DITO CME to hold indirect stake in new telco player via share-swap

Listed DITO CME Holdings Corp. has set the terms for the 100% acquisition of Udenna Communications Media and Entertainment (CME) Holdings Corp. in what could become a possible backdoor listing of “third telco” DITO Telecommunity.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, DITO CME - formerly ISM Communications - said its board approved the terms and conditions of the acquisition of 100% of the issued and outstanding common shares of Udenna CME through a share-swap with Udenna Corp., involving 11,200,000,000 shares of DITO CME at P6.00 to P6.90 per share amounting to at least P77.28 billion.

The pricing, it said, “was determined and confirmed through an independent third-party valuation exercise.”

The Philippine Stock Exchange has halted the trading of DITO CME’s shares.

The company said the objective of the acquisition is for the DITO CME to hold “indirect interest in DITO Telecommunity Corporation, the entity that was named the New Major Player in the telecommunications industry.”

“This is one step of our plan of realizing DITO CME’s ownership of DITO Telecommunity, through Udenna CME and DITO Holdings Corp. DITO CME will end up as the beneficial owner of the Udenna Group’s equity interests in DITO Telecommunity, excluding those under Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corporation,” said DITO CME president Eric Alberto.

As previously disclosed, Udenna CME is the corporate vehicle that will hold Udenna Corp.'s shares in its telecommunications business.

Udenna CME shall indirectly own Udenna Corp.’s shares in DITO Telecommunity upon completion of its plans to transfer its shares to DITO CME.

“We want to deliver on the expectations of our shareholders and the investing public, thus we don’t want to make promises that we can’t keep,” said DITO Telecommunity chairman and CEO Dennis Uy.

“Rest assured that we are working hard to execute on our plans as best we can. Our principal and immediate mission is to ensure the commercial launch of DITO Telecommunity by March next year,” Uy said. -MDM, GMA News