by Ferry Bayu | Sep 1, 2023 | Business
Easy Franchise unveils programs for PH entrepreneurs
EASY Franchise, the Philippines’ first go-to platform for franchising, kicked off its annual “Franchise Day” last August 28, marking the third consecutive year of the pioneering online franchise sale.
As the first and only online franchise sale in the country, Franchise Day aims to make franchising more accessible to Filipino business owners and investors.
Since its inception in February 2019, Easy Franchise has been helping interested franchisees to choose the right franchise or package that fits their needs.
Ongoing until September 28, interested franchisees can apply for franchises online and take advantage of deals and discounts, with savings of up to P100,000 on select franchises such as Mister Donut, Ate Rica’s Bacsilog, Razon’s by Glenn, Aquaskin, H2O Mineral Plus, Cha Tuk Chak milk tea and many more.
Easy Franchise also introduced its Franchise Incubation Program to help starting business owners expand and become the next big franchise. This program offers end-to-end solutions, distinguishing it from traditional franchise packages.
In addition, the Easy Franchise Brand Awards was also launched in this year’s edition of Franchise Day. These awards aim to recognize collaborative and fast-growing franchisor brands that are making notable contributions to the franchising industry.
For more information on the Easy Franchise Brand Awards winners and for franchising inquiries, visit www.EasyFranchise.com or Easy Franchise’s social media.
by Ferry Bayu | Sep 1, 2023 | Awards and Competitions
The Asia Artist Awards 2023 will be held in the Philippines
The Asia Artist Awards 2023 (AAA) will be held in the Philippines.
Various Korean outlets have first reported the happy story with Star News saying the 2023 AAA will take place on December 14 at the Philippine Arena.
Running the same press release, Naver says the event is “where you can meet the movie, drama, and K-pop stars who have shined this year in one place.”
Both outlets have said the event will be co-hosted by Pulp Live World — alongside Star News, the Asia Arts Awards Organizing Committee, and TONZ Entertainment.
While the Philippine concert promoters have yet to announce anything on social media, a representative from Pulp Live World has confirmed the news to be true.
“Yes it is true,” the Pulp representative said to GMA News Online on email and SMS, adding they will be sending more details in the days to come.
Yes, we also cannot wait!
Asia Artist Awards is “the first integrated awards ceremony in Korea” that recognizes actors and singers. It first took place in 2016.
starnewskorea.com2023 아시아 아티스트 어워즈(AAA), 12월 14일 필리핀 개최[공식] – 스타뉴스글로벌 NO.1 시상식 ‘Asia Artist Awards(아시아 아티스트 어워즈)’가 오는 12월 14일 필리핀에서 열린다. 스타뉴스가 주최하는 ‘2023 Asia Artist Awards IN PHILIPPINE'(이하 ‘2023 AAA’)는 오는 12월 14일 필리핀 ‘필리핀 아레나(PHILIPPINE ARENA)’에서 개최를 확정, 차원이 다른…
by Ferry Bayu | Aug 31, 2023 | Business
Kyndryl and Twimbit reveal APAC banks’ remarkable progress in purpose-driven growth, achieving an impressive 9% aggregate revenue growth
The Bank of Tomorrow 2023 report, produced in collaboration with Kyndryl, aims to uncover the journey of the top 44 banks across the Asia Pacific region. Here, we meticulously assess the growth drivers that have propelled their success, benchmarking them based on five foundational pillars. Moreover, this report offers a strategic view, highlighting how top APAC banks can triumph in the market by capitalising on purpose-driven growth opportunities.
Within the top 44 banks across the region, fee-based income accounts for an average of 13.66% of revenues
SINGAPORE — Kyndryl (NYSE: KD), the world’s largest IT infrastructure services provider, today announced the launch of the Bank of Tomorrow 2023 report in collaboration with research and advisory firm Twimbit. The report offers a thorough assessment of Asia Pacific (APAC) banks and outlines the projected 2023 outlook, tracking their advancements across five purpose pillars — Shareholders, Employees, Partners and Suppliers, ESG, and Customers.
