Puregold signs deal to buy 14 DiviMart supermarkets Monetary policy conditions in PH remain tight—HSBC IN BRIEF

BIR files criminal charges vs. buyers of fake receipts

THE Bureau of Internal Revenue filed on Wednesday before the Department of Justice criminal charges against the identified buyers or clients and accounting firms involved in the fake or ghost receipts syndicate.

BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said in a statement the agency computed P17.9 billion in total tax liability against the erring taxpayers for the use of fake receipts issued by the syndicate.

By Jenniffer B. Austria

PUREGOLD Price Club Inc. of businessman Lucio Co announced Wednesday the acquisition of 14 DiviMart supermarkets owned by entrepreneurs Harry Uy and Vivian Ong Juanitas.

Puregold said in a disclosure to the stock exchange it signed a purchase agreement for 14 DiviMart supermarkets including their leasehold improvements, furniture, fixtures, equipment and merchandise inventory.

It said it would evaluate an additional 18 Divimart locations for possible conversion into Puregold.

“The agreement will allow Puregold access to all Divimart supermarket locations which may instantly be converted to Puregold stores under a sublease transaction,” Puregold said.

These 14 DiviMart stores are located in Angat,

Bulacan; Mapulang Lupa, Pandi, Bulacan; Morong, Bataan; Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija; Olongapo City; San Isidro, Taytay, Rizal; San Miguel, Pasig City; Manggahan, General Trias, Cavite; Mambog, Bacoor, Cavite; Pulo, Cabuyao, Laguna; Tayuman, Manila; Aliaga, Nueva Ecija; San Juan, Taytay, Rizal; and Pulilan, Bulacan.

DiviMart is a Filipino supermarket chain founded in 1989 by Uy and Juanitas. The company has more than 30 branches nationwide and is known for its low prices and a wide selection of goods.

DiviMart offers a variety of products including fresh produce, meat, seafood, dairy, baked goods, frozen foods, snacks, beverages, household goods and personal care items.

The group had a total of 531 stores nationwide as of end-March. These included 456 Puregold stores, 23 S&R Membership Shopping warehouses and 52 S&R New York Style QSRs.

It posted a net income of P2.4 billion in the first three months, representing a 12-percent growth from P2.2 billion in the same period last year on the back of higher comparative sales.

Prior to the pandemic, Puregold managed to grow its store network through aggressive store expansion and acquisitions of regional players including NE Bodega in Nueva Ecija and B&W stores in Roxas City.

Puregold’s net income increased 13.5 percent in 2022 to P9.3 billion from P8.2 billion in 2021 as the economic reopening drove higher foot traffic to its stores.

Net sales climbed 12.3 percent in 2022 to P184.3 billion from P164.1 billion year ago.

Puregold said consumer demand gained momentum as the economy reopened and in-person activities normalized. As result, same-store-sales grew 6 percent in 2022.

“Even as inflation spiked, sentiment was lifted by low unemployment, minimum wage hikes, robust OFW remittances and 100-percent resumption of faceto-face classes,” Puregold said.

“Puregold’s sari-sari store customer base also gained further strength as one of the preferred retail channels in a year that saw robust demand amidst record fuel prices, commodity shortages and higher transportation costs, among others,” it said.

PXP reschedules

Cadlao 4 oil well drilling next year

By Alena Mae S. Flores

PXP Energy Energy Corp. said Wednesday it expects the drilling of production wells at Service Contract 6B (Bonita Block) to be moved to the first quarter of next year due to tight rig supply.

SC 6B is located southeast of the Malampaya gas field and southwest of the Galoc oil and gas field. It covers 533 square kilometers at water depths of 20 to 90 km.

PXP through Forum Energy owns a stake in SC 6B operated by Nido Petroleum.

“In SC 6 B Bonita Block, Forum will be carried free in the cost of the planned redevelopment of the Cadlao field. The initial phase will include the drilling of a well, Cadlao 4, to be followed by an extended well test or EWT. Based on the EWT results, a decision regarding full-field development including the drilling of additional production wells will be made,” PXP president Dan Stephen Carlos said during the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting.

“However, due to the current tight rig market, the drilling of Cadlao 4 has been deferred from its original schedule this second quarter and instead, we anticipate drilling to start within the first quarter of 2024,” Carlos said.

Nido earlier said the planned drilling activities would involve the installation of a rig about 600 meters south of the Cadlao-1A location at a water depth of about 18 meters. A floating, storage and offloading unit will be moored about 600 meters from the rig location.

The syndicate registers ghost companies whose sole business purpose is to sell original receipts so their buyers could illegally reduce their tax liabilities.

“The BIR has filed criminal cases against buyers of fake/ghost receipts, their corporate officers, the accounting firms they engaged, and the CPAs that signed their documents. A total tax liability of P17.9 billion has been computed for this first set of cases,” Lumagui said.

“This is tax evasion of the highest order, and perhaps the most elaborate tax evasion scheme in the history of Philippine taxation. We will regularly file criminal cases against buyers of fake/ghost receipts,” he said. Julito G. Rada

Bangko Sentral launches Open Finance PH Pilot

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, backed by the International Finance Corp. and the World Bank, launched on Wednesday the Open Finance PH Pilot to promote financial inclusion and greater collaboration among financial institutions.

The launch marked a milestone in the establishment of an open finance ecosystem for the country. The initiative aims to help the unbanked—particularly those who lack documentation—build a financial profile and credit history and, over time, access loans and other services that were once out of reach.

The Pilot is a voluntary undertaking of financial institutions to co-develop an open, inter-operable and scalable ecosystem that empowers consumers to take more control over their financial data and enable them to access a range of financial products and services from different providers.

Eligible BSP-supervised financial institutions are expected to participate in the Pilot. This marks the next phase in the implementation of the Revised Open Finance Roadmap (2023-2027) which lays out the updated priority actions of the BSP in the adoption of Open Finance in the country.

“With Open Finance PH, we are taking a big step towards unlocking equal access to financial services for all Filipinos and building a cyber resilient and open digital economy,” BSP Governor Felipe Medalla said. Julito G. Rada

SEC

asks Velarde, NOW

to pay P1-m fine each NOW Corp. and its chief executive Mel Velarde face a P1-million fine each from the Securities and Exchange Commission over their disclosures relating to the alleged P2.6-billion unpaid obligation of affiliate NOW Telecom to the government.

The SEC said it found NOW Corp. and Velarde administratively liable for violation of Section 24.1(d) in relation to Section 54.1 of the Securities Regulation Code for disclosing “misleading” information to the public.

The case stemmed from the Nov. 10, 2021 disclosure made by the IT firm and its CEO stating they have no knowledge of the details surrounding the motions filed by the National Telecommunications Commission with the Supreme Court seeking resolution on NOW Telecom’s P2.6-billion liability representing unpaid supervision and regulation fees and spectrum user fees.

The SEC said in a seven-page order dated June 15, 2023 it found no merit in the justifications provided by NOW Corp. and Velarde that their disclosure contained truthful and accurate statements.

The SEC—through its Enforcement and Investment Protection Department—said it did not buy the argument that NOW and Velarde have no knowledge of the specific details surrounding the NTC motion, as Velarde is also the chairman of the board of NOW Telecom. Darwin G. Amojelar

SBC’S AWARDS. Security Bank Corp. receives two accolades at the Digital Banker’s Digital CX Awards 2023 in Singapore for Outstanding Chatbot Customer Experience and Best Customer Insights Initiative. Representing SBC at the Awards ceremony are customer experience and engagement head Catherine Blanquesa (center) and service analytics head Mayla Arcena (right).