Wise Holdings still barred from selling shares

BY RUBY ANNE M. RUBIO, BusinessWorld Reporter Shares of Wise Holdings, Inc. will remain suspended after the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revoked its registration statement and permit to sell securities. In a two-page letter to the Philippine Stock Exchange, SEC director Justina F. Callangan said Wise Holdings has continuously failed to comply with the corporate regulator’s requirements. After the lapse of the 60-day suspension period, which expired on June 5, 2006... Wise Holdings, Inc. has not submitted the duly accomplished reports or paid the first installment due," she wrote the exchange. Wise Holdings has failed to submit its amended 2003 annual report, 2004 second quarter report, amended 2004 third quarter report, 2004 annual report, and amended reports for the first three quarters of 2005. Last Dec. 22, the SEC ordered the company to submit the reports and pay the corresponding penalties worth P1.37 million. "In the same order, the company was warned that its failure to comply with the foregoing requirements shall be a sufficient cause for the commission to order the immediate revocation of its securities registration without need of further notice and hearing," Ms. Callangan said. In a later to the SEC last April 25, the firm claimed it had received the suspension order only four months after. Aside from an apology, Wise Holdings also promised to submit all reports by Aug. 31. It also promised to pay the penalties through monthly installments of P150,000 starting last May 15. In its letter dated May 15, the SEC’s corporate finance department ordered the company to explain its failure to submit the financial reports. It also directed Wise Holdings to submit these by May 30. The company was allowed to pay the assessed penalties of P1.37 million in 10 equal monthly installments starting last May 25. Originally known as Wise and Company, Inc. (WCI), listed Wise Holdings, Inc. was the parent company of several wholly owned and majority owned subsidiaries engaged in industries like machinery trading, real estate and insurance. It was later restructured when the Jakarta-based Dharmala Group acquired strategic interest in the company through a purchase of a 70% equity from the original WCI stockholders. The company was renamed Dharmala Philippines, Inc. (DPI) and converted to a management and holding company. DPI was organized to take advantage of the goodwill and regional presence of Dharmala in the region. The group operates 124 subsidiaries and affiliates, maintaining offices throughout the region and in key cities of London, Sydney and New York. It is widely known in the region for trading, construction and financial operations. The trading operations of DPI was spun off to a separate subsidiary also named Wise and Company, Inc. in an effort to preserve Wise Holdings, Inc.’s goodwill, having been known as a trading firm since its organization in the Philippines in 1926. The subsidiary is engaged in the trade of machinery, equipment and other merchandises. A Filipino group, VR Holdings Corp., eventually gained a holding interest in DPI and acquired the company in December 1998. To build a new corporate identity and maximize the institutional image of its subsidiary, Wise and Company, Inc.’s name was changed to Wise Holdings, Inc. The company now operates through four strategic business groups, namely trading, financial services, consumer banking and investments.-Report from BusinessWorld