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More REIT issuances expected as government relaxes rules

By Denise A. Valdez, Reporter

THE government has relaxed its requirements for real estate investment trusts (REITs) in hopes of attracting the Philippines’ first issuer nearly 11 years since the REIT law was passed.

In a launching event of the REIT Act’s implementing rules and regulations yesterday, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it had accepted the proposal last year to reduce the minimum public float for REITs to 33% from 40% and to require the reinvestment of proceeds from issuances back to the Philippines.

In his presentation of the salient points of the guidelines, SEC Commissioner Ephyro Luis B. Amatong said REIT issuers must reinvest the proceeds of an issuance back to the country within one year from the receipt of proceeds, whether in the real estate sector or infrastructure sector.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) also amended its revenue regulations to accommodate REITs. Companies registering as REITs may be exempted from value-added tax and will no longer be placed in escrow.

The Philippine Stock Exchange, Inc. (PSE) likewise changed its listing and disclosure requirements for REITs. The minimum paid-up capital is reduced to P300 million, annual dividends are set to at least 90% of distributable income, and quarterly investment reports and a final investment report are required to be filed.

PSE President and Chief Executive Officer Ramon S. Monzon noted REITs must only invest in real estate located in the Philippines. Any offshore investments may only be made through a special authority from the SEC.

“We finally resolved the issues that hindered the Philippine REIT to take off,” Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said.

“This is really meant to be inclusive, to make sure that the entire country can participate rather than just Manila moguls,” he added, referring to the possibility for REIT issuances to attract provincial mall and apartment developers because of the P300-million capital requirement.

Listed property developers Ayala Land, Inc., DoubleDragon Properties Corp., Megaworld Corp. and Century Properties Group, Inc. have previously expressed interest in issuing REITs. Mr. Monzon said he expects the first REIT issuance to take two months at the earliest.

The final implementing rules and regulations for the REIT Act is set for publication this week, after which it will take 15 days to be effective.

Republic Act No. 9856 or the REIT Act was enacted in 2009 but drew zero REIT issuances over the past decade because of its tight rules.

Philstocks Financial, Inc. Research Associate Piper Chaucer E. Tan said the release of the REIT guidelines now is expected to attract companies, noting specifically the minimum paid-up capital of P300 million.

“With these amendments, most especially the adjustment (of the minimum paid-up capital) from P500 million to P300 million, we think more companies will be attracted to be listed in REIT,” he said in a text message.

He added investors are expected to “build excitement” because REIT listing is a new product offering in the PSE.

But Regina Capital Development Corp. Head of Sales Luis A. Limlingan noted some investors may worry about exposure before getting into REITs.

“Those that have a cap will probably reduce (their exposure) if they’ve reached their max to get into REITs,” he said in a mobile message.

After the release of REIT guidelines, SEC Chairperson Emilio B. Aquino told reporters the commission will now focus on finalizing its guidelines for cryptocurrencies, which he hopes will be finished within the first half of the year.

“We have the draft. We gathered all the comments. Yun na ang next [That’s next]. Expect very, very soon,” he said, referring to the release of the guidelines on digital offerings.

Days before Grammy Awards, academy leadership shaken up

THE ORGANIZERS of the Grammy Awards have removed their new president and chief executive after an allegation of misconduct, leaving the organization in disarray days before the annual music industry showcase.

While saying that the Jan. 26 awards show in Los Angeles will go ahead as planned, the Recording Academy on Thursday announced that CEO Deborah Dugan has been placed on immediate administrative leave.

The move comes just five months after Dugan took the helm as the organization’s first female president and pledged to bring more diversity to the group.

No details were given regarding the allegation but Dugan’s lawyer said in a statement: “What has been reported is not nearly the story that needs to be told. When our ability to speak is not restrained by a 28-page contract and legal threats, we will expose what happens when you ‘step up’ at the Recording Academy, a public nonprofit.”

The Recording Academy, whose members choose the Grammy winners, said in its statement that its board had placed Dugan on administrative leave “in light of concerns raised to the board of trustees, including a formal allegation of misconduct by a senior female member of the Recording Academy team.”

Entertainment trade publication Variety on Friday cited unidentified sources describing the move as a “coup” by veterans who did not like her promised changes to the organization.

