Maharlika Investment Corp. deployed nearly P19 billion in the first nine months of 2026, but the country’s sovereign wealth fund says the shortage of investment-ready projects, rather than capital, remains the bigger obstacle to expanding its portfolio.
“The surprise for us was that capital was not the scarce thing. In fact, investable assets were,” MIC president and chief executive officer Rafael Jose Consing Jr. said at the inaugural ASEAN Sovereign Wealth Fund Forum in Makati on November 10.
Consing said investments contributed about half of MIC’s revenues in the third quarter, a sharp increase from roughly 3 percent a year earlier. The shift reflects the fund’s transition from earning primarily on deposits to generating returns through capital deployed in actual investments.
He challenged project developers to bring forward proposals with bankable offtake agreements, sponsors willing to commit their own capital and clearly defined exit opportunities.
“Bring us projects that are ready to be owned, not only just ready to be built,” he said.
The remarks highlight a persistent challenge for sovereign wealth funds seeking to channel long-term capital into infrastructure and other strategic industries. Having money available does not automatically translate into investments when projects lack reliable revenue streams, credible sponsors or viable ownership structures.
Consing said sovereign funds could help close this gap by entering projects early, reducing investment risks and eventually selling their stakes at market prices. The proceeds can then be recycled into new investments, allowing funds to support successive projects rather than tie up capital indefinitely.
Investors with local market knowledge and longer investment horizons can also help make projects attractive to other financiers, he said.
The forum, held alongside the Fourth ASEAN Investment Forum, gathered regional sovereign investors and featured project presentations involving solar power, energy storage, biofuels, smart grids and critical minerals.
Consing called for stronger investment cooperation among regional funds, urging them to move beyond discussions toward shared ownership of strategic assets.
“Let’s stop meeting as mere peers and start investing as partners,” he said.
