Biz buzz: Chocnut sundae, anyone?

Jollibee fired the first salvo this summer when it brought to the market the other day its new Chicken Nuggets that it described as “crispy, juicy and chicken on-the-go.”

Rival McDonald’s Philippines will not be beat, however, and will launch today, April 5, not just one but three additions to its menu.

To be available across its over 700 branches nationwide are the Chocnut Sundae and Sweet Corn McShaker Fries. McCafe, meanwhile, will offer the new Chocnut Frappe.

McDonald’s Philippines is likewise rolling out an upgraded version of one of its most popular menu items, the Double Cheeseburger that it claimed would be “fresher, toastier, meltier and saucier” to cater to the Filipino taste.

These new offerings prove that the fast-food rivalry is as hot as ever, which should be a win all around for discerning and value-chasing Filipino customers. —Tina Arceo-Dumlao

BPI recognized for health insurance support

Award season for the banking industry isn’t over yet.

This time, the Zobel family’s Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) was hailed by the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) as its Best Collection Partner.

BPI, through its BizLink app, has been an accredited PhilHealth collecting agent since 2008.

The banking giant said its online banking platform, which provides financial management solutions for large corporations, processed over 150,000 PhilHealth transactions in 2023 alone.
“At BPI, we believe in the power of partnerships and collaborative efforts to drive positive change in society. These recognitions serve as an inspiration for us to improve our business in line with our vision of helping build a better Philippines,” said John-C Syquia, BPI Institutional Banking head.

The Ayala-led bank was likewise recognized as one of PhilHealth’s top investment house counterparties. —Meg J. Adonis

PSE EASy-er

The Philippine Stock Exchange Inc.’s Electronic Allocation System (PSE EASy) website now has more features for local small investors (LSIs) participating in initial public offerings (IPOs) and follow-on offerings (FOOs), possibly bringing in more benefits for companies planning to go public.

PSE on Wednesday said electronic payments were now available on the platform in a bid to “encourage more LSIs to use PSE EASy to buy shares when there are public offerings.”

LSIs are those who subscribe to a minimum board lot and whose subscriptions do not exceed P100,000.

The platform, which was launched in 2019 to replace the manual subscription process, now likewise allows payment method and subscription modifications. With this, PSE said LSIs may choose to add, reduce or cancel their subscribed shares as long as they had not yet made payments.

At the same time, the single sign-on authentication allows users to access other PSE platforms, including EQUIP and PSE Academy.

“PSE aims to provide a better experience across its technology platforms. I hope the enhancements introduced in PSE EASy will make IPO and FOO subscription more accessible and efficient for investors,” PSE president and CEO Ramon Monzon said.

We’re hoping that this could mean better prospects for the two (so far) companies with IPOs lined up this year. —Meg J. Adonis INQ