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Damosa inks franchise deal for IWG shared workspace centers

DAVAO CITY — Homegrown Damosa Land Inc. (DLI) has inked a franchise agreement with International Workplace Group Co. (IWG) for the establishment of eight co-working centers in Mindanao over the next five years.

“The franchise program is part of our global strategy,” Matthew James Kenley, IWG-Asia Pacific head of partnership growth, said during the signing ceremony on Jan. 24.

The franchising deal with DLI is its second in the country, with the first located in Cebu.

IWG, formerly Regus, has been operating two Regus centers in Davao City. The first one, located at DLI’s Topaz Tower in Davao City, was opened in 2016 and considered the biggest in the country at 1,600 square meters (sq.m.). Another Regus center can be found in Felcris Centrale since 2018.

IWG — whose brands include Regus, Spaces, HQ and Signature by Regus — currently has 28 centers in the Philippines. Mr. Kenley said they target to increase the number of centers to 40 in five years.

DLI First Vice President Ricardo F. Lagdameo, for his part, said the new venture will expand their footprint in the real estate sector and attract new investors to their spaces.

“This one is a perfect complement to our existing office leasing business, and one of the directions of Damosa Land is to really grow our office portfolio,” said Mr. Lagdameo.

DLI, the real estate arm of the Floirendo-owned Anflo Management and Investment Corp., has about 15,000 sq.m. in leasable space and this will increase to about 40,000 sq.m. when its Diamond Tower starts operating in April.

The new 15-floor tower will be the location of the company’s first franchised IWG center. The IWG center will have a 1,600-sq.m. floor area and is expected to open before the end of October.

Mr. Lagdameo said they are confident that demand for workspaces “will continue to grow in the next couple of years.”

Two IWG centers are planned to be set up at DLI’s Valley High commercial complex in General Santos City, and in Cagayan de Oro City where the company has partnered with Ayala Land Inc. for the Centrio Mall.

Mr. Lagdameo said they are open to establishing the other shared workspaces in office buildings not owned by DLI.

“Any office building in the future will really have to have some kind of a (shared) workspace,” he said.

Lars Wittig, IWG country manager for the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and South Korea, said these workspaces have become a “good launch platform for local entrepreneurs,” noting that they have 600 members in the city.

“We have enabled them to much faster growth,” Mr. Wittig said. — Carmelito Q. Francisco

Dennis Uy says Duterte’s lesson taught him to toughen up

PHILIPPINE tycoon Dennis A. Uy has built an empire spanning oil, shipping, casinos and telecommunications, but eight years ago his oil-trading business was in trouble over government allegations of fuel smuggling.

Mr. Uy went to see the local mayor, a family friend from childhood, for advice. The mayor was Rodrigo R. Duterte, the country’s current president.

“He said my image is soft, so I should practice before a mirror saying, ‘You son of a b****,’ 100 times,” he said in an interview. “He doesn’t like when a person is bullied.”

Mr. Uy says Mr. Duterte has not played a direct role in his businesses, but the advice worked. He was cleared of the smuggling charges and went on to quadruple profit at his Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, Inc. in the five years through the end of 2018. Along the way, he says, he gained the toughness Mr. Duterte had been trying to instill in him.

“If you survived petroleum and shipping, it trains you to be battle ready,” said Mr. Uy, 46. “In petroleum, to get your one-peso margin, you watch everything from storage to trucking, and it’s common to give credit and deal with currency and oil price fluctuations.”

Before Mr. Duterte’s rise, the southern province of Davao was better known for its tropical fruit and an endangered species of monkey-eating eagle than for business powerhouses like Mr. Uy’s.

But in the past few years, Mr. Uy, who donated to Mr. Duterte’s presidential campaign, has spread far beyond the region, assembling assets that are eating into industries ruled by some of the country’s richest and oldest business dynasties.

In 2018, Mr. Uy teamed up with China Telecommunications Corp., to win a telecommunications license to challenge the duopoly of Smart Communications, Inc. and Globe Telecom, Inc. He had no previous experience as a carrier, but his company, now called Dito Telecommunity Corp., emerged as the sole bidder. Mr. Duterte has repeatedly called for greater competition in the industry, which has some of the highest mobile rates and slowest service in Southeast Asia.

