SEC okays merger of two Ayala units

The Securities and Exchange Commission has approved the merger of Cebu Property Ventures and Development Corp. (CPVDC) with Cebu Holdings Inc., the surviving firm.

In a regulatory disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Ayala-led CHI said it “issued 236,683,008 new shares to the stockholders of CPVDC as consideration of the merger.”

CHI said in the disclosure: “The Company’s outstanding shares is now 2,156,756,631 shares, exclusive of the 760,087,890 common shares to be issued to itself in exchange of its shares held in CPVDC, and the 102 resulting fractional shares.”

Earlier, CPVDC, the developer of the 27-hectare Cebu IT Park, was asking for a voluntary trading suspension at the stock exchange.

“Upon the issuance of the Certificate of Approval of the Merger by the SEC, CPVDC shall effectively be absorbed by CHI and there will no longer be any CPV and CPVB shares for trading,” the company had said in a PSE disclosure.

CHI is the firm behind the development of 50-hectare Cebu Business Park.

The merger will consolidate the firms’ portfolio under one listed entity, “creating a unified portfolio for its investments and is expected to result in operational synergies, efficient funds management and simplified reporting to government agencies as a result of the merger.”

CHI’s operations include commercial land; office and residential condominium sales; sale of residential lots; commercial lease of retail space; lease of office space; sale of proprietary sports club shares; and hotel development/operations via an affiliate Cebu Insular Hotel Co Inc.

Cebu IT Park is a well-planned IT economic zone and hosts a good mix of businesses such as software research and development, BPOs, and contact centers, all of which bring in millions of pesos in investments and employing thousands of people.