Plea vs Alliance investor junked

The Regional Trial Court of Pasig has dismissed the petition of protesting Singaporean stockholders for an urgent temporary restraining order (TRO) against the entry of a new investor in seafood supplier Alliance Select Foods International Inc.

Alliance Select, which is rocked by a feud between two shareholder groups, told the Philippine Stock Exchange on Monday that a judge had ruled that the prayer for TRO by petitioners Hedy S.C. Yap Chua and Albert Hong Hin Kay did not appear to be of “extreme urgency.”

The Singaporean petitioners were contesting a board resolution passed by Alliance Select to allow a new investor to acquire 28.7 percent of the company’s shares through a private placement worth around P563.7 million. The shares were sold to a company called Strong Oak Inc.

The same judge, however, agreed to hold a hearing on the application for the issuance of a writ of preliminary injunction on June 2.

Strong Oak is owned by a company called Seawood Resources Inc., described as a “multibillion Filipino investment company” led by Grace Vera Cruz as managing director.

The petitioners were Hedy Chua and Albert Hong Hin Kay, the Singaporean directors of Alliance who voted against the entry of Strong Oak.