After Mr. Duterte encouraged the Chinese wireless giant to join the competition, Norway’s Telenor ASA and Austria’s Mobiltel AG, which had bought documents to participate, did not bid. Streamtech Systems Technologies, Inc., led by the Philippine’s richest person Manuel B. Villar, withdrew from the race.

Smart is owned by PLDT Inc., whose Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan has been repeatedly criticized by Mr. Duterte as an out-of-touch elite. The carrier’s largest shareholders include JG Summit Holdings, Inc., the banking, aviation and retail conglomerate now run by Lance Y. Gokongwei, founder John L. Gokongwei Jr.’s son.

The other telecom operator, Globe, has Ayala Corp. as one of its largest shareholders. Ayala is led by Chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala II, a frequent Duterte target.

Mr. Duterte has also been a strong critic of the current telecommunications duopoly.

“The Philippines has been gravely fooled by the rich people in the Philippines,” he said on Jan. 23. “Just like Ayala and Pangilinan who own Globe and Smart. They are all thieves, those sons of b******,” he said, according to the official transcript of his speech.

A spokesmen for Ayala Corp. said the company did not want to comment on Mr. Duterte’s speech. A PLDT spokesman, who also represents Mr. Pangilinan, said he would not comment. Mr. Duterte’s spokesman has not responded to requests for comment. — Bloomberg

1917 wins best film and director at BAFTA awards

LONDON — First World War drama 1917 was the big winner at the BAFTAs on Sunday, picking up seven awards including best picture and director for Sam Mendes, at a glittering ceremony that made headlines for a glaring lack of diversity among nominees.

The thrilling drama, shot in what appears to be a single take, was also honored in the outstanding British film, sound, production design, cinematography, and special visual effects categories.

Britain’s top movie awards have been criticized for having all-white shortlists in its acting categories and an all-male one for director, triggering the use of the hashtag #BaftasSoWhite on social media.

BAFTA boss Amanda Berry had said she was “very disappointed” by the lack of diversity.

Joaquin Phoenix, voted best actor for his critically acclaimed transformation from vulnerable loner into confident villain in Joker, addressed the issue head on in his acceptance speech.

The industry was sending “a very clear message to people of color that you’re not welcome here,” he said, adding it “was on us” to dismantle a system of oppression.

Award presenter Rebel Wilson drew the biggest laughs and cheers of the evening when, after reading out the all-male best director list, said: “I don’t think I could do what they do, honestly I just don’t have the balls.”

Actress Scarlett Johansson, who missed out in the leading and supporting actress categories, told Reuters the all-male directing shortlist showed women were being held back and the industry had to be mindful of the issue.

“It’s pretty disappointing, especially because there were so many great films this year that happened to be directed by women,” she said.

Renee Zellweger beat Johansson to the best actress gong for her portrayal of Judy Garland in Judy. The two will go head-to-head again at the Oscars on Feb. 9.

It was a frustrating evening for Netflix’s The Irishman, Martin Scorsese’s star-studded gangster drama, which was nominated in 10 categories but left empty handed.

The streaming giant, however, fared better with divorce drama Marriage Story, which saw Laura Dern win best supporting actress.

Brad Pitt picked up best supporting actor for Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, the only success for a movie nominated for 10 awards.

Bong Joon Ho’s darkly comic film Parasite triumphed in the original screenplay and film not in the English language categories at the ceremony at London’s Royal Albert Hall. — Reuters

Online mortgage brokerage platform launched in PHL

By Bjorn Biel M. Beltran
Special Features Writer

ASPIRING homeowners know the struggle of applying for a mortgage. Going to banks with different requirements, interest rates, and a mountain of paperwork — acquiring real estate to call your own is no easy task.

Nook, the Philippines’ first online mortgage brokerage platform, seeks to remedy that.

With the goal of streamlining and simplifying the property loan application process in the country, the platform aims to enable Filipinos to conduct property search, do loan comparisons, and experience a seamless loan application process online.

