PLDT hailed for global bond issue, term loan

The Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) recently received twin awards from the prestigious International Financial Review (IFR) Asia and Asiamoney, both leading financial magazines in Asia.

PLDT’s $350-million global bond issue was named by IFR Asia as Non-Investment Grade Bond for 2002, while its $145-million term loan earned the award of Philippine Loan of the Year.

And for the third straight year, PLDT won the best investor relations award for the Philippines from Asiamoney in its annual poll of best-managed companies.

Anabelle Chua, PLDT treasurer and senior vice president, said, "The year 2002 was an extremely challenging one for PLDT but the success of our liability management exercise repositioned PLDT to enter 2003 in a strong financial position."

She added, "We are delighted to receive these awards which recognize the significant efforts and successes achieved in 2002. The investor relations award is also gratifying in that it recognizes our commitment to full and frank disclosures as well as ready access to senior management."

In giving out the Non-Investment Grade Bond award to PLDT, IFR Asia noted that "Asian high-yield borrowers returned en masse to offshore bonds in 2002, with deals from several countries, the largest of them from PLDT. The transaction stood out for its success in tapping into the global investor base and marked a turning point for the company."

It said the $350-million transaction was "make or break" given that PLDT had been forced to pull out an offering in September 2001 after the events of Sept. 11.

"With a $1.3-billion refinancing burden, it was a vital offering for the company. The deal was a test of faith and a poor reception would certainly have placed further question marks over the company. To their credit, the deal survived and was oversubscribed in one of the most volatile periods of the year for telecom issuers," IFR Asia said.