GSIS’ total assets reached P411 billion in 2006
The Government Service Insurance System said its total assets reachedP411.19 billion in 2006, reinforcing the pension fund’s position as the top government owned and controlled corporation today.
In his speech during the gSIS’ 70th founding anniversary celebration, GSIS President and General Manager Winston F. Garcia said breaching the P400 billion mark is a testament to the tremendous growth the System has experienced from its humble beginnings in 1937 — the year the GSIS was created.
When the Philippine government formed the GSIS at that time to provide life insurance and pension to civil servants, the GSIS was given a budget of P200,000 to perform its functions.
Seventy years later, the GSIS has not only fulfilled its mission to the hilt, but also transformed itself into a gargantuan P400 billion cmpany — like a small acorn growing to a skyscraping oak tree.
“In 70 years, the fund of the GSIS grew more than two million times. Last year, the GSIS breached the P400 billion mak as it registered total assets of P411.19 billion. Consolidated net operating revenues grew from P40.49 billion to P41.56 billion — the highest in the history of GSIS and the highest in any enterprise, both private and public,” Mr. Garcia said.
The improvement in GSIS’ consolidated assets was mainly attributed to the strong performance of the Social Insurance Fund (SIF). The SIF is the source of the social insurance benefits of GSIS’ 1.3 million members, making up a majority of its consolidated assets.
On the other hand, Mr. Garcia attributed the income growth to capital gains from the GSIS’ investment portfolio.
“We made money from the stock market and from our government securities holdings, especially the dollar-denominated instruments which we bought at a discount,” he said.
During the anniversary celebration, Vice President Noli de Castro said he was very impressed with what the GSIS has achieved in so short a time.
“We are all witnesses in what is turning out to be the most productive and most creative years in the life of the GSIS,” he said.
“Many years from now, people will talk about the reforms of the GSIS and how the institution turned around near bankruptcy to financial strength and global excellence.”
Mr. Garcia said to sustain the GSIS’ financial success, it will adopt a strategy to diversify risks to GSIS investments; maintain consistently high investment yields; and exercise good governance of the pension fund investments.
Source: GSIS Kawani, Vol. 1 No. 2, May - August 2007