“Applying for a home loan here in the Philippines can be a tedious and intimidating process. Before prospective clients even begin, they are already overwhelmed with the long list of requirements or the time they need to set aside to accomplish all the application steps,” Chris Elder, chief executive officer of Nook, told the media at a event last month.

“We aim to address this with Nook. We offer users an end-to-end platform, from property search to bank approvals, empowering more Filipinos to gain seamless access to financial options available to them,” Mr. Elder said.

To facilitate this, the company has partnered with top banking institutions in the Philippines, including Asia United Bank (AUB), BDO Unibank, BPI Family Savings Bank, Bank of Commerce, CTBC, China Banking Corp., Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation and Security Bank. Talks with five other banks are ongoing.

Mr. Elder noted the increasing purchasing power of Filipinos and thousands of new residential options built each year present opportunities for the property market, as seen with the continued surge in office and residential demand from locals and foreign nationals.

According to the latest numbers released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the purchase of new housing units accounted for 74% of residential real estate loans in the third quarter of 2019, with most of the RRELs granted in the National Capital Region intended for the purchase of condominium units (43.1%).

Real estate consultancy firm Colliers International Philippines also predicted in a report last December that it is seeing a “sustained” property market over the next two years, with mid-income condominium units contributing towards the stronger demand.

Mr. Elder added that Nook intends to tap Filipino consumers who are intimidated to begin their home loan search due to various reasons, including not knowing whether they are qualified to apply for a bank loan.

Nook is designed to make applying for a home loan simpler and easier through its website, which allows users to evaluate the most optimal loan option for their target properties.

At the same time, the platform offers a more efficient way for banks to verify prospective clients by removing applicants who do not meet their particular criteria.

Through Nook, an applicant will be able to preview the amount of monthly repayments they have to make, fees, and other requirements from each bank and get pre-qualified in just a few minutes.

The company will help clients in every step of their housing loan process, together with its Nook Home Loan Consultant, free of charge. The platform is based on Amazon Web Services and secured with 128-bit encryption.

Mr. Elder also believes that this is an opportune time for the Philippines to adopt the trend and practices of the industry in countries such as Australia and the United States, where over 60% and 68% of borrowers respectively go through mortgage brokers instead of direct-bank applications to secure a housing loan.

“What Nook offers is direct access to bank partners for your home loans with the easiest application process you can get,” Mr. Elder said.

“It is time that the Philippines recognize how technology can transform the home loan process from application to closing,” he added.

Gov’t makes full award of T-bills as rates decline

THE GOVERNMENT fully awarded the Treasury bills (T-bills) it auctioned off on Monday as rates mostly dropped on strong liquidity and the market’s growing appetite for papers in the short end of the curve.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) raised P20 billion in T-bills yesterday as the offer was more than twice oversubscribed, with total tenders reaching P49.3 billion.

Broken down, the Treasury borrowed P6 billion as programmed via the 91-day papers from total bids worth P20.947 billion. The three-month T-bills fetched an average rate of 3.187%, 11 basis points (bps) lower than the 3.297% quoted in the auction last week.

The government raised another P6 billion as planned from the 182-day T-bills, with the tenor attracting tenders worth P15.799 billion, at an average rate of 3.523%, down by 7.4 bps from 3.597% previously.

Likewise, for the 364-day papers, the Treasury accepted P8 billion as planned out of total tenders of P12.522 billion. The one-year securities were quoted at an average rate of 3.964%, up by just 0.1 bp from the 3.963% quoted last week.

At the secondary market on Monday, the rates for 91-, 182- and 364-day T-bills ended at 3.28%, 3.47% and 3.902%, based on the PHP Bloomberg Valuation Service Reference Rates.

National Treasurer Rosalia V. de Leon said yesterday’s auction was met with strong demand amid ample liquidity in the local market and as investors continue to prefer short tenors.

“We have a very good auction for today given the preference now of investors moving to the short end of the tenor. Also, rates dipped despite a higher inflation median coming from analysts’ expectations — 2.7% (against) 2.5% last December — so we are very satisfied with the results of the auction today,” Ms. De Leon told reporters after the auction on Monday.

