PLDT to decide on new shares with voting rights

Shareholders of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) are set to decide on a board proposal to issue new preferred shares with voting rights to comply with a Supreme Court ruling on the holdings of foreigners in listed public utilities.

The company said it had set a special meeting on September 20 to give shareholders a chance to vote on the proposal to issue 150 million new low-yield, low-value stocks.

The new shares, to be issued mainly to the company’s employee Beneficial Trust Fund, will boost the number of voting PLDT shares held by Filipino citizens.

Despite making up 45 percent of the company’s expanded voting interest, the new shares will only account for a fraction of the economic rights, in the form of cash and stock dividends, assigned to PLDT common shares.

About 64 percent of these common shares are held by the group of First Pacific Co. Ltd., led by Manuel V. Pangilinan, and its partner, Japan’s NTT DoCoMo.

Two-thirds of the company’s shareholders must agree for the move to be passed, the PLDT disclosure read.

“PLDT maintains that its current share ownership structure fully complies with the Constitution,” the company said. “Nevertheless, the PLDT board approved the amendments to … avoid any disruptions in PLDT’s operations and transactions, and to protect the interests of PLDT and its stakeholders.”