Equitable PCI, Sysmart agree to settle differences

The Court of Appeals has dismissed the petition for review filed by Equitable PCI Bank against Sysmart Corp. after both parties reached an amicable settlement of their differences.

The petition filed by EPCIBank seeks to nullify a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) order revoking the bank’s amendments to its by-laws which prevented competitors from getting into the board of directors of the bank.

In a decision dated Oct. 14, 2005, CA Associate Justice Aurora Santiago-Lagman said EPCIBank’s petition for review and all the pending incidents, including Sysmart’s motion for contempt are deemed withdrawn and dismissed "on the ground that the parties have already amicably settled their differences."

The CA earlier issued a temporary restraining order preventing EPCIBank from implementing its amended by-laws.

This was in response to the petition of Sysmart, a company owned by the group of retail tycoon Henry Sy, which alleged that the amendments had been made without the requisite approval of two-thirds of the bank’s outstanding capital stock.

The amended by-laws, according to the SEC, would disenfranchise the majority shareholders of the bank and deprive them of their right to participate in internal affairs.

In June, the SM Group of retail tycoon Henry Sy had acquired the Go family’s 24.76-percent stake in EPCIBank for P10.2 billion or P56.50 per share. Also purchased was the Go family’s 10-percent shareholding in Equitable Card Network Inc., the country’s largest credit card network, for P600 million.

Prior to the deal, the SM Group already had a 2.5-percent stake in EPCIBank. The acquisition of the Go family’s stake would be funded by internal funds.

The sale has put an end to the dispute between the founding Go family and other shareholders, including state pension fund Social Security System, or SSS, who together hold a controlling stake in the bank.

The dispute for control of EPCIBank’s board came to a head after groups led by the SSS and the Go family formed separate boards of directors.

If it gets to acquire a controlling stake in EPCIBank, the Sys earlier said the bank would be merged with Bando de Oro.

EPCIBank, for one, was a product of the merger between Equitable Bank and PCI Bank, while BDO was established by the Sy Group.