Sought for comment, Robinsons Bank Corp. sovereign debt trader Kevin S. Palma shared the same sentiment, adding that market expectations of a policy rate cut by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Monetary Board this week contributed to the strong turnout and lower yields.

“The market continues to put liquidity to work and show good appetite for short-term bonds as reflected in the very strong turnover of the offering… Icing on the cake was the reinvestment demand from a P14-billion T-bill maturity on February 5,” Mr. Palma said in a Viber message.

The Philippine Statistics Authority will report official inflation data for January on Wednesday, Feb. 5, while the BSP’s policy-setting Monetary Board will have its first rate-setting for the year on Thursday, Feb. 6.

BusinessWorld’s poll of 13 economists yielded a median estimate of 2.7% for January headline inflation, with analysts citing upside risks from the Taal Volcano eruption and a rise in some food prices still due to the African Swine Fever.

Meanwhile, 10 out of the 13 economists who joined the inflation poll were of the view that the BSP Monetary Board will ease rates by another 25 bps this week.

BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno last week said the central bank is still looking to bring down rates by around 50 bps in 2020. He said a 25-bp cut could also be considered as early as this quarter.

The BSP last year cut rates by a total of 75 bps, partially unwinding the 175 bps worth of hikes implemented in 2018 to quell multi-year high inflation.

RTBS BREACH P200 BILLION
Meanwhile, for the three-year retail Treasury bonds (RTBs) still on offer, Ms. De Leon said the demand has been “overwhelming,” with the volume raised breaching the P200 billion level so far, both from new money and tenders for the switch offer.

During the rate-setting auction of the 23rd RTB offering last week, the Treasury awarded a total of P134 billion in fresh funds, upsized from its initial offer of P30 billion, out of total tenders worth P149.827 billion.

The three-year papers, which have a coupon of 4.375%, will be offered until Thursday, Feb. 6.

“So far, (the) RTB offering has been met with overwhelming, good reception from investors… We have already breached the P200-billion volume, combined, switch and new money,” Ms. De Leon said.

The official said majority or three fourths of the initial volume raised was from new money, while the remaining are from tenders for the switch or the exchange offer program.

Under the exchange program, bondholders of the RTB 3-08 issued in 2017 which will mature this April can exchange these papers for the latest RTB issue.

“If we’re going to cap, then we should have already capped (the volume). We just want to give opportunity to the individual investors. We recognize that we just completed the roadshows, so there should be some time for investors to make their own decisions whether they want to move to the new RTB or tender new money for the RTB,” she said.

Ms. De Leon said usually, individual investors account for 20-30% of the total investor pool for the Treasury’s retail government securities.

With the online platform, she said they are expecting more small investors to avail of such securities, like the RTBs and the Premyo bonds.

The government plans to raise P1.4 trillion this year from local and foreign lenders to plug its budget deficit, which is expected to widen to as much as 3.2% of gross domestic product. — Beatrice M. Laforga

Real Steel ties up with Italian firm for Pampanga rolling mill

REAL STEEL Corp. is partnering with an Italian steel equipment manufacturer to build the Philippines’ first high-speed rolling mill in Pampanga.

The steel manufacturing company said in a statement on Monday that it had signed a deal with equipment and physical plants supplier Danieli Group to build a plant that uses “fully automated and environmentally sound technology.”

The plant will use an induction heating system that eliminates pollution caused by the natural gas and oil used in heating steel.

“Many of the solutions we implement are included in this new high-speed rolling mill, especially features in technology that improve environmental impact and safety,” Danieli Chief Executive Officer Alessandro Menocci said.

Real Steel said that the facility, which it expects to be fully operational by 2022, will be one of the fastest rolling mills in Asia.

“[Real Steel] will continue to strive for excellence in technological advancement and modernization to improve [the] quality of our products using clean and energy efficient equipment,” he said.

San Simon, Pampanga Mayor Abundio Punsalan, Jr. said he supports the project.

“This investment also means higher income for the local government, employment security, and safety for our local workers,” he said.

