The Startup Ecosystem of Philippines

The Philippines is making progress toward becoming a formidable startup ecosystem in the Asia Pacific region. The country enjoys a talented English speaking population, with many already working remotely for international startups. Its attractiveness to foreign entrepreneurs and digital nomads, and the massive knowledge that local remote workers have gained while working in international startups, should allow for successful ecosystem growth, provided more of the local population embraces entrepreneurship.
The country has dozens of government programs to encourage entrepreneurs, including the QBO Innovation Hub and the P3 Program. KMC, the largest co-working chain in the country, along with several startup incubation programs, are also supporting the Philippines’ startup ecosystem. The public sector is creating a regulatory framework through the Innovative Startup Act to empower early stage startups. Under this act, three types of visas are set to attract entrepreneurs, investors, and startup employees. Another public sector initiative is a recent amendment to the Foreign Investment Act . The amendment aims to encourage global SMEs to set up fully-owned businesses in the country. The public sector also supports the ecosystem with grants. For example, The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is a public sector organization that is highly involved in startup ecosystem development through grants for early-stage startups.
Nevertheless, the Philippines faces several challenges that could delay the country’s development into a fully mature startup ecosystem. The lack of infrastructure is a limiting factor to the country’s economic growth, and entrepreneurs struggle with slow regulatory support for their startups. Tackling these issues is important due to common interests from both international and local venture capitalists.