No more suspension: Seacem meets public float req’t

Rappler.com

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Cement firm Seacem avoids delisting of its shares as it positions to be a backdoor listing vehicle for a mass housing developer

RIPE FOR BACKDOOR LISTING. Listed cement firm Seacem avoids delisting and primes to become the vehicle of a mass housing developer for backdoor listing. File photo from AFP

MANILA, Philippines – In an almost last minute move, publicly-listed Southeast Asia Cement Holdings Inc (Seacem) avoided delisting of its shares as it positioned to be a backdoor listing vehicle.

On Tuesday, June 11, the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) said in a memorandum that trading of Seacem’s shares will resume on Thursday after it recently sold some shares to comply with the 10% minimum public ownership requirement.

“Given the foregoing, please be advised that the suspension on the trading of the company’s shares will be lifted on June 13, 2013 at 9:00 am,” PSE in a memorandum said.

Seacem earlier asked the PSE to lift the trading suspension on the company’s shares after it has sold 554 million shares to two individual subscribers.

The share sale would boost the cement manufacturer’s public ownership to 10.31% from 2.41%.

Seacem shares were among the errant publicly listed firms that were suspended from being traded starting January.

The suspension, as well as the delisting — which is set to take effect July — are part of the PSE’s good governance agenda, which is meant to encourage more public investor participation, especially in closely held companies.

Shares of Seacem were last traded on Dec. 28, 2012 when it closed at P2.40 per share.

Backdoor listing

Seacem is currently a shell company, ripe for backdoor listing for mass housing developer 8990 Group, which has acquired an 89.9% stake in cement firm for P2.5 billion.

It recently completed the sale of its interests in two units, namely Lafarge Republic and Seacem Silos.

On Monday, June 10, Seacem disclosed that its principal shareholders—Calumboyan Holdings Inc., Lafarge Holdings Philippines and Seacem Silos Inc.—agreed to sell their combined 6.294 billion shares or 89.9% to the stockholders of 8990 Housing Development Corp.

Under the terms of the sale and purchase agreement, the shares would be sold to the buyers upon the fulfillment of certain closing conditions, including the lifting of the trading suspension imposed on the company’s shares.

The closing of the transaction is expected to take place on June 30, 2013.

“The buyers have stated their intent to undertake a mandatory tender offer for the remaining shares of the company,” Seacem said.

Mass housing developer 8990, based in Davao City, has been operating for the last 22 years and built 51 subdivisions and over 41,000 units, mostly in the Visayas and Mindanao. Most projects are priced P400,000
to P1.5 million per unit.

It recently acquired new properties in Davao, Metro Manila, Pampanga and Cebu that will future expand the company’s range of housing projects to high rise, mid-rise, and condotel projects in key cities in the country. – Rappler.com

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