The 2024 Most Powerful Women (MPW) in Asia has been announced and seven outstanding Filipinas were on the list. Fortune named 100 influential women who stood out in their respective industries, namely food and beverages, finance, energy, hospitality, and transportation—and seven of them are Filipinas!
Fortune highlighted that the women in their list have been "redefining the concept of leadership by transforming companies, disrupting industries and driving growth, innovation and business excellence, whilst inspiring their teams, peers, industries, and the next generation of leaders." These outstanding women hail from 11 countries across the Asia-Pacific region: China, India, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, and Australia.
This year, Grace Wang topped the list. She is the chairwoman and CEO of the Chinese electronic company Luxshare Precision Industry. The company is one of the leading producers of Apple products like the iPhone and AirPods.
Following Grace is Helen Wong, who's currently sitting as the CEO of the second-largest bank in Singapore, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC). Fortune noted that Helen holds the title of the first woman to lead a Singaporean bank.
And landing in the third spot is Makiko Ono who now handles the Japanese food and beverage company, Suntory Beverage and Food. According to Fortune, the Japanese CEO is also the first woman to run a company with a market cap of over 1 trillion yen (around P383,026,177,500) in Japan.
Truly, women are out there making their mark on a global scale and no one can deny that. Day by day, women are proving that they deserve a spot in any industry. Ahead, let's look at how the seven Filipinas included in Fortune's Most Powerful Women Asia list made it.
LIST: Filipina Included In Fortune’s Most Powerful Women Asia List
Rhoda A. Huang (98th)
Rhoda A. Huang started off her career as an accountant, moving from JP Morgan Chase, Credit Suisse Philippines, to BPI Capital through the years. It was just in 2023 when Rhoda was given her biggest role yet as the president and CEO of Filinvest Development—a conglomerate run by the tycoon Gotianun family. Fortune described Rhoda as the "first person outside the Gotianun family" to run their company legacy. Filinvest is now heading towards projects revolving around renewable energy under Rhoda's leadership, resulting in a 30 percent profit growth in 2023.
Lourdes T. Gutierrez-Alfonso (85th)
Not many may know this but Lourdes T. Gutierrez-Alfonso has been with Megaworld since 1990—just a year after the company was founded in 1989. Lourdes navigated the company through key positions: she's been the Chief Operating Officer, Director, and Chairman of the Board. This year, she replaced Megaworld's founder, Andrew Tan, as the new president of the Philippines' largest real estate and office developer.
Lynette V. Ortiz (82nd)
In May 2023, Lynette V. Ortiz was appointed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to lead the Land Bank of the Philippines. It's the country's largest bank focused on providing services to mainly farmers and fishermen, plus other small-scale enterprises.
Anna Maria Margarita Bautista Dy (73rd)
Anna Maria Margarita Bautista Dy is the current president and CEO of the Philippines' largest land developer, Ayala Land. She took the post in 2023 and led the company to achieve an increase in its residential revenue by 22 percent, reaching $1.39 billion (approximately P79,460,740,000). Since joining the company, Anna also headed the company's residential business group and mall group.
ALSO READ: This Pinay Entrepreneur Made It To BBC's 100 Women For 2023
Lorelie Quiambao Osial (67th)
Here's yet another groundbeaking first: Lorelie Quiambao Osial is the first woman to be designated president and CEO of the 110-year-old Shell Pilipinas Corporation in December 2021. She climbed up the ranks starting from roles revolving around finance and accounting, not just in the Philippines but also in other Shell outposts across the world. At present, she's still leading Shell Pilipinas Corp. while also serving as Shell's Vice President for global finance operations.
Robina Gokongwei-Pe (48th)
Robina Gokongwei-Pe is now the president and CEO of Robinsons Retail Holdings—a company founded by her late father John Gokongwei Jr. According to Fortune, Robina currently oversees over 2,400 retail outlets in the Philippines, plus 2,000 franchised drugstores. In January 2025, Robina will be taking charge as the company's chairwoman.
Martha Sazon (38th)
With over 94 million Filipinos using GCash, Martha Sazon led the shift in the fintech landscape in the Philippines. She sat as the CEO of the most-used digital wallet in the country in 2020 and steered GCash to its top spot at the moment. Fortune reported that the digital wallet company's valuation is now at $5 billion (around P286,072,500,000) after Japanese financial company, MUFG, invested in GCash.
