As part of ADFIAP’s work on and advocacy for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), the ADFIAP Consulting (AC) participated in the third of the SME seminar series on “Doing the Right Things Right for SMEs” in partnership with the Financial Executives Research and Development Foundation (FINEX) and Eastern Communications. The event was held on January 27, 2010 at the Soriano Room in the Asian Institute of Management in Makati City in cooperation with the Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines and the Chamber of Thrift Banks, both considered as the natural purveyors of SME credit to the countryside. More than 50 bank representatives from as far as Northern and Southern Luzon and Cebu attended the seminar.
AC was represented by its Group Head, Ms. Cora D. Conde, who presented its “SME Lending Business Management System” that provides a holistic intervention in the setting up of a dedicated SME lending unit in banks and which covers three modules, namely: Strategic Business Planning, Core Business Operations and Business Management Action. The other presenters included Mr. Benel Lagua, President and COO of Small Business Corporation who talked about “Risk-Based Lending for SMEs” and Mr. Edwin Domingo, Marketing Head of Eastern Communications, who presented “SME-Appropriate Business Tools.”
An open forum ensued after the presentations and the seminar was capped by responses from Mr. Patrick Cheng, President of the Chamber of Thrift Banks and Ms. Ma. Corazon Liamzon-Miller, President of the Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines. Mr. Cheng and Ms. Miller commended the FINEX-ADFIAP-Eastern partnership, the initiatives of which fully support expansion of financial assistance to SMEs under a risk-mitigated environment.