Francis Edralin Lim is the new SEC chairman. Maybe the universe is whispering: timing is everything.

This appointment, announced today by the Marcos Jr. government, feels like it’s been brewing for over a decade. It’s been a long time coming, with many twists, turns, and bends in between.

Back in 2011, fresh from a reform-heavy stint as president of the Philippine Stock Exchange (which ended in 2010 amid rumored clashes with broker power blocs), Lim was among the top contenders for SEC chair. He had the experience, insight, and reformist heart. I and my business news team at ABS-CBN News covered those transformative years at the PSE, reporting on how Lim and his colleagues pushed for transparency, market discipline, and structural reform.

But President Aquino chose another: Teresita Herbosa, Lim’s colleague at ACCRA law firm.

That choice had ripple effects. Under Herbosa’s leadership and during President Duterte’s time, the SEC initiated moves that are key to the Duterte government’s crackdown on those he considered critics—which Duterte considered Rappler and ABS-CBN were, just because these media groups were doing their jobs: speaking truth to power. ABS-CBN’s franchise was revoked in 2020 by a congress packed with Duterte allies.

I had worked as editor at both Rappler and ABS-CBN, so these goings-on have been close to my heart.

Herbosa led the move to shut down Rappler over allegations of foreign ownership. There were a dozen or so cases filed against Rappler meant to intimidate and slow it down from doing independent reporting. But Maria Ressa and her fiercely principled team refused to back down. Their unwavering stance, captured in the call to #HoldTheLine, earned Maria the Nobel Peace Prize.

Here’s the twist: Francis Lim, the man who was passed over in 2011, would become one of Rappler’s key defenders. He stood between a powerful state and a beleaguered newsroom. His legal guidance helped turn the tide, case by case, in favor of press freedom and legal integrity. After Duterte stepped down, Rappler began winning those cases, one after another.

Aside from Rappler, Lim has also been tapped to lead several business and advocacy groups, such as the Management Association of the Philippines, SharePhil, FINEX, among others—testaments to the respect he commands across both corporate and civic circles.

And now, in June 2025, he begins a 7-year term as SEC chair.

Maybe there was a reason he wasn’t chosen in 2011. Maybe the detour was the point. Maybe the universe knew he was meant to do more, first, before circling back to this post.

Because sometimes the best chapters are written after rejection. And sometimes, justice, leadership—and, yes, grace—arrive not when we expect them, but exactly when they’re meant to.