PSE dismisses P5-trillion market cap wipeout as fake news

The Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) over the weekend denounced what it described as “preposterous” claims that the local bourse has lost up to P5 trillion in market capitalization (MCAP) since December 2024, with the total year-to-date losses at P886.84 billion.

In a statement released Sunday, the PSE said the claims were made last Friday, October 10, by a “pseudo-expert” on the stock market, and were then carried by an online publication.

“Unfortunately, this fake news was irresponsibly published on the same day and reposted the following day in an online tabloid that is known for prioritizing sensationalism that will general clicks and engagements over providing news that have been fact-checked or verified, a minimum prerequisite of legitimate journalists in this era where fake news is readily accepted as gospel truth,” the statement read.

According to the PSE, it tracks two types of market capitalization —the Domestic MCAP, which includes Philippine companies whose primary listing is at the PSE, and Total MCAP which includes foreign companies dually listed.

Those included in the Total MCAP are Manulife Financial Corp. that is also traded on the Toronto, Hong Kong, New York stock exchanges; Sun Life Financial Inc. also traded on Toronto and New York exchanges; and Del Monte Pacific Ltd. also traded on the Singapore exchange.

“PSE uses domestic MCAP data as the MCAP reference number since it more accurately captures the performance of the Philippine stock market,” the local bourse said.

Domestic MCAP stood at P14.293 trillion as of last Friday, October 10, 2025, reflecting a decline of P273.26 billion or 1.86% from P14.566 trillion as of December 27, 2024, the last trading day of the previous year.

Foreign MCAP — which covers Manulife, Sun Life, and Del Monte — was recorded at P4.827 trillion, down by P613.59 billion or 11.28% from P5.441 billion. Less than 1% of Manulife and Sun Life, and less than 5% of Del Monte are lodged for trading in PSE.

This brought the total MCAP to P19.120 trillion, down by P886.84 billion or 4.43% from P20.007 billion.

“Deliberately comparing apples to oranges by comparing Domestic MCAP to Total MCAP is dishonest, if not malicious, and is clearly meant to provoke investors to lose confidence in the Philippine capital market and destabilize the economy,” the PSE said.

“We trust that the data provided in this statement will put an end to fake news and about trillions lost in PSE’s MCAP this year,” it added.

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairperson Francis Lim last week apologized for saying that P1.7-trillion worth of market value was wiped out from public listed companies in just a three-week period due to corruption issues, as he said he based his remark on what he believed to be a “credible” industry report.

Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs (SAPIEA) Frederick Go earlier dismissed the claim as untrue, and that Lim was quoting a confirmed fake news social media post.

PSE president and chief executive officer Ramon Monzon has since clarified that P185 billion in market capitalization was lost during the three-week period initially referred to by Lim.

“That being said, SEC Chairman Francis Lim is correct in assailing the level of corruption in the country, and its adverse effects on the economy and financial markets,” he said in a statement released last Thursday evening.

“The PSE is one with the Administration and our regulator in implementing key reforms meant to enhance and deepen our capital markets further,” he added. —RF, GMA Integrated News