FINEX advocacies through the decades
AS a members 50- part year of of tradition an the organization Financial of excellence, Executives with Institute of the Philippines (FINEX) actively participate through its 27 standing and special committees, whose chairs are appointed every year by the incumbent Board of Directors. These committees are the real workhorses of FINEX in carrying out its programs and advocacies, ably assisted by the FINEX Secretariat.
To name a few, the Professional Development Committee handles the training programs and seminars for members, while the Programs and Meetings Committee organizes the monthly General Membership Meetings featuring speakers on relevant and burning issues of the day.
The FINEX Week Committee is in charge of the Annual Conference that gathers the biggest attendance of finance executives in the country every October. This year, they plan to invite another international keynote speaker as they did in 2017 with Mahathir bin Mohammad, former (and future) Prime Minister of Malaysia.
in signed Committee, recent to the years the Good have Tax Governance and been Legal as- Committee, Affairs Committee, and the which National has a specialized National Budget Study Group. The latest to be organized is the Women in Finance Committee, signaling the advent of female empowerment in FINEX.
policy reforms is the Capital Markets Development Committee, focusing lately on proposed amendments to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Charter, the General Banking Law, the Securitization Law, and the Real Estate Investment Trust Act. FINEX also co- chairs the Capital Market Development Council along with the Department of Finance and the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are currently Market Blueprint for 2018-2022.
Financial excellence
Three FINEX committees stand out when it comes to the promotion of financial excellence in the country. Most visible on a nationwide basis is the Junior FINEX Committee or JFinex, the organizational arm that deals with business and finance students in partnership with JPMorgan Chase & Co. Its major activities include the Inter- Collegiate Finance Competition, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year; the JFinex Future Business and Finance Leaders Forum, a series of fora conducted in key regional centers of education; and the first- ever JFinex Summit this coming September.
Recognizing that financial education is a critical component of tertiary level studies, the FINEX Foundation through its Business Education Committee spearheads the Outstanding Finance Educator Awards. This most outstanding finance faculty members began in 2008 and will mark its 10th edition in 2018. CITI Foundation partnered with FINEX in this endeavor from school years 2008- 2009 to 2011- 2012, followed by Deloitte Philippines starting school year 2012- 2013 to the present.
In terms of honor and prestige, the CFO of the Year Awards Committee would be unbeatable with its annual search for the ING-FINEX CFO of the Year, copresented by the Manila Branch of Dutch financial giant ING Bank N.V. Now on its 12th year,
A more recent annual event Ayala- FINEX Finance Summit, designed to bring together the discussion on the diverse and evolving roles played by to to provide an opportunity for FINEX members to gain insights from successful CEOs and CFOs on how best to deal with emerging challenges that come with their responsibilities.
Vision 2018
Ten years ago, the FINEX 40th Anniversary Committee headed by past president Dennis Decena launched the Order of the Golden Phoenix (OGP), an organization of benefactors committed to the rejuvenation and revitalization of FINEX.
OGP embarked on the FINEX Capital Fund Campaign that transfer in September 2008 to its new office site in Salcedo Village, Makati City–the FINEX Roberto de Ocampo Center for Financial Excellence.
Two years later, the Ad Hoc Committee on Vision 2018 led by Past President Corazon Dela Paz-Bernardo proposed the following “signature projects” for
• Implementation of the Global Accreditation System for Financial Executives, to be established by the International Association of Financial Executives Institutes to support pro accreditation systems from a global viewpoint, with an accompanying Continuing Professional Education system to renew accreditations.
• Establishment of the FINEX Academy, to consolidate under its ambit all the FINEX seminars, training, and education-oriented activities in the nature of professional development.
• More inclusive Social Security System, towards which a survey of the needs of Filipinos for social protection is to be undertaken, encompassing the whole spectrum of social services including medical, hospitalization, and health maintenance - tirement and pension funds.
• National Budget Reform advocacy, since the national budget financial legislation regularly produced by Congress, for which FINEX must lend its reputational capital to "do the right things right."
• Capital Market Development advocacy, as FINEX continues to formulate and support legislation that will develop the domestic capital market and markets in the region to facilitate budgets.
Among these five flagship projects, the last two are on their way to being achieved, while the other three can be jump- started during FINEX's eventually fulfilled by 2028– in time for the Diamond Jubilee of FINEX.