Go eyes more GOCCs in gov’t ‘billionaire’s club’ in 2027

MANILA, Philippines – Finance Secretary Frederick Go hopes more government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) will join the government’s “billionaire’s club” next year by remitting at least P1 billion in dividends to the national government.

“We look forward to more joining the billionaire’s club. Twenty next year,” Go told reporters on the sidelines of an event.

READ: GOCCs set new record with P147-B dividend collections for 2026

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Asked whether the government would continue encouraging GOCCs to remit at least 75 percent of their earnings, Go said it would do so as much as possible.

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Under Republic Act No. 7656, or the Dividends Law, GOCCs are required to remit at least 50 percent of their annual net earnings to the national government. In 2024, however, the Department of Finance urged state-run firms to increase their dividend remittances to 75 percent of net income.

Go said the current 50-percent minimum was “not a concern” for now, indicating there was no need to amend the law to require a higher rate.

This year, 15 GOCCs had joined the government’s billionaire’s club after remitting a combined P133.7 billion, accounting for about 95 percent of the P140 billion collected from 50 state-run firms.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas led all remitters with P62.4 billion, followed by the Land Bank of the Philippines with P25 billion. Landbank is also expected to remit another P7 billion before year-end. These two firms were the only two GOCCs to remit more than P20 billion, while the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines rounded out the billionaire’s club with P1.2 billion.

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In total, GOCC dividend remittances are expected to reach a record P147 billion this year, up 29 percent from 2025.

Budget support

Separately, latest data from the Bureau of the Treasury showed budgetary support to GOCCs fell 38 percent to P4.9 billion in May from P7.9 billion a year earlier.

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The decline was driven by a 49-percent drop in subsidies to major nonfinancial government corporations, which fell to P2.8 billion from P5.6 billion. The National Food Authority was the only agency in the category to receive more than P1 billion in May, at P1.6 billion.

READ: Subsidies for state-run, owned firms surged 71% in March

Meanwhile, subsidies to other government corporations slipped 11 percent to P2 billion, with the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. receiving the largest allocation of P435 million.

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The 2026 national budget earmarked P264.82 billion in subsidies for GOCCs, more than double the P127.43 billion allocated in 2025. From January to May, subsidy releases had already reached P98 billion, equivalent to 37 percent of the full-year allocation. INQ