Biz Buzz: Hottest industry

When it rains, it pours. And in the case of the logistics industry, we mean that positively.

That’s because, just like any trend or fad, it seems that every major business group is now interested in making money out of bringing things from point A to point B and onward.

Of course, we’ve all heard about the game-changing entry of the SM conglomerate in 2GO as part of their strategy to become the Philippines’ complete retail go-to.

Then there’s the move of the old Ayala industrial house into the logistics-like business of online retailing by acquiring an interest in the wildly popular Zalora, an internet-based shopping portal.

The latest buzz in the logistics industry now is that another business group is set to make a splash in a big way.

That’s because this conglomerate already has not just one, but two logistics concerns in its portfolio. But it appears this isn’t enough because it wants nothing less than one of the biggest cargo and parcel movers in the country.

We are, of course, talking about Manuel Pangilinan’s Metro Pacific Investment Corp. (MPIC), which last year acquired a number of small logistics firms, and earlier this year made a deeper move into the industry by acquiring Ace Logistics. In this sense, they could claim that they were ahead of the other conglomerates and that their rivals are only now following their lead.

In any case, Biz Buzz learned that MPIC is deep in talks to acquire yet another logistics firm. Only this time, the acquisition target is larger than its other logistics purchases in the past combined.

If this deal is sealed— and we hear that talks are at a very advanced stage by now—this could make MPIC a serious contender in the industry, the way it became a serious player in the hospital business by acquiring a disparate set of operations wherever it could find them.

So which acquisition target are we talking about? It’s none other than the Air21 logistics group owned by the family of businessman (and former Customs Commissioner) Alberto Lina.

Biz Buzz understands that a broad price range has already been bandied about, though the signature lines on the deal documents are still blank. But given how things are going, they may not remain blank for long. All that remains is for the final price to be quoted, we understand.

Once that happens, the logistics industry will truly become the newest battleground of the country’s corporate giants. –DAXIM L. LUCAS
breTeaching fund managers

With self-styled fund managers sprouting like mushrooms on a rainy day, the local fund management industry has embarked on a new initiative to help aspiring peers acquire basic skills set and help the moderately experienced ones to level up.

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Fund Managers Association of the Philippines (FMAP), the association which to date has assets under management summing up to P4.5 trillion, a new certification program for fund managers was unveiled. The Fund Management Certificate Program (FMCP) is a partnership among FMAP, the Ateneo Graduate School Center for Continuing Education and IFE Management Advisers Inc.

Veteran fund manager Marvin Fausto—FMAP’s founding president who is also the founder of IFE Managers_is the program director of FMCP. “The program is designed for both basic and continuing education by providing enabling tools for present and future fund managers to achieve higher levels of competency in the field. It aims to standardize the minimum knowledge and skills to be on par with local and global best practices,” Fausto said.

Fausto said FMAP thought of creating such program in line with its objective to educate and improve professionalism in the industry. At present, he said there was no training that encompasses ethics, fundamental/technical analyses, equity and fixed income analyses, portfolio management, behavioral finance and presentations in marketing.

To be conducted by seasoned fund managers, FMCP will run for a month and a half. The sessions will take three to four half-days per week.
For those interested, FMCP will be offered by the second half of the year. –DORIS DUMLAO-ABADILLA
No big deal

Ports and casino tycoon Enrique Razon Jr. is not losing any sleep over opposition to his plan to preserve the aging and dilapidated Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila.

“If they don’t want it, it’s OK,” Razon said in his typical, unfiltered style. “If it happens, we’re there.”

Razon’s group earlier proposed an urban renewal plan for the facility, which traces its roots to 1934. The plan, which would maintain the original structure, included building state-of-the-art office and commercial areas, a sports museum and modern amenities, irking conservation advocates.

The sports complex is owned by the city of Manila. Recently, it was declared a National Historical Landmark by the National Historical Commission.

For Razon, revenue-generating facilities would help pay for the complex’s preservation—an almost non-existent expense.

The owner of International Container Terminal Services Inc. and Bloomberry Resorts Corp. (Solaire Resort & Casino) also said it was a curious move to declare Rizal Memorial Sports Complex a historical landmark without detailing the funds needed to preserve the facility.

“What are they going to do now?,” Razon asked. “It will just collapse, a historical collapse.” —MIGUEL R. CAMUS

Escalation

The Philippine Competition Commission’s (PCC) battle with PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom escalated anew last week, with the PCC asking the Supreme Court to step into the duopoly’s 2016 joint buyout of San Miguel Corp.’s telco assets.

And as the case moves closer to its legal end-game—for sure, a lengthy affair—it’s important to examine what the antitrust body can still achieve, given that PLDT and Globe have already gained control and are now using the underlying telco frequencies once assigned to SMC.

If you ask the PCC, they can still do plenty.

To backtrack, the issue started when the telcos sought (and one of them won) the Court of Appeals’ help in barring the PCC from conducting a comprehensive review of the P70-billion buyout. After all, PLDT and Globe assumed the deal would be deemed approved, citing rather compelling technicalities present at the time. The PCC, citing its mandate and equally interesting technicalities, saw things the opposite way.

In any case, the PCC was not allowed to pursue its review, which would have determined whether the transaction went against the public’s best interests from a competition standpoint.

There’s no certainty on how the PCC would ultimately treat the deal. However, its leanings are clear, based on a preliminary report it released just before the CA issued a stop order. As far as the antitrust body is concerned, violations had indeed occurred.

Assuming the stars aligned and it eventually won the case, the PCC could do a lot, given its broad powers. This includes causing PLDT and Globe to give up more frequencies, even those not part of the SMC deal, with the hopes a new telco player will swoop in and challenge the telco duopoly.

The competition regulator recognized the issue does not end there. It wanted involvement on how those frequencies would again be re-assigned. After all, telco players are free to apply for frequencies if needed. And while the PCC favored a frequency auction, the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) led by Rodolfo Salalima made it very clear this was not his preferred option.

Will the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) take a closer look at how these frequency assets, a finite resource, are deployed? Some have already called for a “re-farming” or redistributing allocated spectrum, a controversial move, if pursued.

What is certain is if the situation remains unchanged, unassigned frequencies would again be left for the NTC and the DICT to allocate or reallocate as they see fit. Barring the entry of a third player, it’s not hard to guess where those coveted assets would once again fall. —MIGUEL R. CAMUS