AYALA CORPORATION ANNOUNCES LEADERSHIP TRANSITION

• Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, current Chairman and CEO, to focus on role as Chairman of the Board effective April 2021. 

• Fernando Zobel de Ayala, current President and COO, to become President and CEO in April 2021

• Jaime Augusto and Fernando Zobel de Ayala will retain all their current positions, as Chairman or Vice-Chairman, in the various subsidiary boards of the Ayala group of companies.

MAKATI CITY, December 17, 202008:00 AM  –  Ayala Corporation (AC: PM) today announced that Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala, Chairman and CEO, will transition to focus on his role as Chairman of the Board effective April 23, 2021, after the 2021 Annual Stockholders Meeting. 

Ayala Corporation’s Board has unanimously approved the Company's CEO Succession Plan whereby Fernando Zobel de Ayala, President and COO, will become President and CEO, effective April 23, 2021 after the 2021 Annual Stockholders Meeting.

Jaime Augusto and Fernando Zobel de Ayala will retain all their current positions, as Chairman or Vice-Chairman, in the various subsidiary boards of the Ayala group of companies.

“At Ayala, it is our leaders’ responsibility to nurture talent and plan paths of succession.  In this regard, I see myself as no different from our leaders past and present,” said Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.  “Fernando and I are very fortunate to work with a deep leadership bench; and we are confident that planned leadership transitions such as this are critical ingredients for sustainable success.  Moreover, we have the opportunity, with this move of decoupling the Chairman and CEO roles, to reflect an evolving global best practice in Environment, Social and Corporate Governance.”

Continued Jaime Augusto, “Fernando has successfully provided leadership across a variety of the Ayala group companies for more than two decades, and he is eminently suited to continue providing executive momentum in his new role as President and CEO of Ayala.  Both Fernando and I have worked as a leadership team for many years now, and we intend to continue charting Ayala’s path forward in tandem.”

“It is an honor to continue leading this company with an outstanding and trusted team on our side,” said Fernando Zobel de Ayala. “Together, we have worked hard to build on the many successes of those who came before us; and are committed to continuing to improve lives and create value for our next generations of colleagues, their families, our broad ecosystem of stakeholders and our Country.”

“I would like to thank Jaime for his many contributions as CEO; and commend him for his continuing commitment to live out the values of his recognition as a United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Pioneer in 2017, the first such honoree from Southeast Asia. I am reassured that he will continue to provide guidance in this next phase of our company’s growth,” added Fernando Zobel de Ayala.

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Forward Looking Statements:  All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward looking statements.  Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release or as of the date they are made.  We undertake no obligation to update our forward-looking statements.

Investor Relations Contact:

Celeste Jovenir

Head, Investor Relations
e-mail - jovenir.cm@ayala.com

Media Relations Contact:

Yla Alcantara
Head, Brand and Reputation Management
e-mail - alcantara.ypg@ayala.com