Dugan took over from former Grammy chief Neil Portnow who in 2018 had provoked outrage by telling reporters that female artists and producers needed to “step up” if they wanted recognition in the music industry.

The Recording Academy in December said it would double the number of female voters by 2025 by adding 2,500 more women.

This year’s Grammy nominations were dominated by women, including newcomers Lizzo and Billie Eilish. They will both perform on the Grammy stage on Jan. 26 along with the likes of Ariana Grande, Camila Cabello and Gwen Stefani. — Reuters

Lagarde prepares to modernize ECB with a plan for the 2020s

CHRISTINE LAGARDE is poised to make her mark as president of the European Central Bank (ECB) by firing the starter gun on its biggest-ever strategy review.

On Thursday the new chief will ask colleagues to sign off on that yearlong rethink, starting a process questioning the ECB’s inflation goal that was last broached in 2003. It will also address topics for the new decade including inequality, technology and climate change.

That broad palette is bold, and some observers worry it will raise unrealistic expectations over what a central bank can achieve. Officials still haven’t properly revived inflation despite years of massive monetary stimulus, and fear more objectives will divert from their primary mandate.

For Ms. Lagarde, a former politician rather than an economist, the rethink is overdue. Radical policies such as negative interest rates and asset purchases are hugely unpopular in some countries. She wants to listen to citizens so the ECB is “not just preaching the gospel that we think we master.”

The review’s parameters aren’t yet settled, but Lagarde and some of her colleagues have already expressed their own wishes. The 25 policy makers will start their two-day meeting earlier than usual to give them more time, and the Governing Council dinner on Wednesday could be particularly lively.

UNDERSTANDING INFLATION
Most officials agree they should first analyze why inflation is stubbornly low. Their goal is “below, but close to, 2% over the medium term,” yet price growth is struggling to exceed 1%.

Most developed economies face similar difficulties though. Researchers have offered explanations including globalization, technology and weaker labor standards, and it’s unclear how much the review can add.

At least the ECB can look for guidance to US Federal Reserve, whose own review started in early 2019, with findings due this year.

SYMMETRY AND PRECISION
For many, the goal is part of the problem. When the ECB was created in 1998 it defined price stability — its mandate from governments — as inflation “below 2%.” Officials “clarified” what that meant in the 2003 review.

The concerns are that the wording is too imprecise, and that it’s a legacy of an era when too much inflation was the only worry. The danger now is that there’s too little, ultimately risking a dangerous deflationary spiral.

Most economists expect the ECB to switch strategy and give equal weight to too-low and too-high inflation, an approach that could allow for greater policy flexibility. Known as symmetry, that’s something Ms. Lagarde’s predecessor, Mario Draghi, pushed for aggressively last year.

The goal could also be honed. Benoit Coeure, a recently retired Executive Board member, argued for a 2% target, which may have broad support. He also argued for a tolerance band that allows short overshoots or undershoots, a thornier subject. Others want a band, but with 2% at the upper end, or consider any inflation within the range as acceptable.

There will be counter-arguments. Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann is open to proposals but sees no pressing need to change the goal, while Austrian central banker Robert Holzmann has suggested reducing it.

A related question will be what inflation measure the ECB should target. The European Union’s official index significantly underweights housing, a major cost for consumers.

TOOLKIT INVENTORY
Policy tools will also be reviewed, though clues on that are sparse. The ECB currently relies on negative rates, quantitative easing (QE), and long-term loans to banks. Ms. Lagarde acknowledges their side effects but has defended the instruments, albeit not always enthusiastically.

The ECB may instead change its cross-checks on price-stability risks under its so-called two-pillar strategy. One of those, money supply, has been a poor guide to inflation and could be downgraded. Instead, financial stability might be more closely linked to monetary policy, as Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau suggests.

An outside chance is that the ECB adopts its own digital currency, giving it greater control over money in the economy. Ms. Lagarde has talked about that and an ECB taskforce is investigating the possibility. Some governors aren’t yet convinced.

CLIMATE CHANGE
While debating inflation could be all-consuming, Lagarde wants to go further, having pledged to “turn each and every stone.”

One controversial item she’ll insist on is how the ECB can fight climate change. The boldest move — favoring so-called green bonds in QE or discouraging bonds for carbon-intensive investments — is widely resisted by colleagues, who see it as a social judgment that should be left to investors or governments.

