This was also why Martin Antonio G. Zamora, the President and CEO of Nickel Asia Corp. (NAC), knew that inviting Camacho to be the new chairman of NAC was a long shot.
“We had not seen each other in a while, but my sister Diday and I really wanted to invite him to serve as our chairman because he’s one of the best in terms of experience, stature, and reputation. He’s an accomplished man – he is currently the chair of SunLife of Canada (Philippines) and the University of Arts Singapore and was the vice chair of Credit Suisse Asia-Pacific until his retirement in 2022,” he said.
“But most importantly, he’s a man of integrity. Even when he was Secretary of Finance and Energy, he was never embroiled in any issue and put forth policies that were well-thought-out, such as the passage of the EPIRA. Integrity is one of the core values at NAC, which makes him an ideal fit,” he added.
“Truly and honestly, the one thing that encouraged me to accept the role was the company’s chairman emeritus, Manny Zamora. I have the highest respect and admiration for him,” said Camacho. “He’s somebody I’ve known for about 40 years. I came back to the Philippines in the early 80s as a young banker from New York. I was fortunate to have worked with Mr. Zamora as a client when Nickel Asia was still Rio Tuba and was a small company.”
“Lito told me that it was not a difficult decision for him to accept our offer because of his respect and admiration for my dad,” said the younger Zamora. “I thought he would hesitate to accept our offer, given that the mining industry has always been complicated.”
Camacho was aware of the repercussions as well.
“Mining is not the easiest industry to be part of because it attracts issues and controversies around sustainability, the environment, indigenous people and many other things. I had to make sure that I was joining an organization that is a good and responsible mining company,” said Camacho.
“I’ve been a professional for over 45 years and I’ve always valued my personal reputation. It is really one of the things I am very proud of. I want to make sure that I associate myself with companies that I will never be embarrassed by, so I did my due diligence,” he added.
One of the things that impressed Camacho was NAC’s participation in the United Nations Global Compact, making it the first company in the Philippines with mining assets to do so. NAC was also the first mining company in the country to aim for net-zero emissions by 2050.
‘Renaissance man’
Gerard H. Brimo, the outgoing chairman of NAC and the de-facto face of the mining industry for the last two decades, describes Lito as a ‘renaissance man’ – a fitting moniker for someone who believes in the convergence of arts and culture with business and education.
This is reflected in the executive’s vast collection of both classical, modern and contemporary art. Lito, together with his wife Kim, have amassed a collection of Oriental artifacts, antique furniture pieces and Persian carpets; paintings and sculptures from Filipino and Asian masters; and more recently, a renowned extensive Yayoi Kusama collection.
This inclination to art was passed on to their children as well.
His eldest child, Bea, graduated summa cum laude in visual and environmental studies from Harvard University and later, with a Master’s degree in Architecture from the university’s Graduate School of Design. His second son, Lorenzo, also graduated magna cum laude with the same degree from Harvard and an MFA from Hamburg.
Together with his art partner, Lorenzo is scheduled to have a solo exhibition at MOMA PS1 in New York later this year. His fifth child, Joaquin, recently completed his MBA in INSEAD but is also one of the best-known DJ’s in Singapore and plays drums, guitar, and keyboard.
“We’ve always been hands-off with our children in terms of their education” said Camacho.
“We rarely helped them with homework, allowed them their choice of university and field of study, and never wrote anything for them even for their college applications. All we did was pay for their tuition,” he added, laughing.
Camacho’s appreciation for both modernity and tradition, his methodical approach in selecting art pieces, as well as the relentless support he has given not only to his children but even to distinguished and emerging artists – all these are also reflected in the executive’s ideals when it comes to his leadership and management style.
“Very important for me is the commitment to excellence. Whatever we do, we should strive to be excellent,” said Camacho.
“The other thing is people. We can have the smartest CEO and the best chairman of the board, but unless we have excellent people throughout our organization, we will not be successful. We need to make sure that we have the best and the brightest in the industry, and we need to empower them. Empowerment is important. That has always been key to my leadership style,” he added.
“For me, a good leader is somebody who is humble enough to recognize that he or she cannot do everything, and they have to rely on the people they work with. I think it’s very important to collaborate and work as a team. I know these things also hold true for Nickel Asia,” he went on.
As the new chairman, Camacho has also been vocal about his intentions to be very engaged.
“I’ve never been a passive member in any board and I have been on many corporate and non-profit boards. I ask questions, some of them uncomfortable, but that should be my role – to help guide the company strategically. Nickel Asia is not just a mining company; it has diversified into renewable energy as well. It is also looking at expanding even beyond the Philippines. I can be of help in these aspects.”
“I hope my experience in business, banking, finance, and government, will allow me to contribute to growing NAC to the next level. I am delighted and proud to join a company that is really the best example of what a responsible mining company should be: a mining company that looks after our environment and our stakeholders – including the indigenous people, the local communities, the government, and our employees,” he added.
During a celebratory lunch at the company’s office in Taguig City where Camacho gave a speech in front of employees, he gave everyone a glimpse of how personal and hands-on he is.
“I really feel welcome here and it feels like family already. Give me a little time,” he said with a smile. “I hope to be able to call everyone here by their first names.”
Karl Ocampo is a former business journalist for the Philippine Daily Inquirer who now works for Nickel Asia Corp. as its media and communications manager. She contributed this article.
