BIZ BUZZ: Trouble brewing in Alabang

Members of the Alabang Country Club inside the posh Ayala Alabang Village that caters to the country’s rich and famous are in for a rude awakening this new year as their monthly dues are set to increase starting this month by 40 percent, from P5,000 to P7,000 a month.

Predictably, the scheduled increase was met by howls of protest from concerned members, who said that there was hardly any consultation done among members before the increase was set in motion, thus they are not convinced that the increase was justifiable.

Papers sent to Biz Buzz by concerned parties showed that according to some members of good standing, revenues from current operations should be more than enough to cover any expenses to be incurred this year.

There were also grave concerns raised over the hefty increase in expenses over the past three years, from P199.3 million in 2022 to P247 million in 2023, P278.6 million in 2024, and projected to further increase to P283.4 million in 2025.

Similar concerns over the lack of transparency were raised over the club’s capital expenditures, which likewise bloated from P15 million in 2022 to P46.3 million in 2023, P74.2 million in 2024 and then to an expected P149.8 million in 2025.

At the very least, concerned members said management and the board should provide members with a more detailed explanation of the basis for these expenses, outlays and the planned increase for them to determine if these are indeed warranted or could be deferred if not eliminated altogether.

There is thus a growing clamor among the members of the exclusive club for a town hall or open meeting with the board this month to discuss these financial matters as well as how the club is being run.

Absent a satisfactory explanation, some members have said that they would hold off payment of any additional amount.

Will a standoff ensue? Or will the issue be resolved quickly and amicably to kick off 2025 on a pleasant note? Abangan! —Tina Arceo-Dumlao

New year, new chair

Listed shell company Ferronoux Holdings Inc. started 2025 with a bang that we may have already been expecting after its founding chair made a P297-million exit late into 2024.

In its very first stock exchange disclosure for the year, Ferronoux announced the resignation of six key officials, including founder Michael Cosiquien himself.

He handed the reins to Okada Foundation Inc. president James Lorenzana as director and chair and Abel Almario as president of Ferronoux.

This comes after Cosiquien-led construction firm ISOC Holdings Inc. agreed to sell all its 133.53 million shares in Ferronoux, representing a 51-percent stake, to Themis Group Corp.

It is also ahead of the anticipated backdoor listing of Themis, a relatively young real estate firm.

The five other Ferronoux officials who left were director and chief financial officer Erwin Terrell (succeeded by Johannes Bernabe), director Michelle Joan Tan (succeeded by Fiorello Raymundo Jose), compliance officer Lavinia Empleo-Buctolan, chief information officer Joan Musico and investor relations officer Bryan Joseph Garcia. —MEG J. ADONIS