Paxys brings Canadian partner in new BPO firm

Fresh off the sale of several key assets in Australia, listed technology services firm Paxys Inc. is set to start operating a new business process outsourcing (BPO) company within the month in partnership with Canadian firm Simpro Solutions.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Paxys said its 50-50 joint venture with one of Canada’s leading call center companies would be named Simpro Solutions Philippines.

The partners will own Simpro Philippines through Simpro Solutions Ltd. (SSL), a limited liability company previously incorporated in Hong Kong. “In turn, SSL is ultimately owned 50-50 by Paxys and Simpro Solutions Inc.,” the company told the local bourse yesterday. Paxys and its partner will invest $250,000 each in the new company. Paxys said the investment represented less than 1 percent of the listed firm’s total net worth.

In an interview, Paxys corporate secretary Mark Martinez said the group was in the process of securing all necessary permits to be able to start the company’s operations. “We’ve set the company up. We’re hoping we can get all permits within the month. We’ll be able to start once we get that,” he said.

Last April, Paxys said it sold all of its BPO assets in Australia for 84.9 million Australian dollars. “The sale includes all of the subsidiaries of Paxys Australia, consisting of SmartSalary Pty Ltd., SmartFleet Management, SeQoya Pty Ltd., PBI Benefit Solutions and Australian Vehicle Consultants,” the listed firm said.

Aside from the new venture, Paxys’ operations include wholly owned medical transcription firm ScopeWorks Asia Inc. and Stellar Global Solutions Philippines, another joint venture with an Australian firm. Both subsidiaries posted losses in the first half of the year due to depreciation and the loss of key clients.

As a result, the company posted a net loss of P105 million in the first half, higher than the P39 million the company lost in the same six-month period last year.