Centred around Twimbit’s Purpose Index, which helps APAC’s leading banking and financial institutions migrate to the future desired state of being purpose-driven organisations, a couple of key trends emerged. Among the 44 top banks in APAC, a remarkable 16 new entrants were found to be making significant strides in both purpose-driven initiatives and growth. Additionally, spanning four purpose pillars — Customer experience, employee experience, supplier satisfaction, and ESG impact — DBS Bank retained its leading position. The bank not only commands the highest purpose score but also boasts above-average profitability. In close pursuit, Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) secured the second-highest purpose score while maintaining a commendable level of profitability.
Chinese banks remained the most prominent, with the highest revenue size and above-average profitability whilst banks in India were seen to enjoy higher growth rates than many of their peers in other countries. Highlighted in Exhibit 1 are some of the key highlights.
Exhibit 1: A benchmark of the 44 banks according to the Twimbit Purpose Index
Source: Twimbit
“These insights are poised to exert substantial influence on the strategies of businesses and financial institutions, shaping their trajectory towards innovation and expansion. In the case of SCB’s strong performance, credit is largely attributed to their proactive endeavours in bolstering fee-based incomes,” said Manoj Menon, CEO at Twimbit. “We believe fee-based income will become a key growth driver for banks, enabling the generation of alternative revenue streams to drive profitability.”
Exhibit 2: Top 4 Banks to champion fee-based income via digital channels
Source: Twimbit
The importance of fee-based income in driving revenues
In APAC, banks allocated an average of 2.96 percent of their revenues toward information and communications technology (ICT) while the recommended benchmark should hover around 10 percent of revenues.
An example of such divergence is the Bank of Philippine Islands (BPI), which recently announced a significant 50 percent surge in IT spending, propelling its status as a digital frontrunner. Additionally, the National Australia Bank (NAB) stands out as a paragon, showcasing a growth of 16 percent in ICT spending year-on-year.
This increase in investment will drive digital transformation and boost fee-based income growth. Currently, fee-based income is at an average of 14 percent contribution to total revenues, with expectations that the four leading banks will increase their total contribution to 35 percent of revenues by 2030.
“Kyndryl is dedicated to designing, building, managing, and modernising the mission-critical technology systems that the world depends on everyday. We are proud to unveil the Bank of Tomorrow report in partnership with Twimbit, which will significantly impact how businesses and financial institutions will drive innovation and growth moving forward. This industry-wide initiative is aimed to drive invisible banking, achieve a ‘Carbon Neutral 2030’, champion sustainability and promote employee well-being.,” said Susan Follis, Managing Director of ASEAN at Kyndryl.
A purpose-driven future pressures banks to reassess their growth journeys
The report also highlighted that the increasing emphasis on adopting digital-first strategies has gained substantial traction, especially in the advancement of the four purpose pillars. This surge in digital channels has marked a transformative shift within the banking sector.
Prominent aspects include DBS’s sustained leadership in CX banking, evident through the accomplishments of DBS Rapid, DBS BetterWorld, and DBS PayLah. SCB’s efforts to harness state-of-the-art technology to propel sustainable financial practices and ESG initiatives, as demonstrated through applications and initiatives like Robinhood and SCB SME Academy. National Australia Bank’s (NAB) digitalised supply chain supporting invoice automation and online catalogues and BPI scoring 90 percent on employee engagement for implementing comprehensive training programs that significantly enhance EX.
“The financial world is undergoing a tectonic shift fuelled by fintech innovation, new technologies, volatile markets, digital finance, and rising cyber threats. In this transformative era, banks must be empowered to navigate change and unlock the true potential of data and AI to improve products and services for their customers. Kyndryl stands at the forefront of this change and is ready to steer businesses towards data-driven innovation and customer-centricity for banking success,” said Susan Follis.
Read the full report “The Bank of Tomorrow 2023: A Benchmark of the leading banks in APAC” for more information.
Twimbit is a research and advisory firm driven by a singular mission: to empower businesses making a difference. We specialize in providing invaluable industry intelligence to executives and teams, acting as a catalyst for innovation and growth. Twimbit’s proprietary research platform seeks to revolutionize the way enterprises consume insights, making it effortlessly enjoyable and accessible to all.
More information on twimbit is available online at www.twimbit.com. Follow news and updates from Twimbit on Twitter and LinkedIn. Members of the media can find additional information in the Twimbit newsroom.
