ALI gains control of Malaysian firm

MANILA, Philippines — Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), the integrated property developer of the Ayala Group, is expanding its presence in Malaysia after acquiring a 72.31 percent stake in Malaysian property company MCT Bhd.

MCT Bhd has acquired a nine-acre property in Malaysia which will be developed into a mixed use estate that will have a residential component for middle income buyers, ALI president Bernard Vincent Dy told reporters following the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting yesterday.

ALI acquired a bigger stake in the Malaysian property firm last February in a move aimed at strengthening its presence in the Southeast Asian country and the rest of the region.

The transaction raised ALI’s shareholdings in MCT to 72.31 percent from an initial investment of  9.16 percent stake in 2015.

MCT specializes in mixed-use projects that include retail, office, hotel, and mid- to affordable residential.

 It has several ongoing projects in OneCitySubang Jaya and Cyberjaya, as well as a land bank in Dengkil, 1.5km away south of Cyberjaya, all located in the Klang Valley in Malaysia.

ALI is optimistic about its prospects this year despite rising interest rates.  It set a capital expenditure program of P111 billion this year, higher than the previous year’s actual spending of P91 billion.

Funding will come from a combination of debt and internally generated funds.

 ALI is currently selling P10 billion in fixed-rate 10-year bonds to partly fund its record high capex, said Augusto Bengzon, ALI senior vice president and chief finance officer.

This is part of the company’s three-year debt program of P50 billion registered under the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC’s) shelf registration facility.

The interest  rate was set at 5.9203 percent, Bengzon said.

Moving forward, ALI plans to open four malls this year, which will add 300,000 square meters of gross leasable area.

Dy said the company would also launch two additional estates this year. It currently has a portfolio of 24 estates across the country.

ALI is on track to hitting its P40 billion net income target by 2020.

The property giant reported a net income of P25.3 billion last year, up 21 percent year on year.