Bankero and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Felipe Medalla suggests that taking in the investment arms of multilateral lenders such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank as strategic partners will likely boost the attractiveness of the proposed Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF).
The BSP governor also noted that the proposed MIF is superior to the National Development Co., the investment arm of the Philippine government, and that the central bank’s concerns regarding the use of the country’s gross international reserves as a potential source of MIF funds have been resolved.
The use of funds from Social Security System (SSS) and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) have also been resolved.
Meanwhile, according to the governor, the proposed MIF should be made to make strategic investments such as buying back the National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) as well as greenhouse gases to attract foreign investors.
“For instance, I think the privatization of transmission might have been a bad move. It’s too strategic and then of course selling it to the Chinese, from a security standpoint. Maybe it’s a good use for this fund to buy it back,” Medalla said.
The Marcos administration is currently seeking a highly qualified person to lead the proposed fund’s management, according to Medalla.
