SEC approves ACE Medical Center - Tacloban IPO

The corporate regulator has given the green light for Allied Care Experts (ACE) Medical Center - Tacloban Inc. to proceed with its planned P1-billion initial public offering (IPO).

In a statement released Sunday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said its Commission En Banc approved on Thursday, September 26, the share sale of ACE Medical Center - Tacloban.

This covers a total of 228,000 common shares priced at P1,000 apiece, upon the company's compliance with regulatory requirements.

Of the total share sale, the company plans to offer 36,000 common shares in four tranches at a price ranging from P200,000 to P400,000 for every block of 10 shares — in cash or installment.

ACE Medical Center is set to generate P987.880 million from the IPO, which will then be infused into working capital and repayment of loans.

The biggest amount of proceeds or P423.264 million will be used for loan payments, while P262.217 million will be allotted to medical equipment, P160.650 million to working capital, P55.000 million to construction, and P49.399 million to furniture and fixtures.

The company has also allocated P36.950 million to pre-operating expenses, and P400,000 for professional fees of architects and other professionals.

The IPO is intended mainly for medical specialists and their relatives, as subscribing to the offer shares is a prerequisite for physicians to practice at the company.

Physicians looking to hold clinic at ACE Tacloban will have to pay a "Privilege to Practice" fee of P150,000, after which they become part of the active staff and are included in the decking/ rotation of house and walk-in cases.

Meanwhile, physicians who will not pay such fee will become members of the visiting staff who may admit patients, but are not allowed to hold clinic. They are also excluded from the decking/rotation.

The ACE Group of Hospitals is made up of some 30 medical centers across the country, with the hospitals in different stages of completion.

The SEC earlier approved the IPOs of ACE Malolos Doctors, ACE Medical Center- Butuan, ACE Dumaguete Doctors, ACE Medical Center- Gensan and ACE Medical Center Bohol for P1 billion each.

It also cleared similar offerings by ACE Medical Center- Cebu and ACE Medical Center- Iloilo. — Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/BM, GMA News