For further information contact BCCP at info@britcham.org.ph
Gabriella Quimson Vice Chairman Philippine British Business Council(PBBC) and His Excellency Ambassador Locsin arriving the House of Lords.
Joseph Miro Chairman of Philippine British Business Council(PBBC) was also present at a Diplomatic Reception on the Terrace of the House of Lords to hear a speech given by the Rt Hon Lord Howell of Guilford.
PBBC Members from left to right: Former British Ambassador to the Philippines Paul Dimond, David H. Bill, Rowena Romulo, Dr. Gabriella Tuason Quimson, Chairman Joseph Miro, Melissa Dizon, representatives from the UK’s Department for Business and Trade Priya Soni and John Williams, and Alistair M. Fulton, taken at the Philippine Embassy in London during their May 2024 meeting.
As the Philippine-British Business Council (PBBC) moves towards our 30th anniversary, under our new London Chairman Joseph Miro the background for the further development of bilateral trade and direct investment opportunities for both countries has never been stronger. The value of UK exports to the Philippines in the four quarters to the end of Q3 2023 was £1.3 billion (+16%), with imports of £1.7 billion (+22%). Services contributed about 40% of the former. UK outward direct investment to the Philippines in 2021 reached £449 million. In recent years, cases of inward direct investment have also grown.
In 2024, we have welcomed among others as members of the PBBC London Dr Gabriella Tuason Quimson and Mr Stephen Philips. Dr Quimson is a governance and anti-corruption specialist. Her father was Philippine Ambassador to the Court of St James’s in the 1980s. She has long experience in the UK and holds both Filipino and British citizenships, dividing her time between the two countries. Mr Philips was appointed Senior Adviser at BDO Unibank in January 2024, in a long career focused on cross-border trade, investment and finance in Asia. Before his appointment as Chief Executive of the China-Britain Business Council in 2006, he had been International Trade Director of UK Trade and Investment in the British Government.
As a business-led apolitical body, the PBBC works closely with both Governments’ trade and investment Departments, with much non-financial support from the Philippine Embassy in London and the British Embassy and the British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines in Manila. Individual PBBC members (all volunteers) have cumulative experience of trading conditions and contacts of well over 100 years. Unlike other surviving Business Councils, the PBBC itself has long adopted the policy of focus on those sectors offering the more obvious opportunities. These have included IT, agribusiness, energy and retail and we are currently aligning our focus with sectors identified by both Governments.
We offer a free service of advice in the UK to bona fide companies new to the market and are happy to hear from British firms interested in the Philippine market, whether diversifying from other ASEAN markets or completely new to the region, whether they wish to export products or services, find joint partners in the Philippines or invest there directly for longer-term market share. We are equally happy to hear from Philippine companies seeking partners in the UK or looking for direct investment opportunities.
All contacts should be directed to info@philippinebritish.com
Philippine-British Business Council
London
3 June 2024
Discover what the UK offers in finance to support major projects when buying UK Goods and services.
Clink on the link below to see a presentation of the UK Export Finance Scheme
> > UK export Finance – Competitive finance when you buy from the UK < <
Jun 10
The final programme for the Philippines Investment Business Conference on 18 June 2015 has been announced. the event will be held at Asia House, London from 09.30 to 12.30 followed by a networking lunch.
Full details are on the link below:
Final Programme – Philippines – Thursday 18 June 2015
May 05
At a recent meeting of the PBBC in London, two business delegation visits were reported.
Delegation to London 17th – 19th June 2015
A delegation led by Philippines DTI secretary Gregory Domingo will visit London. Details are still being worked on by the Philippines Embassy in London.
Delegation to Manila 10th – 13th November 2015
A delegation led by the PBBC will include the Chairman , Nigel Rich supported by Alistair Fulton, Eamonn Staunton and Martyn Skinner.
UK companies can join this delegation. Any interested UK companies should contact Eamonn Staunton at staunton1964@hotmail.com.
