Singapore, Singapore, November 14, 2025 – At the Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF) 2025, Globe President and CEO Carl Cruz underscored how the company is reshaping enterprise–startup collaboration in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.

In the opening fireside chat moderated by Navin Suri, Managing Director for Financial Services, Asia-Pacific at Accenture, on The Founders Peak stage, one of SFF’s most anticipated platforms, Day 3 spotlighted startups and enterprise buyers, and how the buying behaviour of financial institutions is shifting in an AI-first world. Cruz explained that large organizations are moving away from legacy “vendor-client” arrangements and toward deeper, co-creative partnerships that prioritise operational pain points and shared purpose rather than transactional procurement.

He detailed that Globe actively seeks startups that can embed themselves into the company’s broader ecosystem and help solve sectorwide challenges across telecommunications, fintech, health, and digital services. Cruz emphasized that Globe’s strategic advantage lies in its openness to collaborate when capabilities are not yet internal: “Globe readily acknowledges opportunities to strengthen capabilities and then pivot when the need arises.” He pointed to two major innovation enablers: the 917Ventures Velocity platform, which grants startup partners access to enterprise-scale testing environments, and Kickstart Ventures, which supports founders through capital and strategic integration. Both demonstrate how Globe invests not just financially but structurally in the Philippines’ innovation pipeline.

Partnership centered on trust

A central part of Globe’s criteria for partnership focuses on trust, particularly data governance in an industry where customer information is critical. Cruz noted that startups must demonstrate enterprise-grade responsibility with data, an ability to scale, a mindset for integration, and agility paired with accountability and integrity. He stressed that Globe values partners who ask intelligent questions and dive deep into the incumbent’s operational constraints and historical systems which recognizes that enterprise organizations often carry legacy frameworks that can stifle expansion if not properly understood.

AI naturally dominated the discussion, and Cruz reinforced that Globe’s ambition to lead in this space is not new: it was among the first companies in Southeast Asia to appoint a Chief AI Officer (in this case, Anton Bonifacio who leads the AI Group of Globe), democratizing AI access across its employee base. However, he cautioned startups against indulging in AI hype without comprehension of enterprise realities, particularly around data structure, data quality, and embedded infrastructure. He advised that founders must probe, listen, and co-diagnose problems rather than merely pitch features and future promises.

A recurring flaw

On common failures in startup partnerships, Cruz cited a recurring flaw: teams presenting solutions without first grasping the enterprise’s pain points or its legacy limitations. He illustrated how mismatches between startup assumptions and enterprise realities often lead to breakdowns in execution, not due to bad intent, but due to insufficient listening. Conversely, startups that arrive with strategic curiosity rather than blind confidence stand a far better chance of gaining access, building proof-of-concepts, and scaling jointly with Globe.

Looking ahead to 2030, Cruz anchored his philosophy in the enduring power of purpose. He asserted that while technology will shift, markets will pivot, and sectors will cycle, corporate purpose, when deeply rooted, will outlast disruption. For Globe, that purpose remains uplifting the lives of Filipinos through digital access, inclusion, education, and economic enablement.

Cruz closed by expressing that Globe aims to partner with startups that help the company not just perform commercially, but serve its role as a responsible corporate citizen and contributor to national development.

To learn more about Globe, visit https://www.globe.com.ph/.