Philippines confidence endures political strife – AVCJ Forum

"We may or may not agree with the actions of the government or the president but regardless, it has been a very democratic process, and I would say that for the last 10-15 years, it has been a smooth transition from government to government," Adrian Teng, group finance director at Jardine Cycle & Carriage, told delegates in a session on cross-border M&A. "That is a powerful macro factor that should not be discounted as one compares [the Philippines] to other countries."

Joey Concepcion, presidential adviser for entrepreneurship, said in a keynote address that instability in the local equities market and weaker foreign direct investment are due to political distraction. Concepcion, who is also chairman of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council, spoke in exasperated tones about his recent experiences fielding critical questions about Duterte's reputation, equating the feedback to "bandwagon" behavior.

"Not everybody voted for him, but the greater majority did, so are we just going to pull him down and make it worse? And you guys who invest in the Philippines will lose whatever you invested in," Concepcion said. "There's no other way but to make him succeed – the more we bash this administration, it's not going to help us.

"The people have spoken. Unless you want to have a coup, let's try and help this administration."

Another panel on expanding the reach of private equity in the country also weighed in on the subject, with Gladys Enhaynes, a director at ICCP SBI Venture Partners, describing the country as "very resilient" across changes in government.

"That is because about 70% of our economy is accounted for by consumption," Enhaynes said. "So whoever the president is, the people will still continue to consume and buy. We're not afraid of politics."

Cyrus Driver, managing director and head of Asia private equity at Partners Group, said that his firm considered macro risk across two distinct areas, including quantifiable factors such as currency exchange rates and softer regulatory issues that require more subjective decision-making. He concluded that the weakened Philippine peso was likely to continue depreciating, but expressed confidence in the country's government.

"From our firm's perspective, we actually see the Philippines as a very stable political environment, personalities aside," Driver said. "Individuals don't matter that much, but the perception of stability, growth and sensible governance on the fiscal and economic side is really important, and we're positive on the Philippines from that point of view."

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