Department of Trade and Industry Undersecretary Ruth B. Castelo said that the project would be good for consumers.

She said Real Steel’s partnership with Danieli “manifests the company’s commitment in improving the quality of their products to be at par with international standards with green technology. This will ultimately redound to the benefit of the consumers for their increased protection.”

The Philippine Iron and Steel Institute last year listed Real Steel among manufacturers that it found to have produced substandard steel bars. — Jenina P. Ibañez

Pre-Valentine concert pushes the romance

AS AN early Valentine’s treat singers Julie Anne San Jose and Christian Bautista are set to serenade Urdaneta City in Pangasinan on Feb. 8 with the concert Sweetheart and the Balladeer (Fun Night Only).

This is the third stop of the concert series following sold-out shows in Iloilo City and Cagayan de Oro City last year.

The pre-Valentine concert will bring fun and music on stage through “medleys and performances that express different stories about love,” according to a press release.

“It’s always been a wonderful experience performing for our Kapuso in different parts of the Philippines and abroad. We just want everyone to have fun. That has always been our goal so this concert’s repertoire will revolve around love songs, and songs that inspire because that’s what we want the audience to feel,” Ms. San Jose was quoted as saying in the release.

“Kapuso” is what GMA Network calls it viewers and fans.

The duo will be joined on stage by actress Kyline Alcantara and comedians Donita Nose and Super Tekla.

“It’s a challenge to show something new in every concert but I am very lucky to be performing once again with these amazing artists. We have more surprises in store for all. Julie and I have performed together several times so we’ve already built that rapport. I believe [Donita Nose and Super Tekla] will up their game while Kyline, we’ve seen her grow as a performer, so expect nothing less as we all celebrate the month of love and GMA’s 70th anniversary,” Mr. Bautista said.

The comedic duo will poke fun at today’s dating trends and their own experiences with the joys and pains of being in a relationship.

The concert will be directed by Paolo Valenciano and is a joint project of GMA Regional TV and the GMA Entertainment Group.

“For this leg [of the concert tour], we also want the younger generation to be able to get up close with them, that’s why we made our tickets very affordable for them. We invite everyone to fall in love and laugh with us this Feb. 8,” GMA Regional TV Vice-President and Head Oliver Amoroso was quoted as saying in the press release.

The concert will be held at the Urdaneta City Cultural and Sports Center in Urdaneta City, Pangasinan. Tickets are available at GMA Dagupan Station, all Addessa outlets in Pangasinan, all TicketWorld outlets, or online via TicketWorld. Ticket prices range from P300 to P2,000. — ZBC

More Lamudi users looking to purchase property

THE property market last year was dominated by those looking to buy more than those looking to rent, online property marketplace Lamudi said.

In its Real Estate Market Review for 2019, Lamudi said 60.59% of those that went on its platform last year sought to buy property and had a budget of up to P20 million. Renters comprised the remaining 39.41% of the market, and allocated up to P1 million in their property hunt.

By budget, Lamudi said majority of the seekers in the more affordable segment allocated between P5,000 and P15,000 in their searches last year.

It also said most of the seekers, or 39.24% of the inquiries on Lamudi’s platform, were interested in condominiums, as this type of property may be used as primary residence or as a rental investment.

“With the increasing demand for condominium units in metropolitan areas, it is advisable to buy during the pre-selling period as the property value of condominiums increases near the development’s completion,” Lamudi said.

In terms of property location, the most in-demand cities are still in Metro Manila, but the interest among seekers is starting to spread across the country.

The cities with the highest demand last year are Quezon City, Makati City, Manila City, Cebu City and Taguig City. Lamudi noted that residents from Cebu City made up 87.56% of the page views from Visayas.

Citing Colliers International Philippines, Lamudi said the growth of business process outsourcing (BPO) industry in Cebu is a major driver of property growth in the region.

“The high influx of tourists coming to Cebu City has also propelled a higher demand for condominiums in the area. With the growth of BPO hubs in the city, millennials, who make up 43.98% of Visayas’ page views, are also drawn to the region for work opportunities and potential property ownership,” it added.

