ESPENILLA, BSP GOVERNOR, DIES
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr. died on Feb. 23 surrounded by members of his family. Hewas 60.
Espenilla used to describe himself as “homegrown” having joined the central bank in 1981.
Appointed by President Duterte in 2017, Espenilla had battled cancer that was first detected in his tongue for 15 months, taking periodic leaves of absence for his medical treatment.
BSP OIC named
At a special meeting on Saturday, the Monetary Board, which Espenilla had chaired, designated Deputy Governor Maria Almasara Cyd TuañoAmador as BSP officer in charge (OIC) until Mr. Duterte shall have designated an OIC or appointed a successor.
Espenilla had a bachelor of science degree in business economics from the University of the Philippines (UP) School of Economics, graduating magna cum laude; anMBAalso from UP; and a master of science degree in policy science from the Graduate Institute of Policy Science in Tokyo.
He is survived by wife Maria Teresita Festin Espenilla, daugh- ter Jacqueline Joyce and son-inlaw Ben Baltazar, sons Nikko Nestor and Leonardo Nestor, and grandchild Zev Eron.
“We are saddened to learn Saturday night the untimely demise of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr.,” presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo said in a statement on Sunday.
Palace gratitude
He added: “As we express our condolences to the family, friends, colleagues and loved ones of Governor Espenilla, we express our gratitude to the man once in charge of disciplining banks for his complete devotion to his work and great service to the nation.”
Economic managers of the Duterte and Aquino administrations joined in mourning the death of Espenilla.
“It’s indeed a very sad day to see one of the hardworking coworkers in government go,” said Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno. “We will miss his rigorous analysis of domestic and international economic developments. Godspeed, Nesting!”
Competence, integrity
Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said Espenilla was “an exemplar of a dedicated public servant with high competence and integrity. A big loss to the BSP and the country. He’ll be missed.”
In a tweet, Philippine Competition Commission Chair Arsenio Balisacan said “Espenilla and his predecessor, Amando Tetangco Jr., led so well the BSP and its Monetary Board, that under their watch of monetary policy, the Philippine economy has seen its longest episode of growth in the postwar period. We will miss Nesting.”
In a statement, former Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima said the country “owes a great debt of gratitude to a fine central banker—one whose tenure of service as the BSP’s chief many would agree to be much shorter than we all would have liked.”
Insurance Commissioner Dennis Funa, who sits on the AntiMoney Laundering Council (AMLC), said in a statement that Espenilla had “been resolute in improving the operations of the AMLC and in pushing for the improvement of its regulations.”
Funa said Espenilla had stopped attending council meetings just before he left for the United States to seek further treatment.
Digitalized retail payments
The BSP said Espenilla had also spearheaded the digitalization of the retail payment system in the country for a more inclusive and efficient financial system.
Before his appointment as governor, he was deputy governor in charge of the Supervision and Examination Sector, which supervises banks and nonbank financial institutions.