The Philippines, through Special Envoy of the President to the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Finance Secretary Ralph G. Recto, has garnered strong business interest in Artificial Intelligence (AI) investments during the WEF Annual Meeting held in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland from January 20 to 24, 2025.

At the Philippine Breakfast Interaction attended by close to 50 international public and private sector leaders, the Finance Chief spotlighted the Philippines’ strategic advantages that position it as an ideal partner in building the economy of the future.

Central to this pitch were the attractive fiscal and non-fiscal incentives under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises to Maximize Opportunities for Reinvigorating the Economy (CREATE MORE) Act that will ensure the long-term success of businesses and potentially position the country as a hub for AI innovation.

Aside from the CREATE MORE Act, Secretary Recto said the Philippine government has been expanding its digital infrastructure through the Philippine Digital Infrastructure Project, the National Broadband Program, and the Common Tower Program to enhance digital connectivity nationwide—particularly in underserved areas.

Moreover, the government has implemented regulations in the digital space to strengthen oversight of digital businesses, such as the Internet Transactions Act and the value-added tax on non-resident digital services.

To take advantage of its demographic sweet spot, the government is continuously upskilling the Filipino workforce through its Artificial Intelligence Strategy Roadmap.

Secretary Recto was joined by House Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ma. Cristina A. Roque, and Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Manuel Antonio J Teehankee during the briefing.

The Breakfast Interaction gathered key business figures, including Marcus Wallenberg, Chairman of Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken; Philippe Amon, Chairman and CEO of SICPA SA; Catarina Amon, CEO and Founder of Classeek; Anthony Tan, CEO and Co-Founder of Grab; John Riady, Group CEO of Lippo Indonesia; Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia; and Calvin Choi, CEO of AMTD.

Also present were Jay Collins, Vice Chairman of Citi; Helena Lersch, Vice President of Public Policy of Tiktok; Amit Kalyani, Vice-Chairman and Joint Managing Director of Kalyani Strategic Systems Limited; and Albert Chang, Managing Partner of Southeast Asia, McKinsey & Co., among others.

Representatives from HCLSoftware, ING, Glencore International, BHP, and Bitkub Capital Group Holdings were also in attendance.

In addition to the main event, Secretary Recto held one-on-one meetings with senior executives from leading companies, who expressed keen interest in collaborating with the Philippines to leverage AI for enhancing financial inclusion, strengthening the healthcare system, upskilling the Filipino workforce, and more.

Leading US cryptocurrency company Coinbase Co-founder and CEO Brian Armstrong initiated a meeting with Secretary Recto to convey its strong interest in expanding its footprint to the Philippines, recognizing the country’s growing digital economy and the increasing adoption of blockchain technology.

In response, the Finance Chief welcomed Coinbase’s interest and emphasized the Philippine government’s commitment to fostering innovation in the financial sector. He also expressed the government’s willingness to provide a robust regulatory framework that supports cryptocurrency adoption while safeguarding consumer protection and financial stability.

A meeting was also held between Secretary Recto and Revolut Chairman Martin Gilbert to discuss the company’s strong interest in entering the Philippines—a move that could establish its footprint in the ASEAN. Revolut is a global financial technology leader and licensed digital bank in the UK and Europe.

During the meeting, it underscored the Philippines as a highly attractive market due to its vibrant talent pool and significant opportunities in the digital economy. Among Revolut’s strategic edge highlighted were its diverse global presence and innovative financial offerings that will empower Filipinos and small businesses with improved credit access and more competitive foreign exchange solutions.

Meanwhile, ING Chairman Karl Guha and CEO Steven van Rijswijk met with Secretary Recto to explore more partnership opportunities with the Philippines, particularly in leveraging AI in its ING hubs.

ING highlighted the Philippines’ strategic importance, including being a key hub for its operations with 6,000 of its 14,000 global workforce based in the country. The leading European bank is set to launch soon its pioneering use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in the Philippines, making it the next country after the Netherlands and Germany to host live GenAI applications.

Furthermore, HCLSoftware’s Chief Revenue Officer Rajiv Shesh and Chief Product Officer Kalyan Kumar engaged with Secretary Recto to discuss potential collaborations in advancing the Philippines’ digital transformation agenda.

HCLSoftware is a global leader in technology solutions, specializing in intelligent operations, data and analytics, and cybersecurity.

The company expressed keen interest in supporting research and development initiatives and fostering local talent to cultivate a new generation of highly skilled tech engineers in the Philippines.

HCLSoftware also affirmed its commitment to partner with the government in developing software technologies. They offered to share best practices and innovative solutions of other governments worldwide to help enhance the Philippines’ technological backbone.

Secretary Recto also met with Visa Vice Chair and Chief People and Corporate Affairs Officer Kelly Mahon Tullier, along with Global Head of Government Engagement Robert Thomson, where the company reaffirmed its strong commitment to supporting the Philippines’ digitalization programs.

This follows Secretary Recto’s visit to Visa’s Data and Cyber Fusion Center in Ashburn, Virginia in April 2024, where the company shared its global best practices to help advance the Finance Chief’s goal of fully modernizing the country’s tax system.

The discussions also touched on how Visa can help enhance trust, strengthen cybersecurity, and improve efficiency in the country’s financial transactions, including cross-border payments and remittances for overseas Filipino workers.

Visa praised the exceptional talent of the Filipino workforce and expressed its enthusiasm for expanding its presence in the Philippines, where it already employs about 1,000 workers.

In a meeting with Philips CEO Roy Jakobs and Vice President for Global Government and Public Affairs Jan-Willem Scheijgrond, both sides also explored opportunities for advancing digital healthcare solutions in the Philippines.

Philips is a global leader in health technology committed to leveraging innovation to transform healthcare delivery and outcomes.

During the dialogue, Philips expressed its willingness to partner with the Philippine government, the private sector, and major technology players to help deliver cutting-edge healthcare solutions in the country.

Aside from AI-related developments, Secretary Recto also met with Coca-Cola’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Henrique Braun to brief him on the investment opportunities available under the CREATE MORE Act.

Secretary Recto also engaged with leading banks such as Citi and HSBC to discuss their robust operations in the Philippines.

Citi expressed its commitment to supporting the Philippines in its “Road to A” strategy. It also provided updates on its partnership with the government financial institutions to enhance payment solutions, with a focus on strengthening cybersecurity measures.

Meanwhile, HSBC reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the government in its investment and fundraising initiatives.

Secretary Recto held a one-on-one meeting with AirAsia CEO Anthony F. Fernandes to discuss strategic opportunities for the airline’s expansion in the Philippines. The company plans to establish a maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) facility in the country, which is expected to generate more jobs and position the Philippines as a regional hub for aviation services.

To further promote the Philippines’ investment attractiveness and showcase its stable economic environment, the Finance Chief was featured in a series of interviews with global media outlets such as Bloomberg, Reuters, CNBC, and The Wall Street Journal.

He also represented the Asia Pacific Region at a lunch with distinguished economic forecasters to discuss 2025 scenarios and gain insights into the emerging trends poised to shape the global economy.

Secretary Recto also took part in the ASEAN Leaders for Just Energy Transition Forum to advance the region’s shared commitment to a just and equitable clean energy transition. He was joined by the Prime Minister of Malaysia Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and key business leaders in the energy and transportation sectors.