Vansh Sehgal
va***@*****it.com
by Ferry Bayu | Aug 31, 2023 | Business
Jollibee Group, San Miguel Foods in long-term cooperation to nourish Filipinos with delicious quality food
For 45 years, home-grown Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC) strived to only work with reputable suppliers that share the same passion for food quality, food safety, and go beyond these to extend themselves towards driving sustainable operations.
It is no surprise then that San Miguel Foods Incorporated (SMFI) has been a partner to JFC across decades with SMFI supplying fresh, quality poultry products for Jollibee Chickenjoy, and providing other products such as pizza toppings, hams, bacon, butter, cheese and flour for the different restaurant brands of JFC .
As Filipino-owned companies deeply rooted in the value of malasakit or concern for others, both SMFI and JFC work hard every day to nourish and nurture Filipinos by providing food that is fresh, delicious, safe, high in quality, and offer value for money. Both companies are proud in being Filipino-born companies competing in the global arena, being professionally managed, customer-centered, strategic and yet, flexible.
Beyond common values, the longstanding cooperation of JFC and SMFI is attributable to strategically aligned goals further strengthened by mutual respect, transparency of business directions and challenges, and commitment to find solutions to address ever-changing consumer demands.
Sustainability
Both JFC and SMFI’s commitment towards improving its impact towards society and environment has been manifested in each company’s sustainability architecture. For Jollibee Group, it has made significant strides over its 45-year history in various community and energy saving projects, and is now consolidating all its sustainability efforts into “Joy for Tomorrow,” the company’s Global Sustainability Agenda.
The “Joy for Tomorrow” centers on three pillars—food, people, and the planet. This is a more cohesive framework that unites the Jollibee Group community, including employees, business partners, suppliers, vendors, and other stakeholders, toward a set of shared sustainability goals.
On SMFI’s end, its sustainability agenda focuses on four overarching goals which are to establish a circular economy approach by 2040, to achieve Net Zero by 2050, to uplift the lives of at least 15 million people by 2030 and have a fully sustainable and ethical supply chain by 2040.
To achieve these targets, it has implemented key initiatives that help reduce its impact on the environment and improve the quality of life of Filipinos. These include repurposing some by-products from its production as raw materials for feeds, installing rainwater harvest systems in its facilities to conserve water, and tapping renewable energy sources such as solar energy and biomass.
Outlook
As the two companies further extend its collaboration, both remain focused on being customer-centric, from the area of product innovations to market reach expansion.
SMFI lauds JFC for prioritizing listening to its consumers and knowing them well, enabling it to develop the most innovative products that directly meet the customer’s wants and needs. Hence, it sees JFC not only retaining its market leadership in the Philippines but also continuing its successful expansion to other parts of the world.
JFC recognizes the depth and breadth of SMFI’s initiatives to instill high standards of quality in its food offerings and new product development and to deliver these with minimal impact to the planet while maximizing its positive effect to communities. It applauds SMFI for exhibiting characteristics of a world-class food producer and counts on it as one of its top suppliers that helps the Jollibee Group fulfill its mission to serve great tasting food that brings joy to everyone.
by Ferry Bayu | Aug 31, 2023 | Business
Asiamoney affirms RCBC’s digital dominance with 4-Peat win
MANILA, Philippines – For a fourth consecutive year, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) was named once again the Philippines’ Best Bank for Digital Solutions by Asiamoney for 2023, solidifying its position as the undisputed digital banking trailblazer in the country.
RCBC is recognized for its roster of Innovations with Empathy, an array of digital solutions which champions massive digital transformation and supports the financial inclusion efforts of the government, all whilst cultivating a culture of customer service excellence.
“RCBC isn’t just building sustainable, impactful, and inclusive digital finance solutions, it is also working hard to expand digital access for every Filipino by positioning itself as a strong ally of government efforts to increase financial inclusion; catalyzing digital payment transformations; bringing financial services to unbanked and underserved communities; and reinvigorating innovation,” Asiamoney said in a statement.
“Anytime RCBC reports earnings these days, analysts immediately turn to its digital transaction growth. Indeed, its digital focus is a key reason why RCBC is one of the fastest-growing banks in the Philippines,” Asiamoney added.
