Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) may be the key to birthing the next Philippine unicorns, according to a technology accelerator for early-stage startups.
A unicorn is a startup with a valuation of over $ 1 billion.
鈥淣inety-eight percent of the Philippine economy is MSMEs. If you can find a way to digitize them and help them export their products on a global scale, you鈥檙e going to be a winner,鈥 said Rene 鈥淏utch鈥 S. Meily, president of IdeaSpace Foundation, at a 大象传媒 Insights event held on May 6.
Stakeholders from the private and public sectors are laying the foundation for both unicorns and camels to thrive. (A camel is a startup that can survive a crisis without a sky-high valuation.)
鈥淲hether we鈥檙e talking about camels or unicorns, we really need to focus in terms of building the foundation, ensuring that we have a robust startup and innovation ecosystem,鈥 said Rafaelita 鈥淔ita鈥 M. Aldaba, undersecretary for Competitiveness and Innovation of the Department of Trade and Industry.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a strong momentum among the different stakeholders.鈥
Policy reforms that have been enacted to create an enabling environment for startups include Republic Act (RA) No. 11337 or the Innovative Startup Act, which encourages the operation of innovative new enterprises; and RA No. 11232 or the Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines, which allows a single person to form a corporation without the need for shareholders.
Eight regional inclusive innovation centers 鈥 including SHINE in Cagayan Valley and iStrike Davao 鈥 have been set up to connect and integrate the innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystem throughout the country.
Southeast Asia is home to 35 startups, 15 of which are in Singapore. According to a report on ASEAN startups by Credit Suisse, 19 startups in the region saw an increase in valuation to above $1 billion in 2021 alone.
Mynt, Globe鈥檚 fintech arm that manages the e-wallet GCash, is the Philippines鈥 sole unicorn.
The 2019 Global Competitiveness Report ranked the Philippines 64th out of 140 countries.
鈥淥ur country is part of a global village and has to measure itself against international rankings,鈥 said Anna Irmina 鈥淢inette鈥 B. Navarrete, the co-founder and president of Kickstart Ventures, Inc. (KVI), a Globe subsidiary and corporate venture capital firm.
KVI has funds focused on digital adoption, telecommunications, and technologies that support the future of data, work, home, and life.
