AC Health gets P3.1-B ‘social loan’

The health-care subsidiary of conglomerate Ayala Corp. secured a 50-million-euro “social loan” equivalent to about P3.1 billion from European bank ING to support its expansion in the country and plug gaps in the domestic sector.

In a statement on Wednesday, Ayala said the loan would be used to grow the portfolio of Ayala Healthcare Holdings Inc. (AC Health) and fund the capital expenditures for its retail pharmacy and hospital, St. Joseph Drug and QualiMed.

READ: AC Health offers cure to chronic ills in healthcare sector

According to Ayala, this represents the first euro-denominated social loan that ING has structured for a Philippine conglomerate.

Under the Social Loan Principles published by the Loan Market Association, Asia Pacific Loan Market Association, and the Loan Syndications and Trading Association, the fund should be used to support the growth of sustainable projects.

Essential services

This includes improving access to essential services, such as health care.

“This social loan from ING will enable us not only to build and scale our AC Health portfolio, but it will also enable us to serve more Filipinos by providing them access to quality and affordable health care,” Ayala chief finance officer Alberto de Larrazabal said in a statement.

AC Health has recently been pursuing partnerships and acquisitions to widen its portfolio and address health-care needs in the country.

Last month, the company announced its partnership with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to boost the private sector’s human immunodeficiency virus health-care services as the number of cases in the country rises.

Under the agreement, AC Health will onboard qualified health service providers via its KonsultaMD platform and import medicine through IE Medica and MedEthix, its pharmaceutical importation and distribution units.

The USAID, meanwhile, will provide support for community engagement and technical assistance.

In August, AC Health also completed its acquisition of a 49-percent stake in legacy drugstore St. Joseph Drug following the Philippine Competition Commission’s approval.

This adds 112 St. Joseph Drug stores to AC Health’s network from 750 stores currently. The company plans to grow this to 1,000 stores in three years.