However most policy makers accept there are steps they can take. That could include working with ratings companies on a “green” rating system for bonds, or adopting sustainable investment criteria being devised by the European Commission.

TARGET DATE
Lagarde also wants the review to consult widely, talking to academics, lawmakers and civil society groups as well as central bankers. She may pursue a series of town-hall meetings similar to the “Fed Listens” events, carrying the risk that officials don’t like what they hear.

Some officials doubt Ms. Lagarde’s timetable of finishing before the end of the year, noting how long the Fed’s review has taken. Instead, they may make decisions based on interim findings, and push work into 2021 on issues they can’t agree on. — Bloomberg

Metro Manila has lowest water rates compared to other big cities

WATER RATES in Metro Manila are the lowest compared to other metropolitan cities in the Philippines and among the lowest compared with other cities in the Asia-Pacific region, figures mostly culled from a state agency show.

Metro Manila consumers using 10 cubic meters (cu.m.) of water per month enjoy the lowest rate of P104, the lowest among 12 metropolitan cities in the Philippines. Those in Baguio City pay the highest rate at P370.

San Jose Del Monte pay the second-highest rate at P280 a month. Cities with higher rates than Metro Manila are Cagayan de Oro, Bacolod, Batangas, Cabanatuan, Angeles, Dasmariñas, Metro Iloilo, Metro Cebu, and Davao.

The comparative figures were from the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA), a government-owned and controlled corporation with lending functions mandated law. Metro Manila’s water rates include 12% value-added tax (VAT) and environmental charges.

For consumers using 20 cu.m. per month, Davao City imposes the lowest rate at P281, with Metro Manila having the second-lowest at P306. In this consumer group, Baguio City again topped the list with the most expensive rate at P775.

Compared to select Asia-Pacific cities consuming 15 cu.m., Metro Manila’s P18.28 per cu.m. is below midway between the highest rate of Sydney, Australia and the lowest rate of Kuala Lumpur Malaysia at P99.63 and P7.53 per cu.m., respectively.

The regional rates were converted into the Philippine peso using an exchange rate of P53.33 per US dollar. The source of the comparative rates is the 2018 Global Water Intelligence Report. — VVS

Bria to hold Grand Open House

MASS HOUSING developer Bria Homes is holding a Grand Open House in more than fifty of its residential communities nationwide on Jan. 25 and 26.

“Bria Homes intends to aid in nation-building by showing Filipinos that owning a Bria Home is just the first step towards achieving more goals that, in turn, contributes to the country’s progress,” the company said in a statement.

The Grand Open House on Jan. 25 starts with a motorcade at 7 a.m., followed by the launch of Bria Homes’ Pambansang Pabahay Campaign.

Prospective homeowners can check out Bria Homes’ various model units throughout the weekend. These include Elena, a 24-square meter (sq.m.) unit on a 36 sq.m. lot; Bettina, a 44-sq.m. unit on a 36-sq.m. lot; Alecza, a 36-sq.m. unit on an 81-sq.m. lot; and condominium model units.

During the Grand Open House, Bria Homes will unveil seven new communities. These are located in Alaminos, Pangasinan; Pililla, Rizal; Montalban, Rizal; Naga, Camarines Sur; Danao, Cebu; Cagayan de Oro; and Maco, Davao de Oro.

Bria Homes is a subsidiary of Villar-led Golden Bria Holdings, Inc.

A polished blend of aesthetics and action

Valfaris
Sony PlayStation 4

TOUTED AS A spiritual successor to the underrated Slain: Back from Hell, also developed by the two-man Steel Mantis Games, Valfaris packs the heavy in heavy metal and thrives as a two-dimensional action platformer. It’s a classic side scroller packed with contemporary goodness; the soundtrack successfully serves to pump up the adrenaline and helps gamers prep for swath after swath of enemies. Appropriately diverse, the latter keep coming, and their onslaught is interrupted only by the appearances of mid- and end-level bosses; they’re fodder for mayhem, and provide benefits for even more mayhem by way of their loot drops.

