GT CAPITAL Holdings, Inc. on Thursday told the stock exchange it plans to “fully subscribe” in the stock rights offering (SRO) of its banking arm Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. (Metrobank).
At present, GT Capital owns 36.09% of Metrobank.
Metrobank on Wednesday said its board of directors approved to conduct an SRO to sell 819.83 million common shares, equivalent to the remaining unissued shares from the lender’s authorized capital stock.
Proceeds from the offer will be used to fund the Ty-led bank’s loans and fully acquire its credit card arm.
Metrobank said in October that it entered into an agreement with ANZ Funds Pty. Ltd. (ANZ) for the bank’s purchase of the latter’s 40% stake in credit card provider Metrobank Card Corp. (MCC).
MCC is a joint venture between Metrobank and ANZ formed in 2003, with the local lender holding the majority 60% stake.
“The capital raising exercise is expected to enable the bank to pursue these business prospects to sustain the loan growth momentum, leveraging on the bank’s sales and distribution network that has rapidly expanded in the preceding years,” Metrobank said. — K.A.N. Vidal
