Marcos picks Francis Lim as next SEC chief

Metro Manila, Philippines - President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed former Philippine Stocks Exchange chief Francis Edralin Lim to be the next Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairperson.

Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin announced Lim’s appointment on Tuesday, June 3, in a press conference to announce more results from the president’s performance review of high-ranking officials. The SEC chairperson has a term of seven years.

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Lim will replace Emilio Aquino, a Duterte appointee, whose term will expire on June 5. Aquino was the first certified public accountant-lawyer to head the SEC.

“Attorney Lim is a distinguished member of the legal and financial communities,” Bersamin said. “He has an extensive background in corporate and securities law.”

He said Lim will bring to the SEC decades of experience in corporate law, governance, and capital markets regulation

“His leadership is expected to strengthen investor confidence and further promote transparency, innovation, and inclusive growth in the Philippine financial sector,” he added.

Lim was stock exchange president and CEO in 2004 to 2010.

He is a senior partner at ACCRALAW or the Angara Abello Concepcion Regala & Cruz Law Offices, a top law firm.

Lim was also a former trustee and president of the Shareholders’ Association of the Philippines Inc.