Ayalas to intensify real estate presence in top AsPac marts

The Ayala Group intends to intensify its real estate presence in the major Asia Pacific markets of Singapore, Hong Kong and Tokyo -- cited as among the most expensive cities to live in -- with the restructuring of its international property units.

President and CEO Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala II of the holding firm Ayala Corp. said the acquisition last year of TLB Land, a publicly listed real estate company in Singapore, would provide the platform for their regional property investments.

"We are in the final stages of seeking clearance to consolidate most of our property investments under this company," he said.

TLB Land, which will be renamed Ayala International Holdings Ltd., is 82 percent owned by Ayala Corp.'s wholly-owned subsidiary, Ayala International Pte. Ltd.

The acquisition of TLB has boosted AIPL's assets base more than twice to $257.7 million and its net income six times to $2.5 million in 1999. Aside from its Singapore property holdings, AIPL, in collaboration with the Grosvenor Estates Group of the UK, also has investments in Hong Kong and plans to go into the Tokyo market.

On top of having an Ayala subsidiary listed in a foreign market, Zobel de Ayala said the acquisition of TLB will also "give the company access to a lower cost of financing and will allow us a better chance to monitor the emerging opportunities in the region."

Under a two-phase restructuring plan, TLB Land will dispose of non-core assets to significantly improve its liquidity position. AIPL will then consolidate some of its existing property-related investments held by its private property subsidiary, Ayala International Properties Pte. Ltd. (AIPPL), in TLB, including a 23 percent shareholding in Hermill Investments Pte. Ltd, the owner of the Forum Shopping Center and Office Tower in Singapore's Orchard Road and a 33 percent stake in Parc Stevens, a high-end residential property development project.