SEC rejects Multitel statement

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned the public anew against putting in more money in Multinational Telecom Investors Corp. (Multitel).

The warning was issued by the SEC in view of the promises made by Multitel president Rosario Baladjay to investors that the company was taking steps to regularize its operations. In a notice to investors that came out in newspapers a week ago, Baladjay urged investors to make additional investments with the promise that their money would be returned soon.

Tomas Syquia, head of the SEC’s Compliance and Enforcement Department, said: "Do not believe any statements from them saying that they’re trying to regularize their operations and that they’re talking to the SEC. As far as the CED is concerned, we are not aware of any such move."

Syquia reiterated that Multitel is not authorized to solicit investments from the public.

"For the sake of investors, I hope they get their investments back. It they continue to believe or invest in these pseudo investment companies, then God help them," Syquia said.

Baladjay said the delay in the payment of interests and principal investments to investors was due to the difficulties experienced by Multitel’s parent company in bringing the money back to the country.

Syquia said the SEC is poised to the file contempt charges against officers of Multitel for continuing to solicit investments from the public despite an existing cease-and-desist order issued by the corporate watchdog.

Apart from this, Syquia said the SEC is set to cancel the corporate licenses of Multitel and its other associate companies to prevent them from further using their SEC registration in soliciting funds from the public.

The SEC has expressed doubts whether investors of Multitel could still recover their investments because the company’s owners could not be located.

The SEC estimates that the Multitel Group has collected anywhere from P20 billion to P25 million from various individuals all over the country. The group reportedly employes about 600 agents. One counselor was said to handle as much as P700 million worth of accounts.

The SEC filed last month a criminal complaint against owners and officers of Multitel to prevent them from further soliciting investments to the public and to hold them responsible for the misrepresentation made to thousands of investors.

The Multitel Group offers as much as 15 percent interest for a P100,000 minimum investment in three to six months.

Other companies said to be used by Multitel in perpetuating its activities and are covered by the CDO earlier issued by the SEC are Partners in Progress Holdings Inc., Sage Management Corp., CUP Multi-Purpose Cooperative Inc., Multilink Multi Purpose Cooperative Inc., Oceanic Employees, Bethel Multi Purpose Cooperative, Goodwill Development Cooperative, and Handog sa Pag-unlad Multi-Purpose Cooperative.

These conduit firms have interlocking stockholders, directors and officers who are connected in one way or another to the management or operation of Multitel.