Lucio Tan appoints daughter as PNB Holdings president

MANILA, Philippines — Lucio Tan has appointed his daughter Karlu Tan-Say as president of PNB Holdings Corp. (PHC), marking another key appointment in the Tan empire.

PNB Holdings, a fully owned subsidiary of Tan’s Philippine National Bank, is a holding company tasked to maximize the values of PNB’s real estate assets. It is set to be listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) by way of introduction, which allows a company to list its shares with the PSE without having to sell shares to the public immediately.

PNB Holdings will maximize rental demand by optimizing the revenue potential of its prime real estate assets, Tan-Say said during the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting.

Immediate focus will be on improving the efficiency of the sprawling 10-hectare PNB Financial Center in Pasay and the PNB Makati Center in Ayala’s Central Business District by revamping their gross leasable area.

Both assets are prime buildings and stand on coveted locations in both cities.

Tan-Say said the assets have huge growth potential.

“We are excited about planning for the redevelopment of our properties in Makati and Pasay as we see a very huge growth potential in these areas,” said Tan-Say, who is concurrently COO of Eton Properties Philippines, the property company under Tan’s listed conglomerate LT Group Inc.

Tan-Say said PNB Holdings would meticulously find ways to further enhance these developments to better serve the market in the new normal.

PNB managed to beef up its capital base by an additional P10 billion after a property-for-share swap with PNB Holdings.

The three properties of PNB – the PNB Financial Center in Pasay, the PNB Makati Center in Ayala Avenue and a prime property at the corner of Gil Puyat and Paseo de Roxas in Makati City – have a combined market value of P46.7 billion.

PNB’s board of directors earlier approved the declaration of shares of PNB Holdings as property dividends. It likewise obtained regulatory approval to make additional investments in PNB Holdings in exchange for the three properties of the bank.

The investment into PNB Holdings and the dividend declaration are two important phases of the bank’s strategic initiative to recognize the unrealized value of its three major properties.

PNB is pursuing plans to reduce its low-earning assets to build up its financial position.

Tan-Say expressed optimism about the business environment especially with the vaccine roll-out.

“While we are cautious of the economic environment, we also remain optimistic that the ongoing vaccine rollout and the health and safety protocols in place will prompt the imminent reopening of the local economy,” she said.

With a positive base of cash flow, PNB Holdings expects a significant increase from its 2020 net income of P200 million by the end of the year.