Valfaris sets up the proceedings with a paper-thin narrative about the titular planet, whose disappearance from galactic charts and reappearance to orbit a decaying star sends lead character Therion on an adventure to find and defeat Vroll, the ruler with evil machinations who also happens to be his father. Steel Mantis Games deserves props for continually feeding the story via bits and pieces of interactions between the principal protagonist and his enemies, inhabitants of the planet, and, for the most part, Hekate, his trusty artificial-intelligence assistant.

Make no mistake, though. Valfaris’ biggest come-on is its gameplay. Certainly, it makes no pretensions on its primary — okay, singular — intent. Which, creditably, it manages to deliver well. It gives gamers the standard three weapon types to use in encounters: one with infinite ammunition, but whose refresh rate leaves much to be desired; one for melee, which, for every sword swing, likewise serves to replenish an energy meter; and one that cuts through the hordes the best, but requiring, and quickly depleting, said meter to use. A shield at hand can turn defense into offense; activation shortly before an enemy projectile’s impact allows for deflection and redirection.

In Valfaris, all the tools of combat are upgradable through Blood Metal, in-game currency found around the planet and gifted by downed enemies. Meanwhile, Resurrection Idols enable gamers to make use of — or, to be more precise, pay for — checkpoints or, when collected and kept, increase health and energy levels. Implicitly, the alternatives encourage rational thought and strategy to get through platforms with efficiency and purpose. Any deliberate assessment is a challenge at best in light of the sheer number of enemies to down, and made even more challenging by the absence of evasive commands.

Valfaris makes no pretensions. In fact, it proudly wears its intense difficulty in its sleeve. That said, it’s no Dark Souls, and it does strive to stay fair throughout its 15-hour-or-so runtime. For good measure, Steel Mantis Games has released a patch that adds Full Metal Mode, essentially a “new game plus” option that gives gamers the pleasure of carrying over all weapons and items collected throughout a completed campaign. In other words, they’re fully equipped from the get-go should they decide to relive their experience.

Admittedly, Valfaris isn’t perfect, and frustration can set in. For instance, its eight-direction aiming occasionally feels inadequate, leading to crucial misses. And while constant respawns aren’t new to the genre, they can make for sudden unexpected battles that render immaterial even the best-laid plans. Even boss fights aren’t immune to the odds being stacked too high for comfort; a few have final, at-the-point-of-death attacks that prove the folly of close combat, not to mention minions that take attention away from the most important task at hand.

That said, Valfaris is well worth its $29.99 sticker price. Featuring retro pixel-art visuals and booming sounds that add a sense of urgency to Therion’s exploits, it comes off as a polished blend of aesthetics and action designed to keep gamers coming back for more. Highly recommended.

THE GOOD:

• Complementary audio-visual elements

• High on variety

• Tons of options on offer

• Extremely challenging but fair

• Full Metal Mode

THE BAD:

• Occasionally inadequate aiming

• Random respawns can lead to unexpected battles

• Cheap deaths courtesy of a few bosses with sneaky parting gifts

RATING: 8.5/10

POSTSCRIPT: AA_Kerosales emerged victorious in the APAC Regional Final of the NBA 2K20 Global Championship in Sydney, Australia last month. He bested seven others from Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, and the Philippines en route to the crown. As in the quarterfinal and semifinal matches, he went two and zero in the final. The Filipino gamer claimed $15,000 and, more importantly, earned a spot in the Global Final. On Feb. 22, $100,000 will up for grabs in the competition be held at the ESL Studio in Los Angeles, California. The NBA Twitch Channel is slated to cover the event.

THE LAST WORD: The Steam Publisher Sale has Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana at half price. NIS America has released an update that introduces an experimental local cooperative feature and provides improvements to graphics, performance, and the user interface.

BoJ’s negative rate policy has not boosted economy, prices — Reuters poll

THE BANK of Japan is facing challenges in its aim to stoke inflation. — REUTERS

TOKYO — The Bank of Japan’s (BoJ) negative interest rate policy has had little positive impact on the economy and prices, over half of economists surveyed by Reuters said.

The views underline the mounting challenges facing the central bank in trying to fire up inflation to its 2% target, as years of ultra-loose monetary policy and near-zero rates have had only modest success at the cost of eroding financial institutions’ margins.

That explains why a majority of the polled economists expect the next move by the BoJ would be to taper its massive stimulus, possibly sometime next year.

