PASAY CITY, Philippines, Jan. 30, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Six SM companies were cited during the ASEAN Corporate Governance Scorecard (ACGS) Awards conducted online on December 2, 2022.

SM Investments Corporation (SM Investments), SM Prime Holdings Inc., BDO Unibank Inc. (BDO), China Banking Corporation (China Bank), 2GO Group Inc., and Belle Corporation were recognized among the top-performing companies in the Philippines as part of the ASEAN Asset Class. The ACGS, hosted by the Institute of Corporate Directors Philippines, is an initiative to recognize the valuable efforts of publicly listed companies in the region to elevate the standards of corporate governance in their respective industries.

"We are humbled by this recognition that further affirms our holistic approach to raising the standards of good corporate governance across our businesses," said SM Investments Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer Frederic C. DyBuncio.

China Bank, SM Investments and SM Prime were named among the ASEAN Top 20 Awardees. China Bank, for its part, was also named among the Top 3 Publicly Listed Companies in the Philippines. It marks two consecutive years that the universal bank has garnered one out of the three highest scores among publicly listed companies in the country. 

The ACGS is a collaborative effort between the ASEAN Capital Markets Forum and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) intended to secure that the corporate governance climate in the ASEAN countries remain competitive and conducive to the growth of businesses in the region.

About SM Investments Corporation

SM Investments Corporation is a leading Philippine company that is invested in market-leading businesses in retail, banking, and property. It also invests in ventures that capture high growth opportunities in the emerging Philippine economy.

SM's retail operations are the country's largest and most diversified with its food, non-food, and specialty retail stores. SM's property arm, SM Prime Holdings, Inc., is the largest integrated property developer in the Philippines with interests in malls, residences, offices, hotels, and convention centers as well as tourism-related property developments. SM's interests in banking are in BDO Unibank, Inc., the country's largest bank, and China Banking Corporation, the 6th largest bank.

For more about SM, visitwww.sminvestments.com