Asiamoney hailed RCBC as The Best Bank for Digital Solutions in the Philippines for delivering digital financial services based on a contextual banking strategy that aims to understand the Philippine landscape. Through this, RCBC has effectively implemented pioneering, high-impact, human-centric and demand driven digital financial innovations through RCBC Digital, RCBC DiskarTech, RCBC ATMGo and RCBC Moneybela Barangayan Banking, successfully marked with speed and scale.
“We are delighted with the recognition, and it further inspires us to serve more of our countrymen with our innovative digital solutions. And with our intensified use of data science and artificial intelligence, we continue to be committed to make a difference in the lives of our customers,” RCBC President and CEO Eugene S. Acevedo said.
RCBC’s series of wins come from the success of RCBC Moneybela Barangayan Banking, the country’s first physical-digital or phygital blended banking service. Fusing the warmth of physical banking with the ease of digital, RCBC’s banking experience support agents delivered vital financial services to thousands of rural barangays nationwide. Through MoneyBela, RCBC was able to introduce RCBC DiskarTech to low-income, geographically-disadvantaged communities. This was regarded as the world’s first multi-lingual financial inclusion super app in the vernacular catering to the mass market. The Philippines’ mass market is comprised of approximately 98 percent of the socio-economic class in the country. Financial services such as savings, fund transfers, mobile loads, telemedicine, insurance, and loans are made accessible and convenient to the Filipino mass market.
RCBC also launched ATMGo, the country’s first grassroots-based, bank agnostic, and last mile automated teller machine. ATMGo utilizes mobile point-of-sale devices to dispense financial services in remote and disadvantaged communities at village hotspots like the public markets, sari-sari stores, and public transportation hubs. RCBC is the only private universal bank to have the most extensive reach covering all provinces in the Philippines even covering the entire Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, boasting over 1,400 terminals deployed at the end of 2022 and poised to grow to 10,000 units or a projected year-on-year growth of 614%.
ATM Go has been the Philippine government’s trusted digital payment disbursement partner even before and at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which continues until present for the withdrawals of social welfare benefits for Conditional Cash Transfer household recipients under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) of the national government. Close to 70% of its transactions are cash withdrawals of Pantawid CCT household beneficiaries done in rural areas. Even conflict-prone communities such as Lake Sebu in South Cotabato are able to enjoy convenient and real-time banking within the comforts of their community.
Through RCBC’s phygital services, it was able to boost bank onboarding in underserved areas by 210%. ATMGo has reached a total of 13,116 barangays or approximately 31% of the 42,000 total barangays nationwide, only six months since the program was launched last November 2022.
“We are incredibly grateful to be recognized once again by Asiamoney for our dedication towards scaling inclusive digital finance, and our determination to make digital banking more accessible and convenient for every Filipino, especially empowering our micro, small and medium enterprises,” said Lito Villanueva, RCBC Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation and Inclusion Officer.
“Prestigious awards such as this validate our constant hard work and efforts in bringing banking to the people. This solidifies our unwavering commitment to providing innovative, socially-sensitive, and tailor-fit digital products and services that are not only cutting-edge, but most importantly, created with our clients’ needs in mind,” Villanueva added.
Despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic impacts of the global health crisis, RCBC emerged as one of the fastest growing banks in the Philippines after it leaped from its 8th position in 2018 to 5th position in 2022 in the list of the country’s biggest banks in terms of assets.
RCBC is one of the country’s fastest-growing banks, and the most awarded for its banking innovations. It is now the Philippines’ 5th largest privately-owned universal bank that breached the P1-Trillion asset mark by the end of June 2022 despite the COVID-19 pandemic. RCBC’s continuing digital and business transformation further enhanced its value and reach. With this, RCBC has become the most awarded bank in the Philippines. Among its global and local recognitions include a four-peat award as the Philippines’ Best Bank for Digital by Asiamoney, back-to-back wins for Best Financial Inclusion App by The Asian Banker’s Financial Technology Innovations Awards, and the YouTube challenger award for its viral and out-of-the-box digital ad campaigns generating combined views of over 17 million. Just recently, RCBC was also hailed as Grand Champion for Digital Payments and Financial Inclusion by the Bankers Institute of the Philippines.
Bianca Therese Libinting
bj*********@**bc.com
+63 927 130 5976
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