News & Stories

The Victor is a victor.

The 55-meter public landmark by Robinsons Land (RLC) has just received the award for Best Landmark Design at The PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, besting other landmarks in the region.

“The Victor embodies the Filipino spirit — resilient, ambitious, and unwavering in its pursuit of greatness. Gett

ing the Best Landmark Design award is a triumph we share with every Filipino. We a

re grateful to The PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards for this recognition, which celebrates our vision and the excellence of our people,” said Mybelle Aragon-GoBio, President and CEO of RLC. It’s j

ust one of multiple accolades RLC received at the awarding ceremony held in Bangkok, Thailand on Dec. 12. RLC

was

declared Best Luxury Developer. Robinson

s Hotels & Resorts was awarded Best Hospitality Developer. The Mall

| NUSTAR was given the award for Best Lifestyle Retail Development. work.able GBF Center 1 won Best Co-Working Space. The Resi

From Gen Z’s side hustles to Boomers’ legacy plans, money means different things to every generation. For

some, it’s freedom, while for others, it’s security, comfort, or survival. And over

the last decade, with the pandemic period having a major impact, the Filipino relationship with money has transformed in different ways. Since 20

15, Acumen has tracked how Filipino generations think, spend, save, and invest. What we’

re now seeing in 2025 through Project Alphabet is not just a change in financial behavior, it’s a complete shift in meaning. Filipinos to

day think about money with far more intentionality, discipline, and long-term focus than ever before. If finances

in 2015 was a source of aspiration and stress for Filipinos, finances in 2025 has come to be defined by something new: Intentionality toward financial stability. Before the p

andemic, many Filipinos, especially the younger generations, viewed money through a day-to-day lens. Budgets were

flexible, purchases were spontaneous, and “future planning” felt like something only older generations worried about. But the pandemic

created a collective awakening. It reminded ever

MANILA, Philippines — Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon has been reminded by senators that it is he whom they trust—and not district officers of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)—as discussions on whether it would be wise to put back part of the agency’s funds continue. During S

unday’s bicameral conference committee hearing on

Chile has elected the far-right wing José Antonio Kast to be its next president, after an election campaign that was dominated by themes of security, immigration and crime. K

ast beat the governing left-wing coalition candidate Jeanette Jara decisively with more than 58% of the vote in his third attempt at running for president. I

t marks the biggest shift to the right since the end of Chile's military dictatorship in 1990. K

ast has openly praised Chile's former right-wing dictator, Augusto Pinochet. I

n his first speech to supporters as president-elect, Kast said: "Chile will once again be free from crime, free from anguish, free from fear." "

Criminals, delinquents - their lives are going to change. W

e're going to look for them, find them, judge them and then we're going to lock them up," he added. A

t a gathering of his backers in the capital Santiago, many draped in Chilean flags, chanting and taking selfies, there was jubilation as the results came through. "

I'm happy we can recover the country's security and patriotism," said Augustina Trancoso, donning a red "Make Chile Great Again" cap. "

We've been trying to win an election for years," said Belem Valdivieso. "

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HISTORIC.

The Philippine women's football team celebrates on December 14, 2025, after reaching the final of the Southeast Asian Games.

CHONBURI, Thailand – For the first time in Southeast Asian Games history, the Philippines will play in the final of women’s football. The

Filipinas accomplished the breakthrough feat after outlasting host Thailand, winning 4-2 on penalties following a 1-1 draw in a nail-biting semifinal clash at the Chonburi Daikin Stadium here on Sunday, December 14. Jael

Marie Guy, Alessandrea Carpio, Sara Eggesvik, and Hali Long converted in succession in the penalty shootout while two Thais misfired as the Philippines arranged a title duel with defending champion Vietnam. On t

he brink of getting eliminated as they trailed 0-1 with five minutes left in regulation, the Filipinas caught a lucky break when Thailand got called for a hand ball, resulting in a penalty kick for Guy. Guy

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MIDRANGE MASTER.

UP guard Gerry Abadiano pulls up from mid-range against the La Salle defense in the UAAP Season 88 men's basketball finals Game 2.

MANILA, Philippines – In this day and age of prolific three-pointers in modern basketball, Gerry Abadiano stubbornly went against the flow. A

graduating star of the UP men’s basketball team, the calm and collected veteran gunner utilized the mid-range shot to incredible effect as the Fighting Maroons pulled off a UAAP Season 88 finals Game 2 escape of rival La Salle, 66-63, on Sunday, December 14, to force a winner-take-all Game 3. Abad

iano torched the nets for 17 points, 6 coming off contested mid-rangers in the final 2:31 of regulation, and did enough damage to help UP force a decider on Wednesday, December 17, at the Araneta Coliseum. Alre

ady a mid-range sniper since his title-winning high school days with the NU Bullpups, the 24-year-old standout said his confidence simply comes from experience from years of UAAP playoff games. “I d

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LAST-MINUTE APPEAL.

Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Vince Dizon appeals to the bicameral conference committee to restore his agency's slashed budget on Sunday, December 14.

MANILA, Philippines – Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Vince Dizon made a last-minute appeal to the bicameral conference committee (bicam) to restore nearly P54 billion deducted from his department’s budget due to the reduction in Construction Materials Price Data (CMPD). Dizo

n made the appeal before the bicam through a surprise appearance on the second day of the budget deliberations on Sunday, December 14. Acco

rding to Dizon, the P54 billion across-the-board cut made on 10,000 DPWH projects will result in underfunded projects that can no longer be implemented. Dizo

n explained that the DPWH has ordered the reduction in prices of key construction materials such as asphalt, concrete, steel, and gravel through an updated CMPD. Howe

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It is an exciting moment for Philippine tennis, with so much energy and hope revolving around one incredible girl who has taken the tennis world by storm.

