By FIL C. SIONIL
While China Bank will remain untouched, the family of mall magnate Henry Sy is bent on increasing their interest in Equitable-PCI Bank (EPCI Bank) through the purchase of the 26.4 percent stake of Social Security System in the bank.
"We are open, if there is an opportunity," Teresita Sy-Coson said in response to the issue on their controversial purchase of SSS interest in EPCI Bank.
She, however, qualified that final decision hinged on the judgment by the Supreme Court on the legality of the agreement BDO signed with SSS, covering the purchase.
Offhand, though, Sy-Coson indicated BDO is willing to "make a realistic offer" of the SSS stake in EPCI Bank in consideration of the price developments.
"It (referring to the purchase price per share) has to be higher than the price of the stock," she said.
In December 2003, BDO offered a price of
P46.50 per share to purchase the 26.4 percent SSS interest in EPCI Bank.
With recent market developments and to protect the investments of the state-pension fund’s members, SSS President and General Manager Corazon de la Paz wanted to renegotiate the purchase price.
De la Paz, in a earlier interview, opined that the
P56.50 price per share BDO-SM Group offered to the Go family in exchange for 24.76 percent stake in EPCI Bank is still unacceptable.
"The interest income earned by SSS, alone, in the last 20 months is a lot of money," De la Paz said, adding that the offer price of
P56.50 "is not attractive" because "situation has changed."
To this, Sy-Coson said the Supreme Court decision is crucial.
At present, BDO owns slightly over 27 percent stake in the bank following its purchase of the Go family’s interest. BDO-SM group now controls the single biggest block in EPCI Bank.
Aside from the stake of the Go family, BDO-SM Group, also, purchased the 10 percent interest in Equitable Credit Card, which put to rest the intra-corporate squabble between Antonio Go and the majority owners headed by Government Service Insurance System and Social Security System that hugged the headlines last July.
It is believed that the willingness of the Sy family to renegotiate the price is anchored on their medium-term goal of merging BDO and EPCI Bank.
