with strong trust and credibility but poor resilience will see their reputation capital weaken under crisis pressure. Conversely, those with moderate visibility but robust resilience and low risk exposure can maintain higher reputation value over time.

By introducing Annual Revenue into the formula, RepCap translates reputation from a qualitative score into a peso-equivalent indicator bridging communication metrics with financial performance. This empowers communicators and CEOs to present reputation not as a cost center but as a strategic investment that generates measurable returns.

RepCap fundamentally redefines the role of communication and public relations. Traditional PR has focused on shaping narratives and managing perception. But in an era of data transparency and algorithmic accountability, perception alone no longer sustains trust. Stakeholders demand proof: verifiable, consistent and aligned with purpose.

RepCap transforms PR from storytelling to story-proofing. It encourages practitioners to ground their strategies in evidence, analytics and risk management. By quantifying trust, they can demonstrate how communication contributes to operational efficiency, investor confidence and market access.

In essence, RepCap elevates PR from the margins of influence to the core of enterprise valuation.

The beauty of RepCap lies in its multidimensionality. It integrates emotional, ethical and economic logic in a single framework. It allows companies to:

Measure trust through sentiment analytics and stakeholder surveys.

Track credibility via media intelligence, leadership visibility and investor sentiment.

Assess resilience through risk audits, response time and crisis recovery indices.

Quantify risk exposure based on ESG performance, governance integrity and social volatility.

Correlate reputation with revenue, showing how each improvement in trust or credibility increases bottom-line performance.

By applying this structure, organizations can identify where their reputation capital is strongest, where it is leaking value and how to manage it systematically.

Although born in the communications field, RepCap has applications across industries.

Finance: Reputation capital can inform credit risk models, ESG ratings and investor confidence indices.

Governance: Public agencies can use it to measure institutional integrity and policy credibility.

Health care: Hospitals can translate patient trust and crisis resilience into measurable ‘trust premiums.’

Education: Universities can assess academic reputation using credibility and purpose indicators.

Technology: Digital platforms can apply RepCap to evaluate user trust, data ethics and algorithmic transparency.

The logic is universal: trust is currency. When managed well, it appreciates; when neglected, it depreciates.

The introduction of RepCap/Jabal Formula signals a broader shift in reputation management. It moves the discipline beyond perception and persuasion toward quantification and accountability.

RepCap transforms reputation from an intangible virtue into an auditable asset. It invites companies to report not just financial earnings but trust earnings i.e. gains achieved through transparency, resilience and credibility. Ultimately, it answers a question long considered rhetorical: What is the real value of reputation?

And in doing so, it establishes a new truth: reputation is capital. It is earned through trust, validated by proof, sustained by resilience and diminished by risk. When these forces align, organizations don’t just protect their reputation. They grow it as a measurable form of wealth.

As markets evolve, reputation will increasingly behave like an asset class; traded in decisions, reflected in valuations and monitored in dashboards. RepCap offers the conceptual foundation for this new reputation economy, where credibility has cash value and integrity yields dividends.

It reframes public relations not as a support function but as the stewardship of trust: the most renewable yet fragile capital of all.

In the end, the equation is simple: Trust creates value. Risk erodes it. Resilience preserves it.

Two bettors, one in Bulacan and another in Zamboanga del Sur, will share the P50.9-million jackpot in the latest Ultra Lotto 6/58 draw, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office said yesterday.

PCSO general manager Melquiades Robles said the bettors correctly guessed the winning combination 16-09-25-17-10-15 in the Ultra Lotto draw on Sunday. The draw carried the prize of P50,952,075.80.

According to Robles, the bettor in Bulacan bought the winning ticket from an outlet at a mall along McArthur Highway in Guiguinto town.

The winner in Zamboanga del Sur purchased the ticket from a betting station along Urro street in San Francisco District, Pagadian City.

Robles said 46 bettors each won the second prize of P120,000 for betting on five digits of the winning combination.

The Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion or TRAIN law imposes a 20-percent tax on winnings above P10,000.

The Ultra Lotto 6/58 is drawn every Tuesday, Friday and Sunday.