SEC-Cebu registrations up 114% in first semester

CEBU, Philippines —  Securities and Exchange Commission-Cebu Extension Office (SEC-CEBEO) recorded a total of 1,871 incorporations registered in the first semester of 2023, a 114 percent jump from the same period of last year.

This is a reflection of an improved confidence of business to invest coming pandemic-induced economic slump.

In the first semester of 2022, SEC-Cebu only registered a total of 920 incorporated entities.

SEC-CEBEO director Sheara Lupango-Tamayo said that of the1,871 corporations, there are 277 one-person-corporations, 715 stock corporations with less than five incorporators, 422 regular stock corporations, 41 corporations sole, 63 non-stock corporations with less than five incorporators, 277 regular non-stock corporations, 2 foreign corporations, and 74 partnerships.

Tamayo explained the 1,908 entities registered from January to June 2023, is already 97 percent of total registrations recorded in 2022.

The SEC’s digital transformation, particularly the launch of the Electronic Simplified Processing of Application for Registration of Company (eSPARC), has contributed to this year’s highest growth in company registrations for the CEBEO since the pandemic, added Tamayo.

The eSPARC platform allows the public to register stock and non-stock corporations as well as partnerships online, from the convenience of their home. This digital initiative makes the SEC’s registration service more accessible to the public. The CEBEO’s jurisdiction includes the provinces of Cebu, Bohol, and Siquijor.

“It is for the comfort of such clients from farther areas that the SEC strives for accessibility in their services. The Commission’s dedication to overseeing the corporate sector remains steadfast,” added Lupango-Tamayo.

The SEC-CEBEO recently transferred its location to 12th Floor, AppleOne - Equicom Tower, Mindanao Avenue corner Biliran Road, Cebu Business Park, Cebu City to give better and improved services to its clients.