It also suggests criticism over the controversial policy is spreading beyond Europe, where countries such as Switzerland are under increasing pressure to adjust its ultra-loose policy to address the demerits of negative rates.

Among the 41 economists polled by Reuters on Jan. 6-17, around 24 said the BoJ’s negative rate policy did not help the economy and prices, while 17 said they did.

“Negative rates may have had some positive effects on financial and property markets. But the side-effects, such as the hit to banks’ earnings, have also been big,” said Mitsumaru Kumagai, chief economist at Daiwa Institute of Research.

“As a whole, we don’t think there has been much positive effect” on Japan’s economy and prices, he said.

The poll also showed 28 of 42 economists, or 67%, expect the BoJ’s next step to be a withdrawal of stimulus, up from 61% in the December poll. Those who predicted such action said it would happen sometime next year or later, the poll showed.

The ratio of those who predict the BoJ’s next move to be an expansion of stimulus stood at 33%, down from the previous month’s 39%.

“We don’t expect the BoJ to ease further in the near term,” said Arata Oto, market economist at Societe Generale Securities Japan.

“The BoJ is expected to maintain its scenario projecting a pickup in global growth, while sticking to its easy-policy bias to help the economy build momentum to hit its 2% inflation target,” he said.

That view was backed by a Reuters poll predicting that the BoJ will keep monetary policy steady and nudge up its economic growth forecast at a two-day rate review ending on Tuesday, signaling that no immediate easing was forthcoming despite lingering overseas risks.

STAGNANT GROWTH AHEAD
Under a policy dubbed yield curve control, the BoJ guides short-term rates at -0.1% and the 10-year government bond yield around 0% via aggressive asset buying.

Inflation remains distant from the BoJ’s 2% target despite years of heavy money printing, forcing the central bank to maintain a radical stimulus program despite the rising cost such as the hit to financial institutions’ profits.

Analysts polled expect core consumer inflation, which includes oil products but not fresh foods, to hit 0.6% in the current fiscal year ending in March and 0.5% the following year.

They also expect Japan’s economy to have shrunk an annualized 3.6% in the October-December quarter due to the hit from October’s sales tax hike, and rebound by a modest 0.8% in the current quarter.

Japan’s economy will likely expand 0.5% in the fiscal year beginning in April and 0.8% the following year, thanks in part to an expected boost from the government’s $122 billion fiscal stimulus package, the poll showed. — Reuters

Sta. Lucia prepares hotel, resort expansion on tourism prospects

THE growth of the country’s tourism industry is pushing a listed firm to boost its hotel and resorts business within the medium term.

In a statement yesterday, Sta. Lucia Land, Inc. (SLI) said it wants to increase its hotel portfolio to about 2,000 rooms to “ride on the bullish prospects of the Philippine travel and tourism industry.”

“We hope to be a major player in the tourism growth story, as the Philippines now inches closer to its goal of hitting 10 million international arrivals by 2022,” SLI President Exequiel D. Robles said in the statement.

The target increase in SLI’s hotel rooms means completion of at least three new projects over the medium term: Sotogrande Palawan in Puerto Princesa, Sotogrande Baguio in Baguio City and Sta. Lucia Residenze Tower 3 in Cainta Rizal. These projects, SLI said, are equivalent to about 400 new rooms.

“…tourism in the country remains alive and robust and we, at Sta. Lucia Land, are doing what we can to contribute by providing quality accommodations for both our local and foreign tourists,” Mr. Robles added.

SLI currently has 13 hotel, condotel and resort projects in its portfolio, which are equivalent to 1,600 rooms. These are located in Quezon City, Zambales, Batangas, Cavite, Cebu, Iloilo, Davao City and Palawan.

In the first nine months of 2019, the company’s revenues from its rental business slipped 5% to P638.88 million, but remained the second largest contributor to its total revenues which jumped 77% to P5.61 billion.

SLI is part of the Sta. Lucia Group which has 220 projects on its sleeves from hotels, resorts residential condominiums, subdivisions, resort-themed homes and lake and golf communities.

