Entry of new investor heralds expansion of Italpinas

Boutique developer Italpinas Development Corp. (IDC) is banking on the entry of a new investor and partner to help drive its expansion to other parts of the country as consumers shift their focus to the provinces.

In a statement over the weekend, IDC said businessman Benjamin Tan Co bought P187.93 million worth of the company’s shares, equivalent to a 15-percent stake, via private placement.

READ: Italpinas prepares for aggressive expansion

The shares were priced at P1.99 each based on the company’s net asset value in 2023. This is a 43-percent premium over IDC’s closing price of P1.39 on Friday.

‘Broad portfolio’

According to the developer, Co and his family “control a broad portfolio of landholdings throughout the Philippines,” including the provinces of Palawan, Cavite, Pampanga and Quezon.

IDC entered into a co-development joint venture for a Puerto Princesa property with Co in June, the company said.

Apart from his landholdings, Co also has interests in petrochemicals and steel manufacturing, among others, IDC added.

“It has taken us over two years to find the ideal strategic investor,” IDC chair and CEO Romolo Nati said in a statement. The company’s stockholders approved in 2022 the sale of up to 20 percent of primary new shares to an incoming investor.

“With his years of experience and his prominence and reputation in the business community, Mr. Co will be a great partner to IDC as it continues to grow,” Nati added.

IDC, which made its stock market debut in 2015, currently has projects in Cagayan de Oro, Batangas, Bukidnon and Bataan.

As investors and prospective homeowners alike turn to areas outside Metro Manila, IDC said it planned on expanding to “multiple new locations.”

Apart from residential projects, IDC intends to venture into the tourism and hospitality business, following its partnership with the Ascott Group.

In August 2023, IDC Prime Inc., the company’s subsidiary, signed a deal with Ascott unit Scotts Philippines Inc. to develop the third and fourth phases of the Primavera City project in Cagayan de Oro. INQ