Further details on both these delegations will be published as they become available.
Interested companies can also contact info@philippinebritish.com to register their interest or to ensue that they receive event details.
Jan 29
On 14th – 17th May 2015, the 4th Annual Sama-Sama games come to Boracay, uniting youths from polarized backgrounds to stand as equals through football, in the process supporting Football projects for Haian-Survivor children in Tacloban.
Organised by the English NGO FundLife International and supported by UNICEF, the three-day festival gives an opportunity to some of the Philippines’ most financially deprived youth to visit and enjoy the island of Boracay. 160 youths will gather from all over the Philippines and the ASEAN region, including 30 from Typhoon Haiyan Survivors to battle it out for the Sam-Sama Cup and Barkada Shield, respectively.
The event supports grass roots football NGOs, with this year’s proceeds goint to the ‘Football for Life’ project for Haiyan-Survivor children. Previous partners of the event include global names such as DHL, Puma, AirAsia, while the event’s founding supporter is UK waste-to-fuel company, Gazasia Ltd.
To find out more about Football for Life click on link and read background below. If your organisation is interested to support FoundLife, please email FundLife Director, Marko Kasic on mk@fundlife.org
Keep up to date with all our latest updates by liking the Sama-Sama games Facebook Page.
Dec 12
A total of 14 organisations were represented when a recent UK Business delegation travelled to the Philippines from 17th to 21st November on a visit organised by The Philippine British Business Council (PBBC).
The programme was put together by the local British Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (BCCP). They have recently taken over the running of inward visit programmes from the commercial section of the British Embassy in Manila. The visiting delegates were presented with a packed programme of briefings and visits.
A highlight of the visit was a call on the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Feliciano Belmonte, Jr and a number of Chairmen of various House Committees. Industries discussed included the ICT & BPO industry, Agriculture and Energy.
We were also able to have an in-depth discussion 
with Undersecretary of the Department of Trade and Industry, Adrian s. Cristobal, Jr and his staff. This was an opportunity to raise issues affecting UK business dealing with the Philippines. The issue of delays in getting goods through the ports was raised and the undersecretary confirmed that changes are being implemented which will hopefully ease the situation.
The PBBC delegates had a very productive presentation by and dinner with PEZA Director General and undersecretary of the Department of Trade and Industry, Lilia B. de Lima. Around 215 UK companies have facilities in the Philippines PEZA zones already. The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) creates, markets and runs the PEZA zones throughout the country which offer significant financial incentives and advantages for UK companies seeking to establish a presence in the Philippines. There are 252 such zones, many of which are in and around Manila and some high rise modern office blocks have PEZA zones within. Nearly 7% of PEZA locator investments are British.
Delegates also had a number of briefings and round table discussions about various aspects of the Philippines from the British Embassy in Manila, Members of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) and the CEO of HSBC Bank. The British Chamber hosted a breakfast meeting at their relatively new offices in Taguig City, Manila.
The UK based members of the PBBC were able to have a lunch with their Philippine based counterparts thanks to the Philippine co-chairman, Ambassador Jesus Tambunting, President of the Planters Bank of the Philippines, at the Tower Club, Makati.
Part of the delegation were able to visit the Clark Development zone north of Manila. We had presentations from the President and CEO of the Clark Development Corporation, Arthur P. Tugade, and the President and CEO of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), Arnel Paciano D. Casanova. We also had a tour of the Clark area and witnessed the impressive building projects going on in the area, including a number of new hotel and casino complexes with supporting new leisure facilities. We also found time to tour a British Company located in the Clark Freeport Zone, the garment manufacturer, Billerby Corporation.
Visiting PBBC delegates were left in no doubt that the Philippines is thriving economically and that there are ample business opportunities for UK companies to do business in the Philippines. The PBBC offers outstanding relationships with the people who matter in the Philippines and can open many doors to help UK companies do business in the Philippines. UK companies wishing to be informed of future visits should contact info@philippinebritish.com.
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