Shares in SLI saw a 3-centavo uptick or 1.22% climb to close at P2.49 each on Monday. — Denise A. Valdez

Real estate crowdfunding platform launched

By Bjorn Biel M. Beltran
Special Features Writer

ONLINE real estate platform Signet Properties, working with SeedIn Technology (SeedIn PH) and RE/MAX Premier Manila, launched Flint — the first tech-enabled real estate crowdfunding platform in the Philippines.

Flint aims to simplify and streamline the process of purchasing and investing in Philippine properties, while making it more accessible for local investors. The platform allows this through SeedIn PH’s robust financial system and network throughout Southeast Asia, as well as RE/MAX’s’ income-generating and capital-gaining real estate properties in Flint’s pre-funded portfolio.

“We are most excited about this latest innovation because it will finally provide opportunities for anyone who is hesitant or is overwhelmed with the process of investing in Philippine properties,” Andre Mercado, Signet Properties CEO, said.

He said that all real estate properties available for investment at Flint are pre-funded. For as low as P1,000, users can purchase a share of the real estate property regardless of whether or not the total Flint user investment has reached the investment amount of the property selected. Pre-funding the properties also allows the platform to secure higher interest rates and accelerate investment closing so users can earn the interest quickly.

Moreover, as it is powered by SeedIn, Flint has special regulatory accreditation covered. Foreigners and foreign-born investors can invest in available investments in Flint as long as there are no legal issues, precedents, or any other special circumstances that prohibit them from doing so, and they have passed account verification by Flint’s customer support team.

“Through our strategic partnership with Signet Properties and RE/MAX Premier Manila, we are empowering investors by strengthening services offered in Flint for the investment and real estate needs of Filipinos, overseas Filipino workers (OFW), and foreign investors, by ensuring the investments are safe, high-yield property projects that go through rigorous due diligence processes, all under a digital crowdfunding platform where Flint investors can participate and invest in its property projects safely and conveniently,” Edison Tsai, SeedIn partner and executive director, said.

Mr. Mercado added that the company plans to expand its reach to countries with significant OFW communities to include properties abroad in its pre-funded portfolio.

Entertainment (01/21/20)

Maja Salvador celebrates Dinagyang at Robinsons Jaro

ILOILO’s Dinagyang Festival is one of the country’s most spectacular and colorful festivals, a showcase of the heritage and history of the indigenous people while celebrating the Santo Niño. Actress/singer Maja Salvador will take part in the celebration by performing on Jan. 24 at Robinsons Place Jaro’s Atrium. Ms. Salvador, who is Robinsons Land Corp.’s ambassador, will meet and have photos taken with 150 fans who present a single/accumulated receipt worth P1,000 from any shop at Robinsons Place Jaro. See the complete lineup of Robinsons Place Jaro’s upcoming performances, events, and promos in its Facebook page RobinsonsPlaceJaro.

Chinese New Year at the Ortigas Malls

THE Ortigas Malls say “Gong Xi Fa Cai!,” celebrating the new Year of the Rat on Jan. 25. There will be astrological forecasts, Lion and Dragon dances, a Chinese bazaar, and Wu Shu exhibitions at the various Ortigas malls. There will be a blessing for the year by Master Max Dy at 10 a.m. at the Greenhills Shopping Mall, a feng shui talk by Marites Allen at 2 p.m. at Tiendesitas, and a feng shui talk by Joyce Co at 2 p.m. at Estancia. For more information, visit www.ortigasmalls.com.

Tiffany Young’s first solo show in Manila

AFTER RECENTLY finishing an 18-city US tour, Tiffany Young is set for her first solo concert in Manila. The show is called Open Hearts Eve Part Two in Manila and will be held on Jan. 25, 6:30 p.m., at the New Frontier Theater, Araneta City, Cubao, Quezon City. This marks Tiffany’s first concert in the Philippines since becoming a solo artist in 2016. She first made headlines as lead vocalist of Girls’ Generation, an eight-member girl group from South Korea behind the famous songs “Genie” and “I Got a Boy” to name a few. In 2016, Ms. Young released her debut album, I Just Wanna Dance, that peaked at number three on the Billboard World Albums Chart. She is currently promoting her new digital single, “Run For Your life.” After shows in Seoul and Bangkok, Manila is one of the next stops on her Asia tour. Tickets to the concert range in price from P4,500 to P14,000 with perks like photo ops, posters, raffles, and more depending on the ticket price. Tiffany Young Open Hearts Eve Part Two in Manila is presented by Transparent Arts and promoted by CDM Entertainment.

