MANILA — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is encouraging Philippine manufacturers to raise funds through the capital markets to bankroll business expansion, including investments in production capacity, machinery, and entry into new markets.

SEC Chairperson Francis Ed. Lim said manufacturers could weigh securities-based crowdfunding, private placements, and stock market listings, depending on their size, financing needs, and readiness to satisfy regulatory requirements.

“Kaya kapag handa na kayo, bukas ang capital market para sa inyo” (When you are ready, the capital market is open to you), Mr. Lim said in a keynote address at the Federation of Philippine Industries (FPI) Business Summit 2026 last week.

Smaller and growing enterprises, he said, could explore securities-based crowdfunding, private placements, or listings on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) SME Board, subject to applicable requirements. Larger, more established companies, meanwhile, could raise capital through initial public offerings (IPOs), bond issuances, and follow-on equity offerings. The options map to different stages of a company’s development: crowdfunding pools smaller contributions from a broad base of investors, private placements place securities with selected investors, and an IPO opens a company’s shares to the investing public on the exchange.

The SEC has also rolled out simplified securities registration frameworks for specific industries — agribusiness, hospitals, real estate companies with rental pool arrangements, and power generation and distribution firms. The initiatives include SEC FARMS for agribusiness, SEC HOPES for hospitals, SEC RENT for certain real estate-related securities, and SEC POWERS for the power sector. Each framework is designed to facilitate capital raising by streamlining the applicable securities registration requirements. Manufacturers were not part of that sector-specific rollout, leaving the general pathways Mr. Lim outlined — crowdfunding, private placements, and listings — as the routes available to them.

“Capital formation should not be one-size-fits-all,” Mr. Lim said.

He likewise urged manufacturers to strengthen corporate governance, internal controls, and financial reporting to improve their readiness to access capital market financing. “So even if an IPO is years away, maghanda na kayo ngayon (you prepare now),” he said.

Registration and Compliance Relief

Alongside its capital market agenda, the SEC is pursuing measures to simplify company registration, cut regulatory compliance costs, and improve access to its services.

As of Aug. 31, the regulator had 29,171 active registered manufacturing companies, an increase of 1,331 from a year earlier — the pool of firms the SEC is urging to consider market-based financing. Under its OneSEC ZERO program, qualified applicants can complete company registration within one day across 100 industry classifications, including manufacturing. The SEC’s eAMEND platform likewise allows companies to process 28 types of amendments to their corporate registration documents online.

Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) may qualify for a 20% discount on incorporation fees, subject to applicable requirements. Mr. Lim said those discounts had generated roughly P174 million in savings for MSMEs, while reductions in fees for corporate documents had saved the public more than P325 million. The fee relief lowers the cost of entering the formal corporate system, the starting point from which the SEC wants companies to build toward market financing.

Other regulatory measures include higher thresholds for the mandatory submission of audited financial statements, the discontinuation of monthly compounding of certain penalties, and relief programs for companies with outstanding regulatory obligations.

The SEC is also pursuing its proposed One Business Start Date framework, which seeks to allow qualified enterprises to begin commercial operations upon SEC registration or the issuance of the required primary regulatory license while completing other government registration and permitting requirements in parallel. The proposal remains subject to the necessary legal and regulatory approvals and would not automatically exempt businesses from permits or licenses required under existing laws. Whether it clears those approvals will mark how far the SEC’s streamlining agenda can extend beyond its own registration processes.

“Every hour saved can help fill an order,” Mr. Lim said.

Outreach and Community Impact

The regulator is also conducting outreach activities — including the Juan with SEC Caravan, capital formation roadshows, CAFE SEC, and SEC CAN! — to inform businesses about regulatory requirements and available capital-raising options.

“The Philippines does not merely need more businesses. We need more Filipino businesses that can grow,” Mr. Lim said.

He noted that business expansion could create employment opportunities, increase demand for local suppliers, and support economic activity in communities. “When a Filipino company grows, it does not grow alone. It creates more jobs, gives suppliers new markets, strengthens communities, and gives families more secure livelihoods. And when it becomes globally competitive, it carries the Philippine name with it,” he said.

Mr. Lim called on the FPI to encourage its members to prepare for expansion and to identify regulatory barriers that could hinder their access to financing. — Alexandria Grace C. Magno