President and CEO’s Report

The past year marked the start of our post-pandemic recovery trajectory as the easing of mobility restrictions jumpstarted the economy. Our businesses across food, airlines, malls, hotels, and banking posted substantial improvements year-on-year as we capitalized on the reopening economy and easing COVID-related restrictions. However, the petrochemical space continued to be squeezed, on one side, by weak demand from key markets like China, and on the other side by cost pressures from record-high input prices and shipping charges. To mitigate the negative impact of extreme volatilities in forex and fuel on our margins, we implemented selective pricing actions and productivity initiatives across the group. We were intentional in our efforts to create sustainable efficiencies in our operations, as evidenced by our Agile at Scale, digital transformation, and Sustainability projects, among others. We have also made key moves in the financial services sector with GoTyme’s launch and Robinsons Bank’s merger with BPI. All these will aid us as we continue living out our purpose—an unrelenting commitment to providing our customers with better choices, and creating shared success with our stakeholders.

2022 Performance

Despite the challenges we faced, JG Summit’s core net income doubled to Php 6.2 billion and total revenues exceeded pre-pandemic levels, surging 36% year-on-year (YoY) to Php 312.4 billion in 2022. This was driven by the strong recovery of CEB as travel restrictions relaxed in the latter half of the year and the double-digit revenue growth of our consumer-facing business. Additionally, we realized a 3.2-billion peso gain from monetizing some of our stake in Meralco. Tempering this strong performance was the temporary shutdown of the JGSOC plant from May to August 2022, a deliberate decision given the weak global petrochemical demand. Considering the significant peso depreciation which led to forex translation losses on our US dollar-denominated debt, our bottom line settled at a consolidated net income of Php 650.6 million. Aside from this, our core investments also continued to give us stable dividends, which gave us a better cash position throughout the year.

Total Revenues

in Php billion

Core Net Income

₱6.2B

100% increase vs SPLY

Key Performances of our Strategic Business Units

Revenue

(in Php billion)

Quarterly sales growth for Branded Consumer Foods (BCF) Philippines and double-digit organic growth seen in BCF International and Agro-Industrial and Commodities (AIC)

Core Net Income

(in Php billion)

₱6.4

17% growth vs SPLY

Strong volume growth, pricing moves, and cost optimizations lifted both operating income and recurring profits amidst unprecedented input cost pressures

Revenue

(in Php billion)

Revenue growth driven by easing restrictions, especially in malls and hotels, steady growth in offices, and Chengdu project contributions

Core Net Income

(in Php billion)

₱6.1

26% growth vs SPLY

Slower net income growth was seen due to the higher share of minority interest from RL Commercial REIT (RCR)

Revenue

(in Php billion)

Gradual recovery of international network, sustained domestic market leadership, growth in cargo, and higher fares from additional pass-on fuel surcharges boosted revenues

Core Net Income

(in Php billion)

₱-7.3

An improvement vs ₱14.98 loss SPLY

Margins were greatly affected by higher jet fuel costs and the peso depreciation

Revenue

(in Php billion)

Revenues declined given the plant shutdown amid weak global petrochemical demand

Core Net Income

(in Php billion)

₱-13.8

Php 1.7B loss vs SPLY

Average naphtha costs surged 39% YoY, putting downward pressure on margins

Revenue

(in Php billion)

Strong loan expansion and higher fee income from credit card and merchant acquisitions increased revenues

Core Net Income

(in Php billion)

₱0.8

19% growth vs SPLY

Rising global interest rates and faster growth in higher-yielding consumer loans lifted net interest margins

Note: In the financial statements, RBank is classified as an asset held for sale in accordance with PFRS 5 in line with the announcement of the merger with the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI).

Key ESG Targets

Beyond financials, we have also taken measures to create a more sustainable future for JG Summit. This year, we have accelerated our sustainability journey by working collaboratively with our Strategic Business Units (SBUs) to establish our key ESG targets. These will help us gauge our progress for each of the 5 focus areas: Shared Success, Climate Action, Resource Efficiency and Circularity, Employee Growth and Well-Being, and Better Choices.

