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Red Bull Dance Your Style Qualifiers held in Davao

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The competition was sizzling hot at the Red Bull Dance Your Style Qualifiers in Davao. The best dancers from all over the region brought their A-game, delivering performances that dazzled the audience, who wielded the power to choose the competition’s winner.

Red Bull Dance Your Style is a unique, global 1-on-1 street dance competition that brings out each dancer’s individuality and creativity, and celebrates the diversity of their dance styles. Unlike other dance competitions, Red Bull Dance Your Style challenges dancers to show off their improvisational expertise and freestyle dance moves to unpredictable songs.

For its third year in the Philippines, Red Bull Dance Your Style extended the search for the country’s top dance talents to Mindanao. This culminated in the first-ever qualifiers in Davao held last June 29 at Club Echelon in Davao City.

Sixteen dancers from the region took to the dance floor and unleashed their impressive moves and creativity with REPETER (Peter Nugas III), MJ (MJ Mejos), MSTR PIECE (Regie Harris Lavestre), and R3DMAN (Edrian Alcaria) dancing their way to the Top 4. In the end, R3DMAN took home the trophy. His unique style and prowess left the audience in awe, earning him the title. Both R3DMAN and MSTR PIECE, as first and second place winners respectively, secured their spots in the National Finals.

“It’s very overwhelming,” said R3DMAN. “I didn’t know what to feel. Earlier, when the champion was called, I was dazed. It felt like a dream for me.”

R3DMAN admitted he was not fully prepared for the competition as he had limited time to get ready. “The preparation was really quick; I only had two days to prepare because of school and work.” He also shared that he rarely participated in dance battles, preferring to choreograph rather than perform. “This is actually my fourth battle, which is why I still consider myself a rookie,” he added. “What I did was believe in myself and enjoy the moment.”

His win is not the end as he gears up for the next round of the competition. R3DMAN shared that one of the things he wants to work on is his endurance. “The preparation will be intense. I feel like I’m going to battle with myself as well for consistency, which is what I really need to work on.”

Present at the event was dance consultant Lema Diaz of the Philippine All-Stars. “I’ve been coming to Davao since 2006 to 2008, I know how great the dance artists are in Davao and Mindanao,” she remarked. “As a dance consultant, we make sure that we visit Davao or any place in Mindanao to find the best representative for the Philippines in the World Finals in Mumbai.”

Diaz claimed that R3DMAN’s performance throughout the competition was truly one of the highlights of the Davao qualifier. “Seeing him live, seeing him go through rounds, just the mastery of his own style is there,” said Diaz. “He can put his own personality, the ease of listening to the music, and the conversation he has with the audience and opponent.”

She added, “He’s really entertaining to watch, which is why I’m excited for Manila to witness him, for the whole Philippines to witness him, to have an exchange with the other dancers, because it’s going to be inspiring.”

As the Davao qualifier wraps up, the excitement builds for the next round of qualifiers happening in Cebu on July 13 at APEX Super Club. Diaz conveyed her enthusiasm for the upcoming rounds, saying, “(Dancers) elevate in a week, two weeks, three, and four weeks. What more in a year?” She added, “That’s why I’m so excited to see how high the level has become and how many people are coming because we’re growing.” Diaz also expressed her eagerness to see both new faces and familiar ones returning to compete on the dance floor.

Along with Diaz, fans of the competition are eagerly awaiting more incredible performances and unforgettable moments as dancers from across the Philippines vie for their chance to shine at the world stage.

Don’t miss a beat! Stay tuned for the next round of qualifiers and be sure to catch the Red Bull Dance Your Style Philippines National Finals on September 7. This is an event you truly won’t want to miss! Follow the Red Bull Dance Your Style Philippines journey to the World Finals in India on November 9, 2024.

For more information and updates regarding this year’s season of Red Bull Dance Your Style, visit the official Red Bull website and the following social media pages (Facebook | Instagram | Tiktok).

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Sun Life appoints Bianca Ilibasic as Managing Director, Sun Life Global Solutions

She will lead SLGS across India and the Philippines, providing strategic direction to multi-functional teams spanning Technology, Operations, Analytics, Actuarial, HR, Finance, and Risk & Compliance.

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Sun Life has appointed Bianca Ilibasic as the Managing Director for its global capability centre, Sun Life Global Solutions (SLGS). She previously served as Vice President & Chief Operations Officer, Sun Life Asia.

