Peza seals stronger partnership with Japan’s Mizuho Bank

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) hopes to welcome more investors from Japan and other Asian countries after strengthening its ties with Tokyo-based Mizuho Bank as an investment promotion partner.

Building on their partnership since 2012, the agency said it had signed a memorandum of understanding with the bank, which has a strong customer base in its home country as well as in other foreign markets.

Mizuho Bank, it said, has been critical in supporting Japanese firms expand their operations to the Philippines.

The agreement with Mizuho Bank includes advancing “climate-smart” sectors, with initiatives focused on pursuing carbon credits and transition financing—an approach seen by renewable producers as crucial to further support the clean energy shift while reducing reliance on coal.

“We view this as the beginning of a long and productive partnership—one that will help usher in high-quality investments, create more job opportunities for Filipinos, of whom 300,000 are already directly employed by Japanese companies inside the ecozones,” Peza director general Tereso Panga said.

Amid its growing partnership with banks abroad, Peza is confident that economic zones in the country would become more appealing to investors, particularly those with interests in manufacturing, information and communications technology and renewable energy, among others.

Late last year, Panga said Peza was looking to establish 30 more economic zones this year, amid growth opportunities in Central Luzon, Cebu and Mindanao.

The country has more than 400 operating economic zones nationwide.

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For the first six months of 2025, Peza reported that it attracted P72.36 billion in investments, a 59-percent jump from P45.48 billion in the same period last year.

During the period, eight big-ticket projects worth over P50 billion were approved.

“We are reaping the fruits of our aggressive promotion efforts, investor-centric reforms, and continued commitment to making the Philippines a competitive and resilient hub for global industries,” Panga said earlier this month.