Your Simple Guide to Understanding the Accounting Cycle
Running a business can sometimes be confusing, especially if you are a one-man army handling the operations. Indeed, you collect payments, pay your suppliers, cover the rent and utilities, & hire an accountant for your taxes. Month after month, the numbers and documents pile up, and somewhere in those piles is information that either the […]
The Audit Process Explained: A Practical Guide for MSME Owners
The Audit Myth For many business owners, the word “audit” triggers immediate anxiety. The common assumption is that audits are about catching fraud, exposing weaknesses, or triggering penalties large enough to threaten everything you have built. If you are a Filipino MSME owner feeling this way, you are not alone – especially if the word […]
Your Easy Guide to Documentary Stamp Tax in the Philippines
As you draft the lease for your new store, finalize a business loan, or issue shares to new investors, you might think that it is just a simple signing of documents and filing them right away. But, there is one tax obligation that quietly risks many Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), making most business […]
Cash or Accrual Accounting? Here’s How to Decide
Picture this: you just closed your best sales month yet — invoices sent, deals signed. But when you check your bank account, it barely shows a profit. Or worse, you sit down with a prospective investor and realize your financial statements do not reflect your business’s true health. This is what happens when a business […]
Everything You Need to Know About the Philippine Capital Gains Tax
As an investor, profits are the goal — whether selling shares of stocks in a private company or disposing of a property at a higher value. But the moment these gains are realized, the government takes its cut in the form of Capital Gains Tax (CGT). Thus, many Filipino investors, especially beginners, are unsure how […]
Insights from SaaStr AI Annual 2026: Every Business Is Now an AI Business
By Concordio S. Quisaot, CPA I only had two days to attend the SaaStr AI Annual 2026 in San Mateo, California. It was an event attended by over 10,000 people and led by more than 250 speakers. I had no VIP access and no curated itinerary — just a deliberate decision to skip the sessions […]
In-House vs. Outsourced Accounting: What You Need to Know
As a startup owner, your focus should be on building your business — not chasing receipts, monitoring deadlines, and payroll computations. Yet for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the Philippines, accounting is one of the most mishandled aspects of running a business. The question eventually comes for every MSME owner: “Should I hire […]
Your Quick Guide to the Financial Rehabilitation & Insolvency Act
Building a business means navigating tax requirements, managing payroll, juggling clients, and keeping operations running through uncertainties. But what happens when debt becomes unmanageable? It is stressful when creditors are knocking, and cash flow is tight. Many Filipino entrepreneurs are unaware that a law exists specifically to support them in such situations – one designed […]
Consumer Protection Act: Rights That You Must Know
Are You Aware of Your Rights as A Buyer? Every day, Filipinos spend billions of pesos on goods and services — groceries, gadgets, online purchases, salon visits, and more. Yet few of us actually know our rights when a product turns out defective, a service falls short, or a refund is wrongly denied. Moreover, if […]
Understanding Estate Tax in the Philippines: A Simple Guide
Inheriting property from a parent or grandparent is a meaningful benefit – but before title can be transferred to an heir, one compliance must be addressed first: the Estate Tax. It is also one of the most commonly overlooked topics in estate planning. Without proper understanding and preparation, families risk unnecessary delays, penalties, and legal […]
What MSMEs Need to Consider in Scaling Their Business
Imagine your nearby sari-sari store competitor just hit their first ₱3 million in annual revenue. Congratulations to them, because they have just triggered a whole new set of compliance requirements. Many Filipino Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSMEs) owners are on the verge of growth: more customers, higher income, bigger ambitions. What they often miss […]
Management Service Fees: The Most Challenged Area in Transfer Pricing
Does your business pay management fees to a foreign affiliate or the other way around? Well, a Bureau of Internal Revenue audit would not just be a “maybe” anymore — it is a matter of when. Across all forms of related-party transactions with regard to transfer pricing, management service fees stand out as the most […]
Lunch and Learn: What You Need to Know on AI in Accounting
The accounting profession is evolving fast, and those who don’t adapt risk being left behind. At the recent “Lunch and Learn: AI in Accounting” event, accounting and business professionals gathered around one clear message: Artificial Intelligence is no longer optional. Hosted by Babylon2k’s trusted partners, UHY M.L. Aguirre & Co., CPAs, and WorkSync Opium Solutions […]
Bill to Abolish Travel Tax Started: What You Need to Know
Are you tired of paying extra fees every time you book an international flight? Here’s what you need to know. On March 16, the House of Representatives voted to abolish the travel tax, with 257 lawmakers approving House Bill No. 8464. If passed into law, this would eliminate a long-standing fee that travelers currently pay […]
13th Foreign Investment Negative List: A Guide for Foreign Investors
On April 13, 2026, President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. signed the 13th Regular Foreign Investment Negative List (RFINL), updating the regulatory framework for foreign ownership limitations in the Philippines. Foreign investors — whether forming a new entity, entering a joint venture, or expanding existing operations – should familiarize themselves with its provisions. Why is there a […]
Peso Pressure and Profit Planning: Inflation in the Philippines
Every time the Philippine peso weakens against the US dollar, the strain on Filipino consumers and businesses deepens. Fuel surcharges climb, import costs rise, and invoices swell; many business owners only feel the full impact later, when their cash flow statement tells a story no one wanted to read. As of March 2026, the Philippine […]
BSP Drafts Rules Against the Easy Digital Banking Scheme
The Shortcut to Digital Banking Is Closing For several years, there has been a somewhat secretive shortcut in the Philippine banking sector. Instead of complying as a full digital bank, which requires at least ₱1 billion in capital, some FinTech companies took a faster, much more affordable approach: acquiring rural banks and placing digital platforms […]
Intercompany Agreements in the Philippines: Risk of Boilerplate Contracts
Nowadays, numerous companies are related to one another — transacting with each other every day, sharing in management costs, engaging in lending or financing activities, providing services, licensing intellectual property, and other means to help each other in their business operations. However, if such intercompany agreements in the Philippines were simply downloaded from whatever source […]
The New Role of Auditors in an AI-Driven Financial Environment
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now becoming entrenched in business operations — from financial transactions to risk assessments, compliance, and reporting. Today, 90% of financial institutions use AI to detect fraud(2) in real time, and 93% of financial organizations believe AI will fundamentally transform how fraud detection is done(9). Yet despite this, U.S. consumers lost over […]
Excise Tax Suspension on Fuel in the Philippines Explained
A New Tool to Combat Rising Fuel Costs As previously discussed in our article regarding the conflict between the US, Israel, and Iran, the global prices of fuel indeed continue to fluctuate. Several businesses and most of the consumers are carrying the weight of the burden because of its domino effect on transportation, logistics, and […]