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JG Summit Pushes Further into the Digital Space

Fintech industry veteran tapped to lead the way into this competitive arena
by The JG Summit Team | Sep 28, 2019
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JG Summit, one of the country’s largest and most diversified conglomerates, has made no secret of its quest to become the leading digital conglomerate in the Philippines. Alongside the digital transformation taking shape within its various business units, the Gokongwei Group has established itself as a major player to contend with in the emerging digital ventures arena.

In a recent disclosure provided to the PSE, it was revealed that Gokongwei Group has poured in at least US$40 million into tech startups that include SEA Limited, operator of the wildly successful Garena and Shopee platform; and Oriente, a digital lender with operations in the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam.

In January, the group launched the data services firm, Digital Analytics Ventures, Inc. (DAVI), which is owned by JGSHI together with its subsidiaries Cebu Air, Inc. and Robinsons Land Corporation (RLC), as well as affiliate, Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc (RRHI). Then in May, it launched JG Digital Equity Ventures, a venture capitalist firm, tasked with building digital businesses in the Philippines and investing in early stage startups in Southeast Asia.

To strengthen the conglomerate’s push into this competitive arena, it has tapped the expertise of the fintech industry veteran Elmer “Jojo” Malolos, who was recently appointed as Chief Executive Officer of DAVI and JG Digital Equity Ventures Inc.

Lance Y. Gokongwei, JG Summit President and CEO, announced, “Jojo’s mandate is to build cutting-edge digital enterprises founded on the group’s massive data analytics infrastructure. This includes evolving a market-leading digital financial services business that will leverage the entire ecosystem of JG Summit and Robinsons Retail, and enable us to serve a wider base of consumers with basic banking and financial services. He is also tasked to scope out digital investment opportunities that will provide a long-term strategic value to the group.”

Malolos is tasked with building DAVI into a leading digital rewards program and creating a robust data infrastructure and analytics business to empower the conglomerate’s consumer-oriented businesses.

At JG DEV, Malolos will lead efforts into digital ventures in emerging technologies and start-ups, “which can then be applied to disrupt the business model of its existing core businesses, as well as tap into the group’s ecosystem for new plays.”

Malolos, who holds a Civil Engineering degree and an MBA in Finance, both from the University of the Philippines, has made great strides in the mobile money and mobile payments industry over the past decade in Asia and North America. Prior to assuming his role in the Gokongwei group of companies, he was the chief executive of Wing (Cambodia) Limited Specialized Bank.

As a Southeast Asia Advisory Council Member of Women’s World Banking--a global nonprofit devoted to giving low-income women more access to financial tools and resources -- Malolos is a known advocate for women’s financial inclusion. He was also named as one of Southeast Asia’s 100 Top Influencers for 2019 by global fintech community Lattice80.

For more information on JG DEV, visit jgdev.ph or email contact@jgdev.ph

(Banner photo: iStock/ipopba)

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