First Metro acquires 35% of EDR system for stock listing

First Metro Investment Corp. has entered into a joint venture for electronic direct registry (EDR) system for stock listing.

The joint venture company, Pastra.Net Inc., will be owned 35 percent by First Metro Investment with the Philippine Association of Stock Transfer and Registry Agent Inc. (PASTRA) at 49 percent, and the balance of 16 percent will be held by Newburgh Holdings Inc.

PASTRA is an association of all the stock transfer agents in the country, servicing more than 300 issues listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange.

First Metro Investment is the country’s only publicly-listed investment bank and the largest investment house in the Philippines. It is a member of the Metrobank group of companies.

The Securities and Exchange Commission decided recently to reform the setup of stock registration from a depository model employing nominee account to a name-on-registry in a bid to protect investors.

Under the previous setup, stockbrokers register stocks on behalf of investors at the Philippine Central Depository (PCD). Brokers hold shares of stock for investors in the name of the PCD Nominee Inc.

The EDR will not only enable stockholders to have their securities in their own names in the books of the listed corporations, but will also provide the convenience of electronic trading through theInternet and mobile phones, and will facilitate securities clearing and settlement process.

The maximization of electronic infrastructure is a necessary step towards the development of the country’s fledgling capital markets. The most recent system put up is the electronic fixed income exchange (FIE), which allows for realtime trading of bonds, government securities, and commercial papers.