Other provincial cities that topped demand last year were Bacoor, Davao City, Angeles and Antipolo.

Lamudi also traced property hunters located outside the Philippines, and noted a bulk come from Dubai, Doha and Sydney. It said 30.58% of them looked for houses, of which 38.66% wanted to buy and 16.73% wanted to rent.

“One explanation for the sustained growth from Dubai, which was also the top overseas city in 2018, can be attributed to OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) wanting to buy their own property to settle in once they get back to the Philippines. Filipinos are also searching for houses or condominiums as an investment opportunity in the Philippines,” it said.

On the supply side, Lamudi said Quezon City had the most number of listings in 2019, but Parañaque City recorded the biggest jump year-on-year with a 292% growth in listings from the first quarter of 2018 to the first quarter of 2019.

Provincial cities likewise contributed to the increase in listings last year, as new developments have been recorded in areas such as Angeles City, Pampanga and Naic, Cavite.

Lamudi added the most popular type of listing last year was house-and-lot. — Denise A. Valdez

Firms’ bond issuances seen steady this year

THE BOND MARKET will continue to see an array of issuances this year on the back of strong economic growth prospects, according to a bank executive.

ING Bank NV-Manila Country Head and Managing Director Hans B. Sicat said the bond market will continue the streak it saw in 2019 as issuances will “still be healthy.”

“Last year of course was a record year for corporate and financial institutions raising money. You probably have a very similar rate of issuance given the fact that there’s gonna be a lot of growth in the economy and corporates want to participate in that kind of growth right,” he said in an interview with BusinessWorld on the sidelines of the central bank’s annual reception for the banking community held on Jan. 24.

The economy grew by 5.9% in 2019, short of the government’s minimum target of six percent. However, government officials are bullish the economy will expand to hit the 6.5-7.5% gross domestic product (GDP) growth target for 2020 following the timely passage of this year’s national budget and the administration’s infrastructure push.

Maybank Head of Global Banking in the Philippines Manuel G. Bosano III also sees “opportunity in the market.”

“We are very optimistic for 2020…we’ve seen the local banks raise several funds, RTBs (retail Treasury bonds) coming up… That can only give everyone signal that there is definitely opportunity in the market,” Mr. Bosano told reporters in a briefing last Thursday.

As of mid-December, bond listings reached P363.3 billion, surging by 41.7% from the P256.4-billion level for full-year 2018, according to data from the Philippine Dealing & Exchange Corp. (PDex).

PDEx President and Chief Operating Officer Antonino A. Nakpil said in December that they see listings reaching “the same level, at least P350 billion” in 2020.

Mr. Nakpil said the move of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to ease reserve requirements has been “conducive” in boosting the bond market.

The central bank slashed the reserve requirement rate for local bonds issued by banks and quasi banks by 300 basis points in October 2019 from its then level of six percent.

The BSP said that the move was expected to reduce bond issuers’ intermediation cost that could be passed on to holders of such securities.

Meanwhile, ING’s Mr. Sicat noted there has been a increasing interest from banks going into sustainability bonds, although he noted that the growth this kind of issuances might be “gradual.”

“I guess that will probably be more gradual in terms of growth because not everyone has perhaps the specific use for it and I guess at this stage, you still don’t have a substantial difference in pricing but it’s a continuing access through a wider amount of funds in the market,” he added. — Luz Wendy T. Noble

SMC delays Skyway Stage 3 opening to July after fire

SAN MIGUEL Corp. (SMC) has committed to work 24/7 to open the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 — a portion of which had collapsed due to fire last Saturday — by July this year.

A portion of the elevated expressway project collapsed last Saturday from a fire at a nearby warehouse in Pandacan, Manila, forcing the SMC to delay the opening of the skyway project by three months to July.

“We are saddened by this unfortunate incident mainly because it will delay a vital infrastructure project that would have alleviated traffic woes of our motorists sooner. But rest assured, we will work 24/7 to endeavor to complete the entire project in five months. This is just a 3-month delay from the original opening target,” SMC President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon S. Ang was quoted as saying in a statement on Monday.

