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PUBLICLY-traded information technology and online gaming
firm IPVG Corp. is raising P400 million from the sale of
up to 50 million common shares via private placement or
direct offering of securities to a limited number of
financial investors.
In a
disclosure to the stock exchange Monday, the company
said the shares, to be taken from its authorized and
unissued capital stock, would be sold at P8 apiece.
“The
purpose of the issuance is to raise funds for expansion
plans in Data Center, Online Games and Contact Center
businesses,” IPVG said in the disclosure.
The
fundraising will likewise allow the company to invest in
new capital equipment and fixed assets, and increase its
working capital for business expansion.
The
company’s board has authorized the executive committee
to determine the implementing details of the issuance of
shares.
Apart
from private placement, IPVG is also raising P500
million from a follow-on offering tentatively set in
September.
It also
plans to tap the debt market to raise another P500
million in proceeds. With a potential funding of P1
billion, the company will put up contact center
facilities of 3,000 to 5,000 seats over the next three
to four years.
IPVG’s
expansion is anchored on a recent agreement with Hong
Kong’s PCCW Teleservices Ltd. to provide call center
services in the Philippines.
Under
the agreement, IPVG, through its wholly owned unit
IP-Contact Center Outsourcing Inc.), will provide
call-center services to meet the English-language
requirements of PCCW Teleservices’ clients in other
parts of the world. The cooperation will establish the
first PCCW branded and certified contact centers in the
Philippines.
IP-Contact
Center
will need a total of $30 to $40 million to support the
undertaking. According to Gonzalez, they could go back
to the equities market next year to address the
remaining capital requirement.
“Right
now we are building up the infrastructure to handle
1,000 seats this year but not all will be utilized. Out
of that number maybe we can only use 500 to 600. We
expect to become bigger starting 2008,” he said.
IP-Contact
Center
expects to serve multinational clients from the airline,
banking and finance and hotel sectors. The services to
be offered are customer front office and teleservices,
which handles the design, building and maintenance of
contact centers. |
