RCBC and PLDT Win 2026 ASEAN Enterprise Innovation Award for First-in-Market Digital Banking and Agentic AI in Risk Management
Manila, 23 September 2026 - From 32 nominations in 2017 to 122 this year, the annual ASEAN Innovation Business Platform (AIBP) Enterprise Innovation Awards recognises Southeast Asian organisations successfully adopting innovative technology to digitally transform their businesses.
The Philippine digital economy reached PHP 2.74 trillion in gross value added in 2025, equivalent to 9.8 per cent of gross domestic product and a 5.4 per cent increase on the previous year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. The sector employed 10.39 million people, or 21.2 per cent of national employment, with digital-enabling infrastructure accounting for PHP 1.79 trillion of the total.
Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) and PLDT Inc. emerged as the winners from the Philippines for the Open and Data & AI categories respectively, and received their awards at the 56th AIBP Conference and Exhibition, held on 23 and 24 September 2026 at the Manila Marriott Hotel, Newport World Resorts. The event is endorsed by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).
From Left: Jose Carlo Eufemio (Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC)) , Aldwin Martin De Jesus (PLDT), Leah B. Jimenez (PLDT), Michael Christopher Cruz (Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC)) and Dr Franz A. de Leon, Director (Department of Science and Technology)
Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) was recognised for Pioneering a Series of Firsts in the Philippines, a programme of digital banking products for segments the formal banking system had not reached. In October 2025 it launched the first MySSS Mastercard debit card with the Social Security System through RCBC DiskarTech, lifting average daily account onboarding by 963 per cent. RCBC reports that transaction volume on its RCBC Pulz application rose 59 per cent in 2025, QR merchant payment volume grew 538 per cent, and digital lending volume expanded 87 per cent. Founded in 1960, RCBC is a Philippine universal bank with total consolidated resources of PHP 1.57 trillion and a market capitalisation of around US$0.95 billion (approximately PHP 56 billion) as of September 2026.
PLDT Inc. was recognised for ERICA, the Enterprise Risk Intelligent Companion Agent, an agentic AI solution built in-house over the past year to draft and score the risk assessments that the business previously assembled by hand. PLDT reports that the effort involved has fallen by 97 to 99 per cent, with reviews that once took two to ten days now completed in three to ten minutes, and the most complex assessments cut from 40 to 60 days to six to seven, a reduction of roughly 85 per cent. Each assessment is aligned to the ISO 31000 risk management standard, logged for audit, and reviewed by a risk professional before it is acted on. Founded in 1928, PLDT is the largest fully integrated telecommunications and digital services provider in the Philippines, employing approximately 15,000 people and carrying a market capitalisation of around US$4.0 billion (approximately PHP 233 billion) as of September 2026.
RCBC and PLDT join the list of past winners from the Philippines, including the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), the Bank of the Philippine Islands, Globe and Meralco, alongside 2026 regional winners across Southeast Asia including AirAsia, Tenaga Nasional Berhad, PT Bank Tabungan Negara (Persero) Tbk (BTN), PT Bank Mandiri (Persero) Tbk, Bank of Ayudhya (Krungsri) and Bangkok Dusit Medical Services (BDMS).
About ASEAN Innovation Business Platform (AIBP)
The ASEAN Innovation Business Platform (AIBP) is an initiative focused on enabling innovation and strategic partnerships across public and private organisations in Southeast Asia. Through curated engagement activities, AIBP supports the growth of regional government agencies, enterprises and solution providers in navigating key themes such as innovation, digital transformation, and sustainability.
Learn more at www.aibp.sg