In her new role, Bianca will lead SLGS across India and the Philippines, providing strategic direction to multi-functional teams spanning Technology, Operations, Analytics, Actuarial, HR, Finance, and Risk & Compliance. Her mandate is to further scale SLGS as a high-impact, enterprise capability supporting Sun Life across 28 markets.

During her time in Asia, Bianca advanced straight-through processing, accelerated digital adoption, and shaped a forward-looking AI roadmap to drive business growth — strengthening shared platforms and enabling scalable outcomes.

Commenting on the appointment, Laura Money, EVP and Chief Information and Technology Innovation Officer, Sun Life, said, “Over the past four years, Bianca has been a driving force behind operational excellence and digital transformation, leading with clarity, courage, and a deep commitment to our Purpose. Advancing our AI roadmap and scaling impact across common platforms, Bianca has been consistently delivering results while building strong, empowered teams. She is a visionary, insights driven leader who brings energy, heart, and ambition to everything she does, and I could not be more thrilled to see her step into this role.”

Reflecting on the opportunity, Bianca added: “I am excited to begin this new chapter. Sun Life Global Solutions is more than a capability centre — excellence, innovation, and dedication are consistently demonstrated via brilliant, passionate teams across India and the Philippines who support our Purpose and our Clients every single day. What excites me most is the opportunity to build on our foundation and deepen partnerships, accelerate transformation, and relentlessly focus on outcomes that truly matter to our Clients.”

Bianca’s appointment marks a defining moment for SLGS, strengthening its role as both a strategic engine for enterprise value and a platform where empowered teams can shape what’s next for Sun Life. We look forward to everything Bianca and the SLGS team will achieve together.

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Manulife continues legacy of service in PH with Impact Week 2026

All five Manulife organizations in the Philippines—Manulife Philippines, Manulife China Bank Life Assurance Corporation (MCBL), Manulife Investment Management and Trust Corporation (MIMTC), Manulife Business Processing Services (MBPS), and Manulife IT Delivery Center (MITDC)—held activities that advanced environmental, educational, and social causes.

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Manulife hosted its inaugural Impact Week, a global volunteer initiative designed to strengthen well-being, build social connection and unite teams through purpose-driven community action.

All five Manulife organizations in the Philippines—Manulife Philippines, Manulife China Bank Life Assurance Corporation (MCBL), Manulife Investment Management and Trust Corporation (MIMTC), Manulife Business Processing Services (MBPS), and Manulife IT Delivery Center (MITDC)—held activities that advanced environmental, educational, and social causes.

“Manulife’s Longevity ambition is about helping people live longer, healthier, and more financially secure lives—and we believe that starts with strong, resilient communities,” said Rahul Hora, President and Chief Executive Officer, Manulife Philippines. “Impact Week brings this to life by mobilizing colleagues across our Philippine entities to volunteer at scale, working side by side with our community partners and reinforcing the shared purpose that strengthens long-term well-being. Through these collective actions, we are creating immediate impact and helping build a more sustainable and inclusive future for the communities we serve.”

Results and Highlights from Impact Week 2026

During Impact Week, more than 1,200 colleagues participated in volunteering activities, logging more than 4,700 volunteering hours. 

Beyond the numbers, Impact Week strengthened connection across teams, bringing colleagues together around shared purpose and reinforcing a culture of inclusion.

  • Ongoing tripartite impact: As part of a tripartite collaboration with the Corazon Sanchez Atayde Memorial Foundation (CSAMF) and Haribon Foundation—combining Manulife’s community investment commitments, CSAMF’s financial literacy program, and Haribon’s biodiversity and environmental work—Manulife Philippines, Manulife China Bank Life (MCBL), and Manulife Investment Management and Trust Corporation (MIMTC) led the on-ground activities in Infanta, Quezon Province.
  • Supporting financial resilience through Peso Smart: Volunteers supported Peso Smart Pinoy (PSP) through challenge-based activities in Brgy. Alitas, Infanta, culminating in a graduation ceremony recognizing PSP participants and their progress toward greater financial confidence. Peso Smart is a financial literacy program that has reached more than 4,000 learners across 18 schools nationwide since 2017,
  • Contributing to a healthier planet: Volunteers, together with Haribon Foundation and the Alitas Farmers Folks Association (AFFA), planted 2,500 mangrove seedlings, advancing the Ridge-to-Reef Reforestation Initiative and adding to Manulife and Haribon’s total of more than 31,000 trees planted since 2023.
  • Prioritizing health and well-being: Volunteers partnered with Rise Against Hunger Philippines and Waves for Water Philippines to support food security and water, sanitation, and hygiene initiatives. Together, they packed 17,700+ rice meals, rescued 1,200+ kg of surplus food, distributed 500 hot meals, produced 3,300 mushroom bags for livelihoods, assembled 150 water filtration kits, and developed 100+ concepts for food bank and mobile kitchen initiatives.
  • Supporting community education: MITDC delivered its Code4Future program to 28 young learners from St. Martin de Porres Kid’s Home—using coding and creativity to build problem-solving skills and digital confidence.

