BUSINESS

By Darwin G. Amojelar

DITO Telecommunity Corp., a joint venture of Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy and China Telecom, said Friday it renewed its $1.175-billion bridge facility provided by Bank of China and China Minsheng Banking Corp. Ltd. to finance expansion plans.

“This bridge facility is to be repaid and absorbed via a $3.9-billion project finance long-term facility currently being finalized by DITO Tel’s senior management, with target closing within the year,” DITO CME Holdings Corp. said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock

Exchange. DITO CME owns 53.70 percent of DITO Telecommunity. The company earlier said capital expenditures for 2023 would amount to P27 billion, lower than P50 billion it spent last year.

PH secures $130-m loan from JICA for MRT 3 rehab

FINANCE Secretary Benjamin Diokno signed on Friday the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 Rehabilitation Project loan agreement with Japan International Cooperation Agency, represented by Chief Representative in the Philippines Sakamoto Takema, at the Department of Finance office in Manila.

The rehabilitation project was originally approved by the National Economic and Development Authority board on Aug. 22, 2018 with the aim of improving the safety and service of the MRT 3—a 16.9-kilometer mass rail transit system with 13 stations along EDSA Corridor from North Ave. in Quezon City to Taft Ave. in Pasay City.

The rehabilitation includes provisions for capacity including rolling stock, rail tracks, signaling system, power supply system, overhead catenary system, communications system and depot and station equipment.

The 17.4-billion-yen or $130-million supplemental loan for the MRT 3 was approved by the NEDA board on Feb. 2, 2023 to finance the increase in the total project cost amounting to P29.6 billion, following the additional scope of work submitted by the Department of Transportation.

Colliers: Work flexibility key to reducing attrition

PROFESSIONAL services and investment management company Colliers said flexibility in the workplace is key to minimizing attrition risk.

Citing Mercer’s 2022-2023 Global Talent Trends report, Colliers associate director of office services-tenant representation Mitzi Blancaflor said seven of 10 employees in the Philippines believe that not being able to work remotely or hybrid permanently is a deal-breaker when considering whether to join or stay with an organization.

The study said 74 percent of companies surveyed are providing flexible working option, significantly higher than Asia’s 50 percent and the global average of 56 percent. Companies are also implementing compensation adjustments, mental health initiatives and learning and development programs to improve their employee’s overall well-being.

Collier said various companies have taken creative steps to address the roadblocks to their return-to-office initiatives.

Othel V. Campos

Investment ‘scammers’ face life imprisonment

THE Securities and Exchange Commission said Friday it secured the conviction of investment scheme suspects involved in Tagum City-based Rigen Wellness Product Marketing.

It said Tagum City Regional Trial Court Branch 2 sentenced Rico John Colorines Garcia and King Paul Bryan, chief executive officer and auditor of Rigen Marketing, respectively, to life imprisonment after being found guilty of syndicated estafa in two criminal cases dated April 11 and May 2. They were also ordered to pay actual damages totaling P2.01 million and moral damages amounting to P120,000, plus an interest of 6 percent per annum.

Their co-accused Rosenda Colorines Garcia, Christine Palijo, Romen Samuel Wabina and Jemeilyn Tacay remain at large. The cases stemmed from the complaints of two individuals who were enticed to invest in Rigen Marketing, after it allegedly promised income returns of up to 400 percent within a span of 30 days. Rigen Marketing claimed that profits were generated from investments in cryptocurrency and foreign exchange trading.

“It has been held that where one states that the future profits or income of an enterprise shall be a certain sum, but he actually knows there will be none, or that they will be less than he represents, the statements constitute an actionable fraud where the hearer believes him and relies on the statement to his injury,” the court said.

Jenniffer B. Austria

It invested over P200 billion for the initial rollout of its infrastructure and other operating expenses as part of its commitment to spend P257 billion over a five-year period to achieve 55 megabits per second of internet speed, covering 84 percent of the population.

Dito Tel signed in 2021 a P5.16billion advance agreement with China Telecom International Investment Private Ltd. to fund its operating expenditures and working capital requirements.

The company also signed another P5.22-billion advance agreement with CTIIPL last year to fund its operating expenditures and working capital requirements. As of end-December 2022,

P4.36 billion was drawn.

DITO Tel reduced its net loss by 90 percent in the first quarter to P709 million from P6.83 billion in the same period in 2022.

The company reported P2.341 billion in revenues in the quarter, up 76 percent year-on-year on strong increase in subscribers to about 16 million as of the end of the first quarter.

“We remain steadfast to our investment in DITO Telecommunity with its continued growth trajectory and expanding relevance as a digital enabler to the Philippine market,” DITO CME president Eric Alberto said earlier.

“We are confident that this will con-