|
GOTIANUN-LED
Filinvest Development Corp. is placing P1 billion of
fresh equity into East West Banking Corp. for a boost
capital that will enable the bank to upgrade itself from
a commercial to a universal bank.
East
West Bank’s capital amounts to P2 billion. At present,
it has more than 80 branches.
Chief
financial officer and treasurer Nelson Bona said the
equity would partly come from proceeds Filinvest
Development expects to raise from a planned follow-on
shares offer. Another source is a Tier-2 financing.
“Our
strategy is to beef up our operations and grow our
consumer banking business toward becoming a universal
bank,” he said in an interview.
Filinvest Development is also allotting an initial P4.5
billion for a couple of real-estate projects in upscale
Bonifacio Global City and Central Philippines’ business
and leisure hub Mactan, Cebu.
The
company is building the two-tower The Global City
Residential starting in the fourth quarter. Bona said
they expect an estimated P2.9 billion in sales from the
project. The
Seascapes
Resort Town
in Mactan, meanwhile, will contribute P7.4 billion in
sales once it is completed.
Filinvest Development also bared plans of putting up an
ethanol plant in Davao next year to take advantage of an
emerging biofuels industry.
In
another interview, president Josephine Gotianun-Yap said
they would be allotting P600 million to P800 million to
fund the plant, which will have a capacity of 60,000 to
100,000 liters of ethanol per day. It is up for
completion in 2009.
“We
expect it to be cost-efficient because we will be using
the molasses produced by our sugar milling as feedstock
for the ethanol plant,” she said.
Funding
will also come from proceeds of the follow-on offering
set either before the end of the year or early 2008.
“We are
just waiting for the market to be receptive before we
make the final schedule and structure for the offering,”
she added.
The
company is selling up to 3.5 billion primary and
secondary shares with an option to offer and issue
convertible bonds.
Filinvest Development shares closed at P5.70 apiece on
the stock exchange Friday. If the company was to sell
the shares at the present price, it could raise a
potential capital of P20 billion.
“The
corporation is currently evaluating its options
regarding any potential fundraising activity, including
the timing of such fundraising and the feasibility of
the bond flotation,” Gotianun said.
On
September 7, the company’s shareholders approved in a
special meeting the proposed equity fundraising as well
as the acquisition, via a share swap, of Pacific Sugar
Holdings Corp.
Filinvest Development bought the sugar- manufacturing
facility of ALG Holdings Corp., which is also a member
of the Gotianun group.
In
exchange ALG Holdings will receive 1.55 billion
Filinvest Development shares worth P15.5 billion at P10
per share. This was based on the valuation conducted by
independent financial advisor Manabat Sanagustin and Co.
The
acquisition marked Filinvest Development’s initial foray
into the sugar industry. According to the company,
Pacific Sugar is a good vehicle to enter into the
business and ride on its growth potential not only in
the food segment but also in raw material for fuel.
Pacific
Sugar owns the Cotabato Sugar Central Co. Inc., Davao
Sugar Central Co. Inc. and High Yield Sugar Farms Inc. |
