THE LEADERS OF IHAP 2024. Department of Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto (center) poses for a photo following the induction of the directors and officers of IHAP. They are (from left to right) Ryan Martin L. Tapia, Ways and Means Committee; Jesus Mariano P. Ocampo, corporate secretary; Jose Ma. A. De Leon, Publications and Communications Committee; Gerry B. Valenciano, vice-president; Robert M. Lehmann, president; Arsenio Kenneth M. Ona, Debt Capital Market; Virgilio O. Chua, Equity Capital Market Committee; Aurelio Noel G. Dayrit, Ethics Committee; Gabriel U. Lim, Professional Development Committee; and Francis L. Jardeleza, Audit and Risk Management Committee.

The Investment House Association of the Philippines (IHAP) had its pledging ceremony on July 17, 2024, as a new board of directors rose to take their place. To those who don’t know, IHAP serves as a coordinating body among its members, acting as their repre- sentative between other investment houses and regulators such as the Philippine Secu- rities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
Gabriel Lim, IHAP’s chair of the professional development committee, explained in more detail: “There are a lot of regulations that are prevailing within which we, as investment banks, are expected to adhere to because we deal with instruments that are made available for sale to the public... As you know, there are a lot of get-rich-quick schemes, which victimize a lot of people. In a sense, those are supposed investments but in reality, they’re transactions which are not allowed precisely because they are not properly structured or prepared for the public.”
This year, IHAP is marking half a centuryof ensuring sound investments in the country

COMMITMENT TO SERVICE
The primary reason for IHAP’s creation was to be a catalyst for growth in the Philippine Capital Markets as a means of continuous growth in the Philippine economy. They performed this role to spread wealth not onlyto the issuers or owners of companies but more importantly to as many Filipinos as possible through both investment and employment opportunities. In doing so, the organization could help increase tax revenue so that the government can improve further and harness the Philippine economy.

Aside from this, IHAP reaffirmed its intentionto work closely with the Capital Market Development Council (CMDC), the Department of Finance (DOF), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP), the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines (Finex), the Money Market Association of the Philippines (MART), the Foreign Exchange Market (Forex), the Trust Officers Association of the Philippines (TOAP),Shareholders’ Association of the Philippines (SharePHIL), and other financials to look for ways to jumpstart the growth of the Philippine capital markets.

The Philippines Star by Vince Jose Andrade