Maharlika Wealth Fund could work if done right — Concepcion
MANILA, Philippines — Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion said a P275-billion sovereign wealth fund called Maharlika Wealth Fund could provide vast investment opportunities for the Philippines if its trust and timing issues are addressed.
Concepcion suggested investing in big-ticket projects and the service of experts and professional managers from the private sector.
“Through these funds, people can participate in these big projects, and not just the big, private funds will benefit from the earnings,” he said.
“We missed out on opportunities like Transco, Malampaya, BGC and Semirara because we didn’t have a fund like this when these were bidded out. Transco was already profitable, and then the private sector took it to another level. The land value now in BGC has skyrocketed, and Semirara’s productivity has increased. Imagine how much the country could have earned if we had a fund like this back then,” he added.
The projects, according to the Go Negosyo founder, should be managed by the private sector for the level of trust to increase.
“Right now, it is not clear how the fund will operate. But if you want the people’s buy-in with this fund, you should assure them that it will be run by people who have no conflicts of interest and are very capable of turning in a profit for the fund,” Concepcion said.
The fund should be invested mainly in Philippine infrastructure and must be limited to 10% to 20% in its investments. Concepcion also said the proposal can benefit from correct timing.
“I understand why it’s an unpopular proposal. We have just come out of the pandemic and we are all feeling the rise in interest rates and high prices,” he said.
“It doesn’t have to be the whole P275 billion. It could be done in tranches,” he added.
Under the guidelines set in House Bill 6398, the P250-billion sovereign wealth fund aims to pool government money to invest in different sectors both domestically and internationally.
If enacted, the bill would order state pension funds Government Service Insurance System and the Social Security System, as well as state-owned lenders Land Bank of the Philippines and the Development Bank of the Philippines to provide an initial investment of P200 billion to Maharlika.
Separately, the government will inject P25 billion into Maharlika, while the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. — the gambling and casino regulator — will also contribute to the fund.
Earlier this week, several business groups joined a clarion call to oppose the Marcos Jr. administration’s plan to create this fund, owing to concerns of fiscal prudence, transparency and economic interventionism. — with reports from Ramon Royandoyan
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