BIZ BUZZ: In due time

Homeowners at the The Residences at Commonwealth in Quezon City, a project of the Antonio family’s Century Properties Group Inc., should be relieved to know they would indeed get their condominium certificate of title (CCT) for fully paid units despite the long delays.

In a statement to Biz Buzz, subsidiary Century Limitless Corp. said the pandemic was the main culprit.

“In as much as there have been delays in the issuance of some CCTs, these have been primarily due to the logistical challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Century said.

“We have already been issuing, and continue to progressively issue, clean CCTs of the Commonwealth project, to our fully paid clients,” it added.

The company said it was working on ways to deliver the CCTs “in the most efficient manner possible.”

“We humbly ask for patience from our beloved clients as we bounce back together with the rest of the industry and continue to deliver all our commitments,” it said.

Earlier, homeowners shared with Biz Buzz their misgivings about the delays.

Some of the more curious residents dug up an old scandal involving Century Limitless’ joint venture partner, a corporation called AZ 17/31 Realty Inc., once the owner of the 4.4-hectare property where the project was built.

AZ 1/31’s registration was revoked by the Securities and Exchange Commission (after the The Residences project had started construction) when the SEC discovered one of its incorporators had died years before the corporation was established.

In any case, Century clarified to Biz Buzz it already purchased the land from AZ 17/31 at an unspecified date.

It added the transfer certificate of title was “clean and free of any encumbrances, liens and claims as issued by the Registry of Deeds.”

“The company has conducted due diligence and ensured a lawful transfer of ownership thereof,” Century said.

—Miguel R. Camus

Complying with the law

Even after a rogue employee broke the law by running off with other people’s money, her former employer is not about to break any in the process of protecting its reputation and maintaining its fiduciary responsibilities to clients.

Over the past few days, the universal bank’s leadership has avoided giving out official statements or making a comment on the report that one assistant vice president successfully duped people into parting with as much as P100 million, supposedly to be placed in a nonexistent investment instrument by the bank.

Why the sealed lips? Simple: The bank is constrained from doing so by the country’s rigid bank secrecy laws. And it will continue to adhere to these privacy laws, we understand.

In any case, Biz Buzz hears that the bank never received the missing money as payment for any investment or service. (So clients should never be too trusting of bank officers, no matter how good the offer. That’s basic.)

As for the latest rumors, well … word on the street is that the rogue banker’s husband is also an employee of another large financial institution working as—get this—a compliance officer.

He apparently didn’t show up for work on Friday and just sent in his resignation letter on Monday. Naturally, the authorities want to have a word with him about his wife who absconded to Japan. But first, they have to find him.

—Daxim L. Lucas

Changing of the guard

Oscar Hilado, described by those who know him best as “a true gentleman and a visionary leader,” bowed out as chair of Phinma Corp. to give way to the next generation. He had seen and led Phinma through its toughest times, having served as director since 1969 and chair since 2003.

“I am an old soldier now. It is time to fade away, And I am so fortunate to do that when the company has just completed its best year,” Hilado said on Tuesday as his retirement was announced at Phinma’s stockholders’ meeting.

Hilado passed on the baton to Ramon Del Rosario, who is now chair and CEO, while Chito Salazar—who has grown the group’s education business into a national enterprise over the last two decades—has assumed the role of president and chief operating officer.

Hilado, who will stay on as Phinma chair emeritus, was credited by for his “transparent and bold leadership with a demonstrated history of expanding the company’s reach across its businesses, while ensuring shared success between its people and measurable societal impact in the communities it serves.”

Del Rosario is confident that the new leadership will provide valuable perspectives as Phinma continues to “execute its strategy, drive growth and build long-term value for its shareholders and target consumers.”

“These are the next generation of changemakers that will galvanize the company mission and realize amazing new possibilities that will lead us to even greater heights in our mission to make lives better,” said Del Rosario.

For the next five years, Del Rosario said Phinma has laid out strategic plans to reinforce the group’s position at the forefront of “moving private capital toward social impact.”

This 2022 is seen as a pivotal moment “We are focusing our energies on building and protecting the company’s brand and reputation in the service of impact. We seek to ensure the alignment and execution of our mission across all our investments and business units. Making lives better is the rallying cry that directs all our actions,” he said.

—Doris Dumlao-Abadilla

One step closer

Aboitiz-led Union Bank of the Philippines has hurdled the first regulatory clearance needed to consummate—as targeted before yearend—its acquisition of the local retail and consumer banking business of Citibank.

The mergers and acquisitions office of the country’s antitrust agency, the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC), said the proposed takeover “does not result in substantial lessening of competition in each of the segments of the consumer banking markets,” citing “substantial competitive constraints exerted by other banking institutions nationwide.”

“Post-transaction, significant competitive pressures or constraints remain from other banking institutions in the markets for credit card issuance, retail deposits, asset management, and unsecured loans; and no horizontal or vertical overlaps exist in the market for real estate leasing of commercial spaces in Manila, Quezon City and Pasig,” it added.

After the PCC, UnionBank still needs imprimatur from banking regulators, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp.

The Citi deal is seen to bulk up UnionBank’s assets by P65 billion, based on latest estimates. Adding this to the local bank’s end-2021 balance sheet, its total resources will hit P790.53 billion after the acquisition.

UnionBank is now the ninth largest bank in the country, behind RCBC’s P955 billion and one notch ahead of Security Bank (which has P700 billion but has the potential to quickly expand its resources if it deploys its excess capital).

The P55-billion Citi deal —the largest seen in the Philippine banking community in recent years—will fast-track Unionbank’s penetration of the upscale local consumer market by five to 10 years and likely boost its income stream by about P6 billion annually beginning 2023, the first full year of integration.

—Doris Dumlao-Abadilla INQ