AEV raises P24 B from bond sale

MANILA, Philippines - Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. (AEV), the holding company of the Cebu-based Aboitiz family, completed yesterday the offering of the first tranche of its fixed-rate retail bonds amounting to P24 billion.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) yesterday, AEV said the bonds were well received by both institutional and retail investors with the issue 2.7 times oversubscribed.

The first tranche was issued in three series:  Series A bonds due on 2020 with a fixed interest rate of 4.47 percent, Series B due 2022 (5 percent) and Series C due 2027 (6.02 percent).

The offer period ran from July 28 to 31.

The bonds will be listed on the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp.

The conglomerate will use the proceeds from the bond issuance to partly finance its planned acquisitions, future investments and other general corporate requirements.

AEV, in partnership with Ireland-based CRH,  is acquiring the Philippine assets of Lafarge for P24 billion.

“The recent formalization of our agreement with CRH, a global leader in the building materials business, signals our determination to play a significant role in our country’s growing infrastructure sector, particularly in cement,” AEV president and CEO Erramon I. Aboitiz said.

He added as the country’s need for quality cement is expected to grow alongside a booming economy, AEV is looking forward to take an already successful Philippine cement operations and management team to greater heights.

Local debt watcher Philippine Rating Services Corp., (PhilRatings) assigned the highest credit rating to AEV’s P25-billion fixed-rate bond issuance.