The Philippine Stock Exchange said it purchased an additional 500,000 shares in PDS Holdings Corp. held by Whistler Technologies for P160 million
The acquisition will bring PSE’s ownership in PDS Holdings, which operates the country’s fixed income exchange, to 52.78 percent.
The PSE last month also signed a share purchase agreement to acquire a 23.8-percent stake in PDS Holdings held by the Bankers Association of the Philippines for P476.4 million.
These acquisitions, are in line with the local bourse’s strategy to unify the equities and fixed income exchanges.
Prior to these transactions, PSE owned existing 20.98-percent interest in PDS Holdings.
“The purchase is subject to certain closing conditions including the approval of government agencies, particularly the Securities and Exchange Commission, and compliance with the provisions in the articles of incorporation of PDSHC, among others,” PSE said.
PSE would need to get an exemptive relief from the SEC to allow it to own more than 20 percent of an exchange. Under the Securities Regulation Code, no single industry or business group should own more than 20 percent of an exchange.
The PDS acquisition also needs an approval from the Philippine Competition Commission which is tasked to review all mergers over P1 billion to ensure fair competition in the market.
“This transaction is envisioned to facilitate further growth in the local capital markets by introducing efficiencies in the trading and back office systems of both the equities and fixed income markets, among others,” PSE said.
“It is aimed at creating a better environment for the introduction of more products and services for the various market stakeholders, as well as the implementation of improvements in risk management processes,” it said.
