TARLAC CITY, Tarlac — The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Tarlac Extension Office has intensified its grassroots campaign against financial fraud, reaching 15,208 participants through 25 investor education seminars and webinars from January to May 2026, according to its latest fact sheet.
The agency released the data during the “Midyear Kapihan sa SEC” with the Tarlac Press and Radio Club, Inc. at the Lucky Chan Chinese-Filipino Restaurant in Tarlac City on Tuesday, June 2, 2026.
Aside from direct training, the extension office secured 12 Campaign Network Partners through signed Memorandums of Agreement (MOA) during the same five-month period to expand its anti-fraud network. The local office also distributed 76 scam advisories to the media to warn the public against illegal investment schemes.
These localized enforcement and education programs protect a growing corporate landscape in the region. The SEC currently supervises 601,674 active corporations and partnerships nationwide. Region 3 accounts for 56,708 of these active entities, with 5,537 operating directly within Tarlac province.
“We are also educating people through our partners, like schools and the police. Through these collaborations, we hope na ma-eradicate ang ganitong (illegal) activities,” SEC Tarlac Director Richard Laus said.
Laus also announced significant regulatory relief measures to support businesses and promote the ease of doing business.
The commission now exempts both stock and nonstock micro-enterprises with total assets or liabilities not exceeding P3 million from submitting Certified Public Accountant (CPA)-audited Financial Statements. Instead, these small businesses only need to submit Unaudited Financial Statements alongside a Statement of Management’s Responsibility signed by the corporation’s president, chairperson, and treasurer.
The SEC also extended the deadline for filing annual financial statements (AFS) to June 15, 2026, for corporations whose fiscal years ended on December 31. Furthermore, the commission is suspending the imposition of monthly penalties for late or non-filing of reportorial requirements until Dec. 31, 2026, and is granting an additional 25 percent discount on corporate data fees effective June 1, 2026.
Alongside the relief measures, Laus renewed warnings against unauthorized financial entities. The SEC flagged several mobile applications on the Google Play Store and Apple Store—including CashUp PH, Finara Credit, PeraMax, ArqueeScore, and Cash Moo—for violating the standing moratorium on new online lending platforms.
The agency also cautioned the public against an advance-fee scam in which fraudulent Facebook pages unlawfully use the SEC logo and the photograph of SEC Chairperson Francisco Lim to lure borrowers into paying upfront “processing” or “insurance” fees before cutting off communication.
