PSE eyes Shenzen bourse investment

THE Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is in talks with its Shenzhen counterpart to invest in the former’s planned P2.5 billion follow-on offering, a bourse of

“Very preliminary. We had somebody talking to them [the Shenzhen Stock Exchange],” PSE President and Chief Executive a chance interview on Monday.

“I’m trying to convince them to subscribe to our (follow-on offering) because I’d like them to be a shareholder, but that’s all talks,” he added.

The PSE inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Shenzhen bourse in 2009 where both agreed to share information and best practices.

“Now we want more concrete partnership with them,” Monzon said, adding that the discussions are expected to “take some time”.

The PSE disclosed in July that its board had approved the issuance of 11.5 million common shares out of the unissued portion of the bourse’s authorized capital stock.

It said the follow-on offering, expected to raise up to P2.8 billion, was part of a “compliance plan to align the shareholder ownership with the limits set by the Securities fund the acquisition of a majority stake in PDS Holdings.

Details of the offering still had to

Last month, reports said that the raise P2.5 billion from the followon offering and that BDO Capital & Investment Corp. had been tapped as the underwriter.

PHOTO BY ANGELICA BALLESTEROS Philippine Stock Exchange President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon Monzon speaks before members of the Shareholders Association of the Philippines during the latter’s annual general membership meeting held at the Dusit Thani Hotel in Makati City on Monday. HONG KONG: