Maynilad moves closer to record P45.8 billion IPO

One of two cornerstone investors secured

MANILA, Philippines — Maynilad Water Services Inc. has locked in a key cornerstone investor for its highly anticipated P45.8-billion initial public offering (IPO), company chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said.

“There are two (cornerstone investors). One has already confirmed their approval, and we’re hoping to secure the other one by September,” Pangilinan told reporters yesterday.

Pangilinan withheld the identity of the investors but confirmed that they are foreign entities.

A cornerstone investor is an institutional or individual investor who commits to purchasing a significant amount of shares in an IPO at an agreed-upon price, often before the formal marketing of the IPO to the broader market.

Maynilad’s planned maiden offering covers 1.93 billion primary shares and 354.7 million secondary shares.

The company was originally aiming to complete its IPO this month, but adjusted it to no later than October this year to make way for the cornerstone investors’ inclusion.

The investors were said to have expressed strong interest in the offering but requested more time to complete their internal approval processes.

“Hopefully, we could get back on the saddle by October and get the shares listed on or before the end of the year,” Pangilinan said.

Maynilad, whose new legislative franchise became effective in 2022, is required to offer at least 30 percent of its outstanding capital stock to the public on or before January 2027.

The company has tapped BPI Capital Corp. as the domestic lead underwriter, with The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp. Ltd., Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) Pte. and UBS AG, Singapore Branch acting as the international underwriters.

Maynilad, which provides water services in the west zone of Metro Manila, is jointly owned by Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp., DMCI Holdings of the Consunji Group and Japan’s Marubeni Corp.

MPIC owns about 53 percent of Maynilad, with DMCI and Marubeni holding 25 percent and 20 percent, respectively.