About the Author

Mr. Lucas has been a journalist since 1999, having covered banking and finance, telecommunications, transportation, energy, capital markets and the presidential palace beats.

He has worked for The Business Daily, BusinessWorld, The Manila Times, Today and the Manila Standard Today. He spent 18 years at the Philippine Daily Inquirer, starting as a reporter in 2005 before becoming its business news editor until Dec. 31, 2023.

He earned a business management degree from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1994.

Latest from the Author

2 days ago

INSIDER VIEW: 'Stop secret deal'? The real NAIA secrets are old ones

By: Daxim L. Lucas

For decades, NAIA was a textbook case of how government-owned facilities can be held hostage by sweetheart arrangements. Before San Miguel came in, the airport authority leased out valuable terminal and commercial space to private operators at rates so low they barely covered maintenance costs.

9 Oct 2025

8:45AM

INSIDER INFO | Top Line fuels growth with share tweak, eyes import expansion

By: Daxim L. Lucas

At a special board meeting on Oct. 8, the company approved the reclassification of 800 million unissued common shares into preferred shares. The shift gives Top Line flexibility to raise fresh funds without diluting control—a structure often used to finance capital-heavy ventures.

23 Sep 2025

10:38AM

INSIDER INFO | CAAP: Two Gulfstream jets registered under PAL, not Romualdez

By: Daxim L. Lucas

The certificates of registration which cover a Gulfstream G550 and a Gulfstream G150 list the Lucio Tan-owned airline as the sole owner and operator. The airline’s Pasay City headquarters at the PNB Financial Center is recorded as the official address. Renewal receipts confirm that the jets’ registrations remain valid until 2029 and 2030, respectively.

19 Sep 2025

4:13PM

BSP’s P500,000 daily withdrawal cap may disrupt cash-reliant firms

By: Daxim L. Lucas

While the BSP’s move would likely target anti-money laundering and fraud risk management, the unintended consequence is a liquidity squeeze on cash-reliant but legitimate businesses. Unless paired with robust digital payment alternatives and financial inclusion measures, the cap risks disrupting day-to-day commerce, particularly outside Metro Manila.

11 Sep 2025

1:02PM

INSIDER VIEW | DPWH must fix bad data or worsen ghost project crisis

By: Daxim L. Lucas

When the Senate took up the issue of “ghost projects,” public outrage came swiftly, with the public blasting the DPWH for pouring billions of pesos into projects that didn’t exist. But a closer look shows that corruption is only one aspect of the problem. Sometimes, the issue is something more mundane but, potentially, more damaging to public trust: bad data.

10 Sep 2025

6:07PM

INSIDER VIEW | Illegal gambling, not legal sites, is PH’s real online threat

By: Daxim L. Lucas

From jueteng and masiao to underground casinos, unregulated gambling networks have always thrived outside the law. They were untaxed, unmonitored, and unsafe for players, and the arrival of the internet only amplified this reality. A total ban on online gambling will not solve this problem — it will make it worse.

15 Aug 2025

6:00AM

INSIDER VIEW | GSIS’ Alternergy investment delivers strong returns, low risk

By: Daxim L. Lucas

The investment is not only legitimate and well-structured, but also represents a prudent allocation of the resources of the state pension fund into an asset that offers stable returns, manageable risk, and tangible benefits for the fund’s members and the country’s renewable energy ambitions.

5 Aug 2025

5:15PM

INSIDER INFO | Carl Cruz brings back Globe stores—and with a stopwatch

By: Daxim L. Lucas

Why the change in course? The answer is simple: a stubborn chunk of the population still insists on face-to-face transactions. And Globe, under Cruz’s watch, has finally decided to accommodate them.

21 Jul 2025

1:44PM

INSIDER VIEW | NAIA terminal fee hike: Why travelers must shoulder the cost

By: Daxim L. Lucas

The upcoming increase in passenger service charges at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) drew the ire of budget-conscious travelers when it was announced last year. After being deferred for a year, there’s no more avoiding the reality that these fees must rise, and the flying public should brace for it.