MIC taps banking, finance veterans to beef up board

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February 22, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Maharlika Investment Corp. (MIC) has appointed two seasoned figures in banking and finance to its board of directors, a move the state-owned firm said would bolster governance and support its next phase of capital deployment.

Malacañang recently announced the appointment of Rolando Peñaflor as regular director and Enrico Cruz as independent director. The additions come as MIC, which manages the country’s sovereign wealth fund, prepares to ramp up investments across priority sectors.

In a statement, the MIC said the appointments “reinforce the corporation’s commitment to robust governance, institutional independence and the pursuit of long-term value for the Filipino people.”

Peñaflor will serve as regular director for a three-year term. He brings nearly four decades of experience in corporate banking and management.

He previously served as senior vice president in corporate banking at Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands for 38 years. He also held leadership roles as president of Jardiniano Development Corp., AspireA Development Corp. and Oro de Siete Productions, with exposure to real estate and film production.

Cruz, meanwhile, joins as independent director with 40 years of professional experience. He has served on the boards of five publicly listed companies and five private firms across finance, retail, real estate and healthcare.

MIC president and CEO Rafael Consing Jr. said the new directors would play a critical role as the institution scales up operations.

“Their depth of experience and independent perspective will be invaluable as we continue to build a disciplined, transparent, and globally credible sovereign investment institution,” Consing said.

“These appointments strengthen our collective expertise as MIC transitions into a period of decisive capital deployment across priority sectors of the Philippine economy,” he added.

The two new members join a board that has been steadily reinforced over the past year. In July 2025, Stephen CuUnjieng, former chairman and CEO of Evercore Asia, was appointed as independent director and now chairs the MIC’s investment committee.

Independent director Roman Felipe Reyes, a certified public accountant and founding partner of Reyes Tacandong & Co., chairs the audit committee. The board is chaired by Finance Secretary Frederick Go.

MIC is the sole entity mandated to mobilize and manage the Maharlika Investment Fund, the Philippines’ first sovereign wealth fund created under Republic Act 11954.

The corporation is tasked with making strategic investments in high-impact sectors such as infrastructure, energy, agriculture and digitalization, with the goal of generating returns that support long-term national development.