Abacus unit gets SEC’s nod to register shares

The Manila Times Online, 21 July 2010

 

The property arm of Abacus Consolidated Resource Holdings Inc. (ACRHI) has secured the approval of regulators to register its shares that would eventually be listed on the local bourse. Documents from the Securities and Exchange Commission showed that Abacus Global Technovisions (AbaGT) sought to register 340 million shares with par value of P1 each. 

The real estate company has a pending application with the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) for listing by way of introduction and for AbaGT’s inclusion in the second board of the bourse.

The PSE, however, still could not act on AbaGT’s application because of the suspension of the listing by way of introduction rules amid concerns that a loophole is being exploited to drive up valuations.

In this listing method, a company allows its existing stockholders to trade their shares through the bourse without raising new capital. Firms that join the bourse through this route are required to stage an initial public offering after one year.

On April 2, 2008, ACRHI distributed 199.47 million AbaGT common shares to its stockholders by way of property dividend. Since then, AbaGT has become a public company and has been subject to the provisions of the Securities Regulation Code.

AbaGT was incorporated in 1993 as G-Tech Philippines, which was engaged in the leasing of equipment for on-line lottery. ACRHI acquired the firm in 1994 and changed its name of Abacus Gaming Technologies, which held interests in Pacific Online Systems Corp.

When Pacific Online went public in April 2007, AbaGT generated more than P500 million from selling a its stake, which was then used to fund investments in real estate.

In August 2007, AbaGT completed major real estate acquisitions, namely Alpa Hotel, Batangan Plaza hotel and a 30-hectare land in Batangas City.

AbaGT planned to upgrade Alpa Hotel through partnerships. The redesign of Batangan Plaza into a complex of condotels and apartments for tourists and pilgrims is also in the pipeline.KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE


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