Bangko Sentral okays entry of retailer Lucio Co in PBCOM

(Updated 6:55 p.m.) The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has green-lit the entry of retail magnate Lucio Co in Philippine Bank of Communications (PBCOM).

 

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange Tuesday, PBCOM said the Bangko Sentral's Monetary Board approved the shares subscription of Co's P.G. Holdings Inc. in the bank. The subscription consisted of 181,080,608 newly-issued common shares and gave P.G. Holdings a 37.7-percent stake in PBCOM.

 

Last August, PBCOM and P.G. Holdings signed a subscription agreement covering the new shares valued at P5.97 billion. P.G. Holdings is the holding firm owned by the Co family.

 

"PBCOM and P.G. Holdings Inc. will now proceed to execute the necessary agreements for this subscription," the disclosure read.

 

PBCOM is poised for growth with the entry of Co in the bank, president and CEO Nina Aguas said in a separate statement.

 

“As we turn 75, we are keeping our sights on how we can make PBCOM bigger and stronger in the years to come," she said.

 

"Having major investors such as Mr. Lucio & Mrs. Susan Co, who sit at the helm of an expanding, diversified enterprise, provides us with a strong platform upon which to build the next 75 years and beyond,” she added. – Danessa O. Rivera/VS, GMA News