Ayala purchase of Zalora stake OKd

The Ayala group has obtained approval from the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) to acquire a 49-percent stake in Zalora Philippines, the country’s largest online fashion and lifestyle retailing platform.

“We are just about to finally close the Zalora transaction,” Ayala Corp. chief finance officer Teodoro Limcaoco said in a briefing on Friday.

PCC is the country’s anti-trust body, which is mandated under the Philippine Competition Act to review mergers and acquisitions valued at P1 billion and above to ensure that these deals will not prejudice the interest of the consumers.

Ayala Corp. earlier signed a deal to acquire 43.3 percent of BF Jade E-Service Philippines, the company that owns and operates Zalora Philippines. Separately, Ayala Land Inc., BPI Capital Corp. (a unit of Bank of the Philippine Islands) and Kickstart Ventures Inc. (a unit of Globe Telecom) also agreed to buy stakes in BF-Jade. In total, the group has gained control of 49 percent of the online platform.

This acquisition is part of Ayala’s strategy to invest in new disruptive businesses that provide innovative solutions to evolving markets, the conglomerate said. The group recognizes that e-commerce is a unique growth channel that complements existing businesses, drawing on synergies with the rest of the Ayala group.

With the evolving behavior and preferences of consumers today, Zalora Philippines’ proprietary retail and logistics platform is seen to be able to secure the needs of a rapidly changing market.

Zalora Philippines was co-founded in 2012 as part of the global network of the Zalora Group, which is 100 percent owned by the Global Fashion Group (GFG), the world’s largest online fashion platform for emerging markets.

By combining the e-commerce expertise of GFG and Zalora with the existing resources and consumer-focused businesses of the Ayala group, Zalora Philippines is seen to be in a unique position to change the way people shop for fashion in the Philippines.

Zalora gives Filipino consumers access to over 1,000 local and international brands including exclusive online retailing from leading fashion brands such as Nike, Adidas and Ivy Park, in addition to leading local brands such as Bench, Penshoppe and CLN.