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Fernando Zobel de Ayala takes temporary medical leave of absence from Ayala Corp.

By ICON Executive Asia
Published August 19, 2022

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stocks Exchange (PSE) on Monday, Ayala Corp. announced a temporary change in leadership as its highest official, Fernando Zobel de Ayala, has taken a temporary medical leave of absence as vice-chairman of the board and president and chief executive officer of the company.

“He remains a member of our Board but has stepped down as member of our Executive Committee and Finance Committee,” the conglomerate said.

“I want to assure everyone that Fernando is in high spirits, but he has asked for some time to focus on his health and recovery. We all have so many responsibilities and commitments in all aspects of our lives, but first and foremost, we should all prioritize our health and well-being,” Ayala Corp. Chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala (JAZA), Fernando’s older brother, said in a Facebook post. 

“As a family, we're fully supportive of Fernando's decision to take a leave so he can do whatever is necessary to rebuild his strength,” JAZA continued.

The Ayala Corp.’s Board of Directors elected Cezar Consing as Acting President and CEO and member of the Executive Committee, while former Energy Secretary Delfin Lazaro was elected Vice-Chairman.

Consing is a Director at Ayala Corporation, Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), Globe Telecom, Inc. and ACEN Corporation. He has served as a Senior Managing Director of Ayala Corporation and was President and CEO of BPI from 2013 to 2021, and Chairman and President of the Bankers Association of the Philippines from 2019 to 2021.

Lazaro, on the other hand, has been a non-executive director at Ayala since January 2007, at Globe Telecom since 1997, and at Integrated Micro-Electronics Inc. since 2000, and an independent director at Monde Nissin Corp.

Both Consing and Lazaro’s appointments were endorsed by Ayala’s Corporate Governance and Nomination Committee (CGN Committee).

“Let us all give Fernando the support he needs to focus on improving his health, and Bong and Del our confidence as they take on their new roles,” JAZA also stated in his post on Facebook.

Ayala Corp. did not elaborate on the reason behind the sudden leave of absence of Fernando, who is now 62.

Source:

https://edge.pse.com.ph/companyDisclosures/form.do?cmpy_id=5