7 Philippine firms included in Forbes Asia’s 2026 ‘Best Under A Billion’ list

SEVEN Philippine companies made Forbes Asia’s 2026 Best Under A Billion list, which recognizes 200 high-performing small and midsized publicly listed firms across the Asia-Pacific region.

The Philippine companies are A. Soriano Corp., Apex Mining Co., Inc., Asia United Bank, Far Eastern University, Pryce Corp., STI Education Systems Holdings, Inc., and Vivant Corp.

The list covers publicly listed Asia-Pacific firms with annual sales of more than $10 million but less than $1 billion.

According to Forbes Asia, the firms were selected from more than 19,000 listed companies using a composite score based on debt, sales, earnings-per-share growth over the latest one- and three-year fiscal periods, and one- and five-year average returns on equity, using the latest publicly available financial data as of July 10.

Among the Philippine firms, Asia United Bank posted the highest sales at $505 million, followed by Pryce Corp. ($370 million), Apex Mining Co., Inc. ($357 million), A. Soriano Corp. ($256 million), Vivant Corp. ($177 million), Far Eastern University ($100 million), and STI Education Systems Holdings, Inc. ($97 million).

Toby Allan C. Arce, head of sales trading at Globalinks Securities and Stocks, Inc., said the inclusion of seven Philippine firms underscores the ability of local listed companies to compete alongside high-performing peers across the Asia-Pacific region.

“It highlights that competitive businesses can emerge from the Philippines despite operating in a smaller capital market and a more challenging business environment than many of their regional peers,” Mr. Arce told BusinessWorld.

Mr. Arce said the firms’ inclusion also reflects the diversity of the country’s listed companies.

“The presence of companies from financial services, education, mining, energy, and diversified holdings suggests that opportunities for value creation exist across multiple sectors of the economy,” he said.

Forbes Asia said this year’s firms “are successfully navigating the challenges of geopolitical tensions and volatile energy markets.”

“The lineup is dominated by businesses that are in step with the fast-evolving tech sector and the global AI boom,” it said.

China had the most firms on this year’s list with 28, followed by India with 27. Forbes Asia said 60 firms returned from last year’s list. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera