BIZ BUZZ: ABG defers re-IPO, upsizes issue

After completing the tender offer to minority shareholders that gave him a total of 66.7-percent control of shell company Asiabest Group International (ABG), infrastructure ecosystem builder Francis Lloyd Chua originally intended to conduct a follow-on offering worth as much as P3 billion this third quarter of 2025.

This re-initial public offering (re-IPO) will have to wait, however, until the second quarter of next year, Chua told Biz Buzz.

It comes as no surprise as other issuers in the IPO pipeline, including Clark integrated casino report developer Hann Holdings, have likewise deferred their plans amid soft market conditions at this time.

But because it’s in no rush to come to market, it’s an opportunity for ABG to enlarge its re-IPO size.

It’s because “three companies will come in, unlike before that only one [will be folded in],” Chua said.

The three companies are Concrete Stone Corp., his flagship venture, as well as Industry Movers Corp. and Kabalayan Housing.

Chua intends to infuse Kabalayan Housing into ABG this third quarter. Using new precast and modular technologies, this unit aims to be a housing powerhouse that can produce 1,000 housing units per day.

Concrete Stone, on the other hand, has precast concrete plants located in Bataan, Leyte and Davao Oriental.

Industry Movers operates a shipping fleet to easily transport heavy construction materials.

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Chua also earlier acquired a minority stake in listed construction firm EEI Corp., which in turn is backed by the Romualdez family. He intends to infuse this minority interest in EEI into ABG, too.

In the latest regulatory filing, ABG said it would remain a holding company but would consolidate interests in infrastructure-related businesses “that work together to create synergies and competitive advantages for the group.”

“The value proposition of the buyer working as a group is the vertically integrated nature of their organization that begins with raw materials extraction and processing on one end and finished products on the other end,” it said.

With a bigger portfolio to enter through the backdoor, Leyte’s homegrown, up-and-coming tycoon thus said the offering size may be bigger than the P3 billion originally intended.