Philippines News Archives

Friday, May 19, 2000

AC ( 05/19/2000 : PDI )
Ayala Aon Risk Services Inc., the country's biggest retail insurance brokerage firm controlled by the Ayala Corp., is planning to offer insurance packages for dotcom firms in the country to shield them from the risks of doing e-commerce bussiness. Michael Rellosa, vice president for corporate division of Ayala Aon, said the company was negotiating with three information technology firms that were interested in their proposed solutions against the liabilities of e-commerce business. ''There is a great need to manage cyber risks and we at the Ayala Aon have the solution. We are currently working with three dotcom companies relative to their Internet solutions. We're now reviewing their exposures and finding out solutions for them,'' Rellosa said. According to Rellosa, doing business over the Web exposes companies to potential hazards like suits from angry customers who may have been denied of service; lawsuits for transmitting viruses, and complaints for allowing the distribution of defamatory statements through their systems, among others. ''Insurance is the last option. What we package is a solution containing information on how to avoid such risks plus an insurance package,'' Rellosa said. Based on an industry study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), computer attacks via the Internet had increased by 183 percent in 1999. An extensive survey of 2,700 executives in 49 countries by Information Week, an online magazine, corroborated the finding. The survey revealed that 64 percent of the companies surveyed admitted that their security system had successfully been breached by at least one computer virus resulting in information loss and theft of data and trade secrets. According to James Patrick Matti, president of Ayala Aon, companies engaged in e-commerce should address their exposure to the Internet. ''These liabilities translate to loss of revenues,'' he said. Ayala Aon is a joint venture company between the Ayala Corp. and Aon Corp., the world's second largest insurance brokerage and risk management consultancy.

- posted by StockMarket @ 11:33 PM

Wednesday, May 17, 2000

AC ( 05/17/2000 : BW )
In an effort to pursue opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region, local conglomerate Ayala Corp. has recently tied up with two Hong Kong-based property firms for the development of a high-end residential apartment in Repulse Bay. Ayala Corp. managing director Rufino Luis Manotok said the company's property vehicle for investments outside the country, TLB Land Limited, will be investing S$5.8 M (or PhP139.2 M) for this purpose. TLB Land is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ayala International Pte. Ltd. (AIPL). The company is a real estate developer in Singapore listed in the Singapore Stock Exchange. Mr. Manotok said TLB Land inked a shareholders' agreement with Hong Kong firms, Bondex Holdings Limited and Westrata Property Development Limited for the development of the residential apartment. Bondax Holdings is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ayala Corp.'s lead partner, Asia Standard International Group Limited, which is listed in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Westrata Property, on the other hand, is wholly owned by Grosvenor Limited of Hong Kong. The latter is the Asian arm of Grosvenor Estate Holdings, an international property and investment group based in the United Kingdom. Under the agreement, TLB will hold a 20% interest in the joint venture while Asia Standard and Grosvenor will own 50.1% and 29.9%, respectively. TLB Land has acquired Wintersett Properties to hold the investment in the said project. "TLB Land usually gets other companies for particular projects in order to be orderly," Mr. Manotok said. The Ayala Corp. official however said the partners have yet to finalize the details of the agreement. AIPL is a 100% owned subsidiary of Ayala Corp. with interests in TLB Land and Asia Standard. The conglomerate said these investments set a new direction and strategy in establishing the Ayala name in the Asia-Pacific region. Under TLB Land, the Ayala group intends to pursue development projects in major Asian cities such as Singapore, Hong Kong and Tokyo either through joint venture with partners or by majority interests. TLB Land is currently undergoing a two-phase restructuring program which intends to dispose of non-core assets to improve the company's liquidity position. These include its 23% stake in Hermill Investments Pte Ltd., owner of the Forum Shopping Centre and Office Tower located in Singapore's Orchard Road; and 33% interest in Parc Stevens, a high-end residential property development project, also in the island state.
- posted by StockMarket @ 11:32 PM

Monday, May 15, 2000

AC ( 05/15/2000 : PSE )
Ayala Corporation reported a consolidated unaudited net income of P1.37 B for the first quarter of 2000. this was a 27% decline from last year's P1.88 B mainly due to funding expenses to support the acquisition of Far East Bank shares. Earnings from Globe Telecom, Inc. offset the decline in the earnings of other subsidiaries and tempered Ayala Corporation's income shortfall. Globe sustained its sharp income growth, registering a 52% increase in net income to P335 M. This was the result of a fourfold increase in mobile subscriber base from last year's 324,000 to more than 1.25 M as of end March 2000. The performance of Ayala's other businesses reflected the slowdown in the economy, Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI), Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and Pure Foods Corporation (PFC) experienced slight shortfalls in net income compared to 1999 levels. ALI's P645 M was slightly lower than last year's P650 M from lower booked sales in property projects. BPI's net income dipped to P969 M due to lower net interest income from lower loan volumes. PFC's P139 M net income was also a slight decline from last year if one-time gains of the same period in 1999 are factored out. Lower selling prices and volume of poultry products, as well as depressed flour prices accounted for the drop in PFC's earnings. Ayala remains confident that earnings will remain stable within the year and will be enhanced in the future with its focus on technology-based business platforms and its initiatives in mobile commerce and internet-related businesses. As early as the first quarter, the company has progressed significantly in its technology strategy after the launching of a new subsidiary, iAyala Company, Inc.; the holding of the country's first WAP (wireless application protocol) forum; and the co-branding agreement with Yahoo!, for a WAP-based wireless portal for Globe. Parallel initiatives were also carried out by major subsidiaries with BPI launching ExpressOnline; Globe offering WAP-based services and applications; and ALI creating ALINet.Com, Inc. as the holding company for all its technology-related investments and putting onstream MyAyala.Com in partnership with iAyala. These initiatives all point to Ayala Corporation's clear pursuit of its technology goals. Significant progress has been made in setting up business-to-business and business-to-consumer solutions and in securing essential partnerships.
- posted by StockMarket @ 11:31 PM

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