Extending Impact Together

In addition to the company organized activities, individual colleague teams across the Manulife organizations were supported in leading their own volunteer initiatives with local non-profit partners. For each eligible team-led initiative, Manulife provided a $1,000 donation to the partner organization, extending the reach of Impact Week.

“The most meaningful work is often personal. At Manulife, volunteerism grows when people are trusted to lead on the causes they care about,” said Ardhi Siregar, Chief People Officer, Manulife Philippines. “That’s why we empowered our teams to identify a community impact need, choose a local non-profit partner to collaborate with, and lead the effort themselves—with team grants helping extend that impact through added support where it matters most. That sense of ownership and purpose is what fuels deeper engagement and inspires our colleagues to drive impact that endures.”

With more than 13,000 volunteering hours logged across all Philippine entities in 2025, Impact Week 2026 reflects Manulife’s growing culture of service in the communities where it operates and stands to make a difference.

Volunteering: A Longevity Driver Impact Week aligns closely with the work of the Manulife Longevity Institute, a global research, thought leadership, innovation, advocacy, and community investment platform that will help people thrive at every age. The Institute’s work will support Manulife’s Impact Agenda strategy as our always-on commitment to drive better outcomes for our customers, our communities, and the world we share. We believe collective action can accelerate change and, by collaborating with like-minded partners, we can make a meaningful impact.

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Manulife launches GoalReady health solutions

GoalReady for Health combines investment-linked savings with critical illness and life protection—helping customers build their funds while protecting their goals if a serious illness strikes.

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Manulife Philippines and Manulife China Bank Life (MCBL) today announced the launch of Manulife GoalReady for Health, an investment-linked savings plan with comprehensive critical illness and life insurance coverage.

GoalReady for Health combines investment-linked savings with critical illness and life protection—helping customers build their funds while protecting their goals if a serious illness strikes. Designed for Filipinos who want to stay on track with their long-term goals, it helps manage the potential financial disruption caused by health setbacks.

As more Filipinos plan for longer lives, staying on track with their life goals increasingly means being prepared for rising healthcare costs, prolonged illness, and the financial strain health setbacks can place on families. The plan addresses the growing gap in financial preparedness for health emergencies among Filipinos. The recent Manulife Asia Care Study revealed that about four in five Filipinos believe their financial wellbeing has great impact on their health span (both physical and mental) and lifespan.

The financial stakes are steep: A study on the economic impact of cancer in the Philippines found that Filipino patients spend an average of ₱181,789 out-of-pocket within the first year of diagnosis, highlighting the significant financial burden of treatment. Yet Filipinos remain financially underprepared for these possibilities. According to latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, Filipinos’ household out-of-pocket for medical expenses stood at 42.7%, while a recent Manulife study found that 33% of Filipinos feel they have insufficient insurance coverage.

GoalReady for Health enables customers to build a dedicated pool of savings for future health needs through professionally managed, investment-linked fund options designed to support long-term goals. At the same time, it provides built-in critical illness protection, helping customers stay on track with their plans even when a serious health event occurs.

“Many Filipinos work hard to build toward their goals, but a serious illness can quickly turn years of progress into an unexpected financial burden. Manulife GoalReady for Health brings together critical illness protection and investment-linked savings for future health needs, helping customers stay financially prepared while protecting what they’ve worked hard to build,” said Rahul Hora, President and Chief Executive Officer, Manulife Philippines.

“With Manulife GoalReady for Health, we want Filipinos to move forward with confidence, knowing that a health shock need not become a financial setback—so they can focus on recovery while keeping their savings and life goals on track, and live better for longer,” Hora added.

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