In this episode, we discover that the story of Alex Eala is shaped not only by blood, but by bond — a journey shaped by family, discipline, gratitude, and heart. Sh

ow host Pató Gregorio sits down with “the girl from the Philippines” – a description well-attached to Alex as she plays in the WTA Tour. She share

s untold stories from her childhood and reflects on how her career propelled this year, all while being a proud Filipino. Her fathe

r Mike also joins the conversation, providing insights into what it is like to raise someone like Alex: the thought process behind the decision-making, the inside jokes, and the way their family rallies behind the Alex Eala brand. Homestret

ch aims to tell the stories of people who inspire us with their struggles and triumphs, and the places that help define our spirit as a nation. Watch on

Sunday, December 14, at 8 pm on Rappler’s YouTube channel. – Rappler.com

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LEGEND.

Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz in action for the Philippines in the women's 58kg division in the 2025 Southeast Asian Games.

CHONBURI, Thailand – Weightlifting heroine Hidilyn Diaz offered an apology as she missed her shot at a medal in her Southeast Asian Games comeback. Th

e Philippines’ first Olympic champion finished fourth in the women’s 58kg class with a total of 200kg at the Chonburi Sports School here on Sunday, December 14. Seeing

action in the regional showdown after missing the 2023 Cambodia edition, Diaz cleared 90kg in snatch and 110kg in clean and jerk but she failed in her bid to add to her personal five-medal SEA Games haul, which includes a pair of golds. Thaila

nd’s Suratwadee Yodsarn dominated the competition with a 224kg total, while Indonesia’s Natasya Beteyob (218kg) and Vietnam’s Thi Tam Quang (215kg) bagged silver and bronze, respectively. Diaz said sh

A person of interest has been detained in connection with a shooting at Brown University in the US which left two people dead, police said.

Nine others were injured after a gunman opened fire at the university in Providence, Rhode Island, on Saturday.

Police said the detained suspect was in his 20s, but have not named him.

Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said seven people who were injured in the incident remained in a stable condition, one of them is in critical condition, and another was discharged.

The gunman opened fire in a classroom at around 16:00 local time (21:00 GMT) on Saturday at the Holley engineering building at the eastern end of Brown's campus, according to officials.

The identities of those killed or injured have not yet been released, but Brown University President Christina Paxson told reporters on Saturday that all the victims, including those killed and wounded, were students.

In a statement released by the university on Sunday, Paxson said some areas of campus were still restricted as police continued their investigations.

Around 2,000 students were relocated to safe locations overnight, she said, adding that she was "deeply moved" by students and locals who opened up their homes.

Paxson said the families of the two students killed were being supported.

"There are not enough words of comfort for families who lose a child, but we will do all we can," she added.

RATES of the Treasury bills (T-bills) on offer this week could end slightly lower after the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) lowered borrowing costs again and with the US Federal Reserve’s policy path still uncertain. Th

e Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) will auction off P20 billion in T-bills on Monday, or P6 billion in 91-day securities and P7 billion each in 182- and 364-day papers. T-

bill rates could be little changed or slightly lower to track the marginal decline seen in most short-term yields at the secondary market last week after the BSP’s latest easing move, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. Chie

f Economist Michael L. Rica

fort said in a Viber message. He s

aid the BSP chief’s “unexpected” hawkish signals immediately after Thursday’s policy decision initially caused local bond yields to rise, but his “more dovish” comments on Friday caused rates to close the week mostly sideways. On Friday, the r

ates of the 91- and 182-day T-bills declined by 0.49 basis point (bp) and 0.01 bp week on week to 4.863% and 4.9989%, respectively, at the secondary market, based on PHP Bloomberg Valuation Service Reference Rates data as of Dec. 12 published on the Philippine Dealing System’s website. Meanwhile, the 364

-day T-bill inched up by 0.63 bp to yield 5.0583%. The Monetary Board

last week cut benchmark interest rates by 25 bps for a fifth consecutive meeting to bring the policy rate to 4.5%, the lowest level in more than three years, as expected by 17 out of 18 analysts in a BusinessWorld poll. The central bank h

as now lowered borrowing costs by 200 bps since it began its easing cycle in August 2024. BSP Governor Eli M

ON THE SIDELINES of The Asian Banker’s Finance Philippines 2025 forum in August, Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP) President Jose Teodoro K. Li

mcaoco told reporters that mandatory credit lending rules and strict bank secrecy laws “have become constraints in today’s labor-driven financial marketplace.” “By mode

rnizing these laws, we create a fertile ground for tech-driven analytics, smart risk management, better credit assessment, and a more competitive and transparent banking sector,” added Mr. Limcaoco, wh

o also serves as the president and chief executive officer of the Bank of Philippine Islands. These calls

for reform continue to echo throughout the banking industry. Last October

, six major business groups in the Philippines, including the Makati Business Club (MBC) and the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), signed a joint statement calling to amend the country’s bank secrecy laws. Likewise, mand

atory credit lending policies continue to be dragged into practice. The Asian Deve

lopment Bank said that credit for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) remained limited in the Philippines during 2024. “The continued

enforcement of the Magna Carta’s remaining provisions, alongside central bank oversight, underscores the government’s ongoing commitment to MSME development,” it said regarding the Philippines in its Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor 2025 report. “However, the stalled

legislative amendments highlight the need for renewed policy attention to ensure the law remains responsive and effective in addressing current MSME challenges.” With players, policy group