Gokongweis acquire additional 4.4% stake in BPI
Robinsons Retail Holdings Inc. (RRHI) will purchase additional shares in Ayala-led Bank of the Philippine Islands, increasing the Gokongwei Group’s interest in the lender to 10.4 percent.
In a regulatory filing, RRHI, headed by its president Robina Gokongwei-Pe, said its board approved the purchase of Arran Investment Pte. Ltd.’s 4.4 percent stake in BPI. Arran, an affiliate of GIC Private Ltd., owns 21.9 percent of Liontide Holdings, which in turn has a 20 percent equity interest in BPI. As part of the transaction, Arran will redeem a portion of its preferred shares in Liontide.
The underlying BPI shares, representing 3.3 percent interest in BPI, will then be purchased directly by Robinsons Retail. Simultaneously, Robinsons Retail will acquire preferred shares in Liontide, which are redeemable to BPI shares, representing 1.1 percent of BPI outstanding shares. The transaction is in conjunction with the merger of BPI and Robinsons Bank with the former as the surviving entity.
