First Metro says it is buyer of Lepanto block shares

MANILA, Philippines - First Metro Investment Corp., (FMIC), the investment banking arm of the Metrobank Group and a major shareholder of Lepanto Consolidated Mining Co., disclosed Friday it was the buyer of the Lepanto shares subject of a block sale at the Philippine Stock Exchange last Thursday.

Around 2.83 billion shares, representing 8.6 percent of the listed mining firm’s outstanding capital, were sold at P0.27 each share for a total of P763.4 million.

Market watchers, however, are speculating that the real buyer of the shares is not FMIC but the group led by telecommunications magnate Manuel V. Pangilinan which has long wanted to take a significant stake in Lepanto. 

FMIC did not say from whom it bought the shares. Records show that Lepanto is majority owned by businessman-stockbroker Felipe Yap followed by the Metrobank Group. 

Lepanto, however, said it was not privy to the transaction, pointing out that Yap was not the one who sold the subject Lepanto shares.

 “There are only two investor groups that could sell that much.  If it’s not Yap then most likely it’s the other shareholder group. If that is so, it just doesn’t make sense why they did that.  They’re probably concealing the identity of the real buyer,” said an analyst who requested not to be named.

The STAR tried but failed to get a comment from FMIC, which disclosed that it owns 6.467 billion shares equivalent to 19.66 percent of Lepanto. 

One FMIC official said he could not comment for fear of losing his job.

Lepanto’s share price continued on an uptrend yesterday, rising 6.1 percent to P0.026 per share.

Hong Kong-based conglomerate First Pacific Investments Corp., which holds a 46 percent stake in copper-gold producer Philex Mining Corp., is bullish on the Philippine mining sector.

Pangilinan earlier said First Pacific was particularly keen on Far Southeast Gold Resources Inc., a subsidiary of Lepanto that operates in Benguet.  The group is also said to be interested in another Yap-owned firm, Manila Mining Corp.