A portion of the elevated expressway project had collapsed last Saturday “from a fire at a nearby warehouse in Pandacan, Manila,” SMC said.

The company noted that the project contractor had initially estimated that it would take “eight months” for them to rebuild the damaged portion of the project.

SMC said the project was supposedly set to be opened to the public by “April 1” this year.

“Initial investigation showed that the fire was a freak accident that could have likely emanated from the DMCI construction yard that eventually spread to its nearby plastics warehouse, which at that time was in the process of being relocated out of Pandacan,” SMC said.

“The relocation is part of the company’s efforts to clear its properties in Pandacan, in consideration of Skyway and future projects. Earlier, SMC completed the removal of subsidiary Petron Corporation’s oil depot facilities in the area,” it added.

The project is an 18.30-kilometer elevated toll road that will connect Gil Puyat Ave. (formerly Buendia) in Makati City to the North Luzon Expressway (NLEx) toll plaza in Balintawak, Quezon City.

The Skyway Stage 3 will have eight access ramps: along Gil Puyat Ave. (South Super Highway, Makati City), Pres. Quirino Ave. (Malate, Manila), Plaza Dilao (Paco, Manila), Nagtahan/Aurora Boulevard (Manila), E. Rodriguez Ave. (Quezon City), Quezon Ave. (Quezon City), Sgt. Rivera St. (Quezon City), and NLEx.

Once the whole alignment is completed, it is expected to reduce travel time from Buendia to Balintawak to 15-20 minutes from the current two hours. — Arjay L. Balinbin

Imelda Staunton to be last Elizabeth in TV’s The Crown

BRITISH actress Imelda Staunton will play an older Queen Elizabeth in the final season of award-winning television series The Crown, the show’s creator said on Friday.

The Netflix series about the British royal family will end after five seasons rather than the six seasons originally envisaged, writer and executive producer Peter Morgan said.

Staunton, best known for playing the vindictive Ministry of Magic official Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter movies, will take over from Olivia Colman, who played the monarch in middle age in season three and the yet-to-be-released fourth season of The Crown.

Staunton said in a statement she was “genuinely honored” to be taking The Crown to its conclusion.

The Crown, whose first two seasons cost about $130 million to make, dramatizes key events in the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth, the world’s longest-serving monarch. Claire Foy, as the young queen, and Colman both won Golden Globes for their performances and the series has won multiple awards since it launched in 2016.

“At the outset I had imagined The Crown running for six seasons but now that we have begun work on the stories for season five it has become clear to me that this is the perfect time and place to stop,” Morgan said in a statement. — Reuters

RHK Land to unveil luxury condo

A JOINT venture of Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) and Hongkong Land (HKL) is set to launch a premium condominium project, The Velaris Residences, this month.

RHK Land Corp.’s The Velaris Residences is expected to “redefine the eastern skyline with its distinctive concrete-and-glass look, metallic bronze and rose gold facade.”

The 45-storey condominium is located within Bridgetowne — RLC’s 31-hectare township that spans Pasig and Quezon City. The first of the three-tower development is targeted for completion by 2024.

“The Velaris Residences offers the best of two industry stalwarts — the solid track record and systems of Robinsons Land, and the award-winning design of Hongkong Land — to build a landmark that will redefine the C5 growth corridor. The Velaris Residences represents a window of opportunity to invest in a luxury development in one of the most dynamic geographies in Metro Manila,” Henry L. Yap, president of RHK Land, said in a statement.

The Velaris offers bi-level penthouse units, 156 square meter (sq.m.) three-bedroom and 105.5 sq.m. two-bedroom units, as well as one-bedroom units with sizes ranging from 46 to 81 sq.m.

Private lift lobbies are available for owners of two and three-bedroom units. Amenities include an onsen — a Japanese bathhouse suite of indoor and outdoor hot pools, SkyClub and SkyDeck.

“The Philippine property market is one of the most exciting markets in Asia, and we are delighted to be part of it and to bring the innovations and design excellence that Hongkong Land is known for,” said Robert Wong, chief executive of HKL.

HKL is a major listed property investment, management and development group, and a member of the Jardine Matheson Group.

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