Tiny Moving Parts returns to Manila

AFTER THEIR memorable first show in the Philippines in 2018, Minnesota-based band Tiny Moving Parts is coming back to Manila with fresh tunes. PULP Live World and Skesh Entertainment present Tiny Moving Parts Live in Manila 2020, to be held on Feb. 9 at the Skydome, SM City North EDSA, Quezon City. Newly signed by Hopeless Records, the trio (composed of brothers Matt and Billy Chevalier, and their cousin Dylan Mattheisen) have just released a new album, breathe, bringing its total to five full-length albums into a career that’s lasted for over a decade now. “This record covers things we’ve talked about in the past — the fear of dying, losing someone through moving away or the passing of someone — but it concentrates more on the positives, and being happy things happened instead of sad they’re taken away,” shares vocalist/guitarist Dylan Mattheisen in a press release. “It’s about finding that mindset to keep on powering through.” The new album was written on the road, in between tours in support of the previous record, Swell, which came out January 2018. The new album has the same emotionally-driven blend of math-rock, pop-punk, and emo, but expands their sound. “We’re not trying to do anything, we’re just playing music. And if they label us, they label us. It’s not like it bothers us. They’re gonna call us something,” drummer Billy Chevalier told PULP Magazine in an exclusive interview, reflecting on how their music is described by the public. “We always want to keep it interesting and keep it different, unique,” Dylan Mattheisen added. “We love sing-along parts, but we also live chaotic craziness, so it’s just trying to find a blend of what we all love about music… whatever feels right, we do it.” Last year’s Manila gig, also powered by PULP Live World, was the biggest show of the band’s entire 2018 Asia Tour, and fans can look forward to an even bigger show when they return. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are available at all SM Tickets outlets nationwide or via www.smtickets.com. Tickets are priced at P1,500 plus ticketing charges.

Japanese pop rock band at the Big Dome

PRESENTED by PULP Live World, One OK Rock Eye of the Storm Asia Tour 2020 Live in Manila will be held on May 2 at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City. The Japanese rock group — composed of Taka, Toru, Ryota, and Tomoya — released its latest album, Eye of the Storm, in February 2019. The album features a side of the band that remains ambitious and hungry, eager to build on an exploration of sounds and styles. “Rather than it feeling like [other] albums we made, it feels like an extension of what we have been doing. And the fans, they have responded back — existing and new fans alike,” the members said in an exclusive interview with PULP Magazine. “After all these years we are continuously evolving, taking a new shape. That’s Rock n Roll and that’s One OK Rock!” The Japanese quartet has put out many albums throughout a career that has run for about 15 years now, but in recent years, they have exploded in the US, in Europe, and throughout Asia. The Manila concert is presented by AEG Presents and PULP Live World. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are on sale at all TicketNet outlets and online via www.ticketnet.com.ph. Prices range in price from P2,800 to P8,500. For more show information, visit www.pulp.ph.

How ‘insider trading’ on the golf course lowers price of Singapore’s highly-coveted land

A STRANGE thing happens in Singapore after the government announces it’s selling highly-coveted land. Executives from developers bidding for the sites hit the golf course together.

In what it labels “insider trading,” a landmark study by the National University of Singapore Business School found those firms paid 14% less for land at auction, costing the government hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue and dragging down prices of neighboring properties.

However, it’s good news for buyers, as lower land costs allow developers to sell new units 8% cheaper than they otherwise would.

Using golf records, the study found the proportion of games between senior executives of land-bidding firms rose 14% in the first week after land sales are announced, compared to the week before, and 24% in the second week.

“In a competitive land auction market, firms need to outbid rival firms to win the auctions; the winning motives, however, do not stop the firms from colluding and cooperating with each other,” the study, released Wednesday, said. “One way to collude or cooperate is for top managers of the bidders to play golf with top managers of rival bidders and exchange information related to the bid.”

The study didn’t name any executives or firms involved in the information sharing.

‘PRESUMPTUOUS’
The Real Estate Developers’ Association of Singapore rejected the findings.

