BIZ BUZZ: Long waiting game 

It seems the end is nowhere in sight for shareholders of Philippine National Bank (PNB) who were promised property dividends four years ago.

In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, the bank led by taipan Lucio Tan vowed to find “the most efficient process” for distributing shares of stock of PNB Holdings Corp. (PHC).

PNB told the exchange it would likewise continue to work with the Bureau of Internal Revenue to facilitate the issuance of electronic Certificates Authorizing Registration (eCARs) to eligible stockholders.

As of Aug. 1, a total of 1,823 eCARs have been issued from 1,215 on Jan. 10 this year, still well below the 36,362 entitled PNB shareholders with certificated shares.

This stems all the way back to 2021, when PNB said it would convert three of its most valuable property assets into shares of stock of PHC, a wholly owned real estate subsidiary, thus unlocking P34 billion in additional capital. The bank eventually plans to list PHC by way of introduction on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE).

PNB declared a property dividend of 0.156886919 shares of PHC for every one share of PNB owned for shareholders of record as of May 18, 2021.

While it eventually set an Oct. 25, 2024, distribution date, this was only applicable to shareholders who were already issued eCARs. Back then, 902 eCARs were already issued, but only 224 shareholders were actually eligible to receive the dividend.

Despite all the delays, PNB and PHC say the latter’s listing is still on the table.

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“Rest assured that PHC, and the relevant teams remain fully committed to the listing and are actively working to comply with applicable listing requirements of the PSE,” PNB said in its filing. “The process is still underway and involves several considerations, including preparation of the necessary documentation, alignment with regulatory expectations, and utmost consideration for the best interests of existing and future public investors.”

This may sound all too familiar, since PNB also made nearly the same disclosure in January, when it promised to explore “alternative approaches” to facilitate PHC’s listing.

When will it all end? I guess we’ll all have to wait and see if it actually does, and how PNB plans to tread this long and winding path.