Property developer Ayala Land Inc. is planning to raise $500 million as it enters in the real estate investment trust (REIT) industry in the Philippines.
“We filed with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) an Ayala Land REIT; we’re still thinking what the name should be. The intent is to list based on the current regulations which is a minimum public ownership of 67%,” ALI Commercial Business Group Head Jose Emmanuel H. Jalandoni said in a media briefing last week.
Mr. Jalandoni said ALI likewise filed for the name change of an existing company, One dela Rosa Development, Inc., into Ayala Land REIT Inc., to serve as the vehicle for the REIT listing. ALI has also filed amendments to its articles of incorporation to reflect its intention to file for REITs.
REIT is a vehicle aimed to generate more investments especially for real estate companies but was put to halt by new taxation frameworks.
All companies that own and operate income-generating real estate assets are considered companies. These include offices, apartment complexes, hotels, warehouses, shopping centers, and highways. Similar to mutual funds, REITs provide investors long-term capital appreciation and a steady income stream.
Ayala Land’s REIT will be anchored on the company’s office towers within Makati CBD.
Any developer who plans to file a REIT must go through the SEC first. After the SEC, it will then seek clearance from the Philippine Stock Exchange.
This REIT listing, should it be approved, will be the first REIT vehicle in the country 10 years after Republic Act No. 9856 or The Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Act of 2009 was enacted.
“The primary reason is we just want to move forward and test the framework. It’s good for the investing public to have these options.”
Source: Businessworld, Philippine Star
Read our previous journal for more real estate news.