“Even if there’s an exchange of information, it’s not a guarantee that you will win the bid,” the group’s President Chia Ngiang Hong said. “Real estate executives play golf quite often. To just say we play golf just to discuss land sales or business is presumptuous.”

The researchers trawled through a Singapore Golf Association database of 30,108 golfers and more than 400,000 scores from 2010 to 2014. In Singapore, it’s mandatory for a player to submit their score to the sport’s governing body after a round.

They then cross-referenced a separate database of property developers, and found 774 golfers were senior executives at “land-bidding” firms.

The “informed bidders” paid 14.4% less for winning land bids than “less-informed” or “uninformed” bidders, the study found. That cost the government an estimated $147 million ($109 million) a year, or about 1% of total land sale proceeds, the study found.

“Informed bidders are more likely to face a lower ‘winners’ curse’ in their winning bids, despite the stiff competition in the land market,” the study found. “This result shows that informal interactions improve information dissemination that benefits companies in the decision-making process.”

Nearby developments also suffer, with the study finding neighboring properties sell for almost 10% less within the 30 days after the announcement of the land auction results.

“The ripple effect is seen when these lower land transaction prices send a negative signal indicating a downward market trend for property prices,” said Professor Sumit Agarwal, a real estate and economics academic at NUS and one of the study’s four authors. — Bloomberg

UBS faces uphill battle to regain ground after Hong Kong IPO sponsor ban lifted

UBS GROUP AG is seen having a hard time regaining its market. — REUTERS

HONG KONG — UBS Group AG is likely to have a hard time regaining ground lost in the 10 months it was banned from the big-money business of sponsoring initial public offerings (IPO) in Hong Kong, where Chinese rivals have become formidable players, bankers and analysts said.

The Swiss bank’s unprecedented year-long ban ended two months early after regulators last week said standards had improved since it found due diligence failings during an industry-wide probe that has led to HK$900 million ($116 million) in fines.

“After the fines, international banks — especially UBS — have the problem of clients perceiving due diligence processes as more rigorous and protracted with an international bank than a Chinese firm, making the latter more attractive,” said Benjamin Quinlan, chief executive of consultancy Quinlan & Associates.

Equity capital markets (ECM) — including initial public offering sponsorship — on average make up a third of investment banks’ fee pool in the Asia-Pacific region, or a quarter globally.

Hong Kong ranked third globally last year for IPOs behind the Saudi Exchange and Nasdaq, raising $25 billion.

Among banks in Hong Kong, UBS has ranked in the top 10 in each of the past 15 years bar two, which came in the four years since the lender first disclosed the regulatory probe, Dealogic data showed. During its ban, UBS was limited to minor IPO roles.

“ECM business in Hong Kong has become harder for international banks, who face fierce competition from Chinese competitors, many of whom have much larger onshore coverage … allowing them to serve a broader range of potential clients,” said Mr. Quinlan.

Mainland China-based banks accounted for an average 34% of new listings by volume in Hong Kong over the past four years, versus 22% in the decade to 2016, showed Reuters calculations from Delaogic data.

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UBS made 30% of its 2018 investment banking pre-tax profit in the Asia-Pacific region, where it stood out from international rivals due to its ties with Chinese state-owned enterprises — many of which it helped list in Hong Kong — as well as its market-leading position in Australian deals and ECM.

“I’ll certainly be busier than last year. It’s good news for the franchise and for us who didn’t leave for rivals after the ban,” said one China-focused UBS investment banker.

“It’s also a good time to win back several important clients which didn’t feel very comfortable working with us (during the ban),” the banker said.

Another Hong Kong-based UBS banker said staff would feel the pressure: “We have to work harder as there won’t be any excuses for the lack of good deals or low league table ranking.”

Both declined to be identified as they were not authorized to speak publicly on the topic. A UBS spokesman declined to comment.

The early end to the IPO sponsorship ban, coming just ahead of UBS’ earnings report on Tuesday, offers the Swiss bank a brighter start to the year after a difficult 2019.

In November, UBS paid the joint largest-ever fine levied on a bank in Hong Kong of HK$400 million for overcharging as many as 5,000 clients.

That followed a comment in June related to pork prices by a UBS economist was interpreted as racist by some in China and necessitated extra work with clients by senior bankers. — Reuters

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