PSE mulls listing of BOI-registered companies

The Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) and the government are working out a plan that would hopefully encourage entities registered with the Board of Investments to list by way of introduction.

Listing by way of introduction refers to the listing of shares of a company on the exchange without undertaking an initial public offering (IPO).

PSE president Francis Lim said some companies might find it easier to list by way of introduction than undertake an IPO which requires a long and tedious process.

The PSE and the BOI last year signed an agreement for the strict enforcement of a law that orders companies granted tax and other incentives by the BOI to list on the bourse.

The Omnibus Investment Code of 1987 requires companies that are registered with the BOI to list at least 10 percent of their shareholdings on the stock exchange within 10 years of securing tax and other incentives.

The BOI had tried several times in the past to implement this rule but failed as most companies never took the matter seriously.

Under the law, a BOI-registered company is exempt from the IPO requirement if it is owned by a listed company and if it has an employees‚ stock option plan, among others.

There are at least 1,000 companies registered with the BOI, and if at least 10 percent of them list on the stock exchange it will increase the depth of the country’s equities market.

The 71-year-old Philippine stock market has just over 230 listed companies which is one of the fewest in Asia.

The PSE is also pushing for the listing of oil companies to promote more IPOs. Under the Oil Deregulation Law, oil refiners should make a public offering of at least 10 percent of their shares through the PSE.

Among the oil firms operating in the country, only Petron Corp. made its debut at the PSE with the listing of 20 percent of its outstanding capital stock in 1994.