The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) had a successful visit to the UK, culminating in the Philippine-British Investment Forum on June 27, 2025, at the HSBC office in Canary Wharf, London. The forum presented investment opportunities in the economic zone, aiming to increase the growing British business community across multiple sectors, marking the Philippines as an export powerhouse.
Key officials and representatives include Ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to the United Kingdom H.E. Teodoro Locsin Jr., PEZA Director General Tereso O. Panga, BCCP Executive Chairman Chris Nelson, Asian Consulting Group Chief Tax Advisor Mr. Raymond Abrea, IT & Business Process Association of the Philippines Chief Operating Officer Ms. Celeste Ilagan, and HSBC UK Country Head of Global Trade Solutions Ms. Stephanie Betant and Senior Vice President Michelle Tan.
The presentation titled, “Eco-zoning the Philippines Towards Inclusive and Sustainable Development: Investment Opportunities for British Investors” was led by PEZA Director General Tereso O. Panga. Citing the country’s strong macroeconomic standing, the Philippines continues to recognize the UK as one of its key and largest trading partners. He also cited the remarkable global and regional economic standing of the country, ranking 2nd in top emerging markets in 2024 and 2nd fastest growing economy in Southeast Asia until 2027, as reported by the World Bank.
As of 2024, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported that PEZA accounts to 12.89% of the country’s GDP, marking a total of 54.03% of the country’s exports of commodities and goods and 36.88% of export services.
British companies remain one of their top ecozone locator investments from 1995-2024, accounting for a total of 6.89%. Current figures on British investments as reported by Panga cited a total of 64 locator companies with a cumulative investment of Php 34.036 billion, generating a total of $1.707 billion in 2024 exports and a total of 72,391 direct employment as of December 2024.
Panga also noted that bilateral trade agreements such as the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) remains a strategic advantage for British investors.
PEZA remains one of the leading economic zones in the country, hosting a total of 427 econozones and 4,382 locator companies across the Philippines as of December 2024, including IT parks, IT centers, manufacturing, agro-industrial parks, tourism, and medical tourism. This growth is expected to be further driven by multiple benefits in investing in the country such as its growing population and domestic market, investor-friendly and quality facilities, a highly productive workforce, a stable economic outlook supported by strong credit ratings, rich natural resources, and a prime location in Southeast Asia.
BCCP Executive Chairman Chris Nelson expressed optimism in further attracting British investments to PEZA ecozone locators across multiple areas by noting that, “This visit will help promote more investments into the Philippines, and we look forward to seeing renewed foreign direct investments which will significantly contribute to the Philippine-UK bilateral trade growth.”
