Ongpin group hints at new investments

The group of businessman Roberto V. Ongpin is divesting from all of its telecommunications assets to raise money for a venture into a brand-new industry, which promises higher earnings for the company.

At the annual shareholders’ meeting of the Ongpin group’s telecom unit, ISM Communications Corp., the company’s board approved the sale of its entire holdings in Eastern Telecommunications Philippines Inc. (ETPI) and Internet gaming firm Accentic GmbH.

The group’s shares in both companies have a book value of around P1.8 billion.

“The new ventures will be able to bring the ability of a better return. The cash will go to an enterprise that we feel very strongly will deliver healthy returns,” ISM president Eric Recto told stockholders.

In a separate interview, company chairman Ongpin said the company had a lot of cash that could be deployed to better-performing industries.

However, Ongpin declined to identify what industry the company was looking at and in what manner the group plans to invest in.

“We are in the middle of negotiations but rest assured, we will not invest in an industry unless it is profitable,” he said. “We want to deploy our cash in the most profitable way possible,” he said.

Earlier, ISM sold its 40-percent stake in ETPI—enough for a controlling stake in the company—to the group of diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC), which is also working on a telecom venture.