Filinvest appoints Chad Sotelo as group CMO in newly created role

Filinvest Development Corporation has named Chad Sotelo (pictured) as its first-ever group CMO, effective 15 August 2025. Sotelo previously served as CMO at Robinsons Land Corporation.

In his new role, Sotelo will report directly to Filinvest CEO Rhoda “Chiqui” Huang and oversee initiatives to enhance the company’s sustained impact across its diverse portfolio while strengthening a customer-centric culture.

“As group CMO, I am responsible for overall marketing and brand strategy, ensuring that priorities are built around the long-term relevance and impact of our products and services to drive growth, building and strengthening a customer-centric culture to deliver the best customer experience, and working closely with the business units to elevate marketing into a clear competitive advantage,” Sotelo told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE.

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The appointment comes as Filinvest marks its 70th anniversary this year, a milestone that underscores both its heritage and its ambitions for the next decade. Sotelo said his immediate focus is to fully immerse himself in the group’s broad business interests.

“Priority number one is to immerse myself into the various businesses of the Filinvest Group - we have interests in banking, both traditional and digital banks; hospitality, power generation, sugar, and real estate in all its forms, from office and malls to industrial and residential - and to understand not just how the business runs but to also deeply understand their customers,” he explained.

He added: “In parallel, I’m working with the different business units, doing a deep-dive, to see if there are any quick wins that we can work on for the remaining 4 months of 2025, while at the same time crafting our vision and ambition that will guide our work for the next 5-10 years.”

Sotelo previously led the residential division at Robinsons Land while serving as the company’s CMO. He brings over 20 years of experience across multiple industries, having managed brands and businesses at Procter & Gamble, L’Oréal, and Samsung, among others.

The creation of a group CMO role signals Filinvest’s intent to sharpen its competitive edge through marketing, positioning the brand to align with evolving customer expectations across its industries. 

Incorporated in 1973, Filinvest grew from the Gotianun Family’s early financing ventures into one of the Philippines’ leading real estate developers, with a diverse portfolio spanning housing, commercial districts, leisure projects, and office and residential condominiums.

Filinvest posted strong H1 2025 results, with net income up 34% year-on-year to 7.4 billion pesos (US$129.4 million) and total revenues rising 5.5% to 58.5 billion pesos (US$1 billion). CEO Huang highlighted that, despite ongoing headwinds, the company is leveraging organisational momentum to sustain growth.

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