Biz Buzz: Dealing with the Cos

Leisure and Resorts World Corp. may be teaming up with Misibis Bay developer Zaldy Co to buy out Lucio Co’s 50-percent stake in Midas Hotel but it may enter into a tie-up with the latter in another venture. Despite talks of a rift between the two Cos (who, by the way, are not related), LWRC seems to be in good terms with both. In fact, LWRC is in preliminary talks with Lucio Co’s group on a prospective project to roll out its Bingo Bonanza parlors in the Chinoy businessman’s fast-growing grocery network under Puregold Price Club, which is so far giving the stiffest competition to retail king Henry Sy’s SM group.

SM gave LWRC’s Bingo Bonanza a big break years ago by hosting its bingo parlors. But moving forward, part of LWRC’s growth strategy is to seek additional outlets outside its traditional shopping mall hubs.—Doris Dumlao

MVP eyes Mindanao

With the government striking recently a peace deal with Muslim rebels, more investors are emboldened to scout for strategic opportunities in resource-rich Mindanao and the list includes First Pacific Co. Ltd. big boss Manuel V. Pangilinan. Although MVP is indeed looking at neighboring emerging markets like Vietnam and Myanmar, in his homecourt Philippines, Mindanao can be a new frontier as well.

MVP is in talks with several landed families of Mindanao to discuss prospective partnerships in agriculture, a new area that his group wants to develop in the Philippines. While MVP has long been looking at prospective deals particularly in bananas, sugar and rice production, the dawning of the Bangsamoro regime may be a catalyst to come up with something tangible.

On rice production, the group is in discussions on a prospective partnership with hybrid rice proponent Henry Lim Bon Liong (of Sterling Paper Group of companies and SL Agritech Corp.) With food security a big issue especially in the Philippines, “the group wants to address this need,” said a source from the MVP group.—Doris C. Dumlao

APM’s capital restructuring

After a monthlong backdoor-listing play in the stock market that triggered only recurring company denials, Alcorn Gold Resoures Corp. has mapped out a capital restructuring scheme that will pave the way for its transformation from an oil and mineral company into a holding firm for businessman Lucio Co. Last week, APM’s board approved a P10-billion capital build-up program, the change in the company’s par value to P1 from 1-centavo and the spin-off of its oil/mineral assets into a separate subsidiary.

With the change in par value once the change in bylaws has been approved by its stockholders and the Securities and Exchange Commission, APM will cease to be a penny stock and the adjusted price will be P14.80 based on Wednesday’s close, which dealers said was expensive and whose price fluctuation would henceforth be much slower compared to a penny stock.

There’s also a question on what businesses will be infused in the future Lucio Co holding firm. Previously, the speculation was that APM would be like tycoon Andrew Tan’s Alliance Global Group with gaming, property and beverage assets on top of its existing oil/mineral interests. But with the prospective buyout of Lucio Co’s 50-percent interest in Midas Hotel by fellow Chinoy businessman Zaldy Co, gaming is out of the picture at least in the near term.

APM shares were down by 3.6 percent to 14.80 centavos on Wednesday last week, giving the company a market capitalization of P19.5 billion—bigger than the market cap of some index stocks like Petron Corp. and SM Development Corp.—Doris Dumlao

No airplane, no problem

Having had to struggle with the influx of guests that strained its two Cessna Grand Caravan aircraft, Balesin Island Club of businessman Bobby Ongpin initially tried out the idea of chartering an Airphil Express Q400 turboprop every weekend to ferry people to and from the exclusive resort off the coast of Quezon province.

Due to “technical issues,” however, the resort had to give up the Q400 and instead charter an MA60 turboprop from Zest Air. Well, that didn’t last too long either (for reasons the management of Balesin didn’t specify) so Ongpin recently sent an e-mail to the elite club’s members saying that, since there was too much trouble involved in chartering a large aircraft … they’ll just buy their own.

Yes, you read correctly: Balesin will buy its own larger aircraft in the form of a British Aerospace Jetstream 41, which is being operated by a Scottish carrier. According to Ongpin, the new aircraft will be able to carry 30 passengers at a time with a flying time of only 15 minutes from Manila. A total of 120 passengers a day on five trips combined with their existing Cessnas will be available soon.

Pending the arrival of the Jetstream by the end of November, Ongpin is making available the company’s jet—a Dassault Falcon 900 tri-jet—to fly Balesin Club members to and from Manila.—Daxim L. Lucas

Telecom awards

He is presiding over one of the most challenging periods in the corporate life of Globe Telecom Inc., so maybe that’s why company president and CEO Ernest Cu was listed as a finalist to be named CEO of the Year at the upcoming World Communications Awards.

Cu is one of five finalists for the prestigious award out of the 10 shortlisted CEOs from around the world. Other fellow finalists include the CEOs of Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Co., France Telecom-Orange, Verizon Communications and Vodafone.

The title of CEO of the Year is awarded based on a poll conducted among readers of trade publication Total Telecom. According to officials at the Ayala-controlled firm, Cu has been “the driving force behind Globe Telecom’s continued success,” including record-setting revenue top line for the first quarter of 2012 and the seventh consecutive quarter of market share gain over competition.

Cu was also recently named CEO of the Year by business research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan in its 2012 Asia Pacific ICT Awards ceremony, while Globe Telecom was named by Frost & Sullivan Philippines Telecom Service Provider and Broadband Service Provider of the year.

Meanwhile, Globe’s bigger rival, Smart Communications Inc., also has some bragging rights at the same awards as it has been named a finalist in the “best operator in a developing market” category.

Smart is also a finalist in the “social contribution award” category and the “green award category.”

Winners of the World Communication Awards 2012 will be announced in London on November 13 and, from the looks of it, there will be enough bragging rights for everyone.—Daxim L. Lucas

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