Early payout from Philippines’ Maharlika Investment Fund raises eyebrows over its true nature
High dividend payment by 3-year-old sovereign fund poses questions as to whether it is a stopgap source of fiscal support
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[MANILA] The Philippines’ Maharlika Investment Fund, barely three years after its creation, has handed the government an early fiscal win with a higher-than-expected dividend payout.
But the transfer exposes a bigger question: is the country’s first sovereign investment vehicle meant to be a long-term capital accumulator, a development fund or a stopgap source of fiscal support?
That question is at the centre of the debate since Maharlika Investment Corp announced two weeks ago that it would remit nearly 1.4 billion pesos (US$22.5 million) in dividends to the Bureau of Treasury to fund the government’s needs during the energy pressures arising from the US-Iran war.
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