Our Process in Setting Targets

Enhancement of our ERM
  • We enhanced our Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) process to better capture sustainability risk drivers and megatrends.
  • Each SBU identified, assessed, prioritized, and built risk responses on their identified top risks.
  • JGSHI then consolidated all SBU top risks.
  • Appropriate risk responses are set in place for each JGSHI top risk, with an established risk governance structure.
Strengthen our Materiality
  • Each business reviewed the materiality and scanned which sustainable development issues they are best positioned to tackle while also generating business value.
  • We prioritized sustainability issues based on set criteria and defined a set of actions that are most strategic for the SBUs to implement.
  • The identified contribution of each business shapes the development of our group-wide ambitions.
  • In 2022, we also set an engagement with investors to understand their view of sustainability as we accelerate our initiative to set long-term targets.
Identification of Targets and Strategic Actions
  • The strategic actions identified by each of our businesses were consolidated and aligned to the group’s five (5) focus areas. Our goal is to have collaborative action towards group-wide ambition.
  • The proposed targets of each business unit were presented and approved by each of the subsidiary’s highest governing bodies.
  • JGSHI's Governance, Nomination, Remuneration, and Sustainability Committee (GNRSC), formerly Corporate Governance and Sustainability Committee, we strengthen the integration of sustainability in our board level decision-making which includes the setting of targets.

With the setting of our targets, we collectively commit to achieve our conglomerate’s business success and contribution to sustainable development. As a holding company, our aim is to provide our SBUs with strategic guidance and to enable them to bring these targets into fruition, while maximizing the synergies within the group. An example for this would be our Juan Goal for Plastic drive, leveraging our ecosystem with our malls as our collection points and giving rewards in exchange for plastic waste.

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3 Wellness Criteria: For details of the criteria, please refer to URC’s updated Wellness Criteria in the Sustainability Report.

Forging a Future in Fintech Through GoTyme

Another breakthrough for our group was the commercial launch of our very own digital bank - GoTyme - with one of the only six licenses given by the BSP. With digital kiosks running in multiple Robinsons Retail stores and Robinsons Land properties nationwide, our customers can open a bank account and get their personalized ATM debit card in 5 minutes. GoTyme customers can also deposit and withdraw cash in the vast network of Robinsons Retail stores. This is the “phygital” experience we want our customers to have, and what sets us apart from other digital banks.

I look forward to seeing our efforts in the fintech space help our fellow Filipinos, especially those who are unbanked. Hopefully, the physical touch that GoTyme offers will lessen the barriers for those with limited access to smartphones or the internet, allow them to avail of financial services, and give them a better way into the financial system.

Expanding our Financial Exposure with BPI

While we have begun venturing into the digital banking arena, we have also augmented our presence in the traditional banking sector through the merger of our own Robinsons Bank (RBank) and Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI).

After carefully reviewing our strategic options, we determined that merging with a top bank like BPI is the best direction to take. BPI is one of the country’s largest and most trusted banks, with a proud history of over 150 years. This union will unlock various synergies across multiple product and service platforms and expand the customer and deposit base of both banks.

Consistent with our purpose, this deal presents us with another opportunity to provide our customers with better choices given the wide range of best-in-class products offered by both BPI and RBank. The decision of BPI to merge is also a testament to RBank’s great potential and how much it has grown over the past 25 years.

Optimistic About the Future

2022 was the start of our pivot back to growth where we experienced sequential recovery in demand for our products and services brought about by the reopening of the economy. This now sets us up to take advantage of new opportunities and inspires us to work harder to deliver our promise to our customers in providing better choices through continuous focus on product innovation and great customer experience. Though we continue to face the challenges of an elevated inflation, I am hopeful that 2023 will be a year of faster topline growth and margin recovery.

We will continue to manage the business with strategic agility to mitigate current and future challenges that may arise as well as tap into new consumer trends in a post pandemic world. We have also proactively managed and strengthened our balance sheet to navigate the market volatility. JG Summit will continue to invest for growth by tapping into our groups ecosystem as well as provide enough runway for business units that are facing challenges. In addition, we will further focus on our strategic enablers and build on our credentials specifically on Sustainability, Digital Transformation, and People and Leadership Development.

In closing, we are inspired to work harder to create value and shared success for all our stakeholders namely our employees, customers, communities, business partners, and shareholders. I sincerely thank everyone for your efforts and contributions, big or small, that embody our purpose, fuel our passion, and drive our progress towards a sustainable future.

Lance Y. Gokongwei

President and Chief Executive Officer