National Book Store to list on stock exchange

MANILA, Philippines—The Ramos family has finalized plans to list its flagship retailing, publishing and allied businesses through the backdoor of the local stock exchange using Vulcan Industrial and Mining Corp., which will be renamed National Book Store Retail Corp.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Thursday, Vulcan said its board had agreed to endorse during the stockholders meeting on May 29 an increase in capital, the subscription by National Bookstore Inc. to such capital hike, the spin-off of mining and oil-related assets and the change in the company’s primary purpose from mining to retail and relegation of mining and oil exploration as secondary purposes.

Under the proposed framework, National Book Store will acquire new shares in Vulcan at P1 per share out of the increase in authorized capital stock to P4 billion from P600 million. This will be done through the conversion to equity of its advances amounting to P363.94 million; and cash subscription of up to P3.036 billion.

Likewise approved as part of the agenda was the change in the name of the corporation to reflect the entry of National Book Store and the waiver of rights offer relative to the increase in capital via additional subscription by National Bookstore and assignees.

Apart from retailing, the board agreed to propose the inclusion among the new secondary purposes of the company wholesale, publishing, printing, manufacturing, distribution, contracting and other activities.