c

The bank’s maturing obligations next year will reach about 0 million, composed of 0 million worth of senior notes maturing in February and 0-million tier 2 maturing in July. 

Tan said the bank might refinance its obligations next year in either dollars or peso and that they have the option not to refinance the 0 million maturing in February. 

The bank raised P10 billion last November from the issuance of unsecured subordinated debt. It initially planned on raising only P5 billion from the issue but decided to increase the offer to P10 billion because it was oversubscribed. Total applications exceeded P15 billion. 

The tier 2 notes, which had HSBC as the lead arranger and selling agent as well as market maker and public trustee, carry a coupon rate of 7 percent per annum.  International Finance Corp., the investment arm of the World Bank, participated in the offering. It is one of Banco de Oro’s minority shareholders. 

Tan said the bank has yet to firm up its income targets for next year, adding that this year’s net income “may be a little less than the P7-billion goal for the year. 

In another development, SM Prime Holdings Inc., the country’ largest shopping mall operator and developer, plans to borrow P4 billion to partly finance its P6-billion capital expenditure next year. 

Company executive vice president Jeffrey Lim told reporters that the company would tap the debt market next year to raise P4 billion in peso borrowings.  The company is set to open three malls next year in Marikina, Baliuag and Pangasinan, bringing to 33 the number of SM shopping malls all over the country. 

Lim said the company also hoped to finalize the transfer of the China malls into the company by next year.  SM Prime approved the acquisition of three SM malls in China, which are currently owned by the Sy Family, for P10.8 billion last month.

The move will allow the company to gain a foothold in China’s fastgrowing economy and use it as a platform for long-term growth outside of the Philippines where it dominates the shopping mall developers.

The SM malls in China, which are similar to the SM malls in the Philippines, are located in Xiamen, Jinjiang and Chengdu. 

The first to open in December 2001 was the mall in Xiamen, which has a gross floor area of 128,000 square meters.

The mall, which is almost similar in size to SM City Sta. Mesa, is now 100 percent occupied.  SM JingJiang opened in November 2005 with a gross floor area of 170,000 sq m and SM Chengdu in October 2006 with a floor area of 170,000 sq m. 

The anchor tenants of the three malls include Wal-Mart and SM-Laiya Department Store, Cybermart and Wanda Cinema. Junior anchors include Watsons, McDonald’s, KFC, Giordano, Pizza Hut and a number of China-based outlets and stores. 

The acquisition will be effected through a share swap whereby SM Prime will issue 913 million new shares to the Sy family, the issue price of which is based on the company’s 30-day volume weighted average price. 

The company earlier appointed Citigroup Global Markets Ltd. and Macquarie Securities (Asia) Pte Ltd. as its financial advisers for the acquisition.