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Ex-SMC Global chief succumbs to COVID-19

FORMER SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. President and Chief Operating Officer Alan T. Ortiz died in Paris, France on Monday morning due to COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019).

“He died in Paris, where he was invited by the French government for a security conference, and contact tracing has already been done. His last known contacts in the Philippines are in good health,” his family said in a Facebook post.

Mr. Ortiz was said to have visited Manila last March 3.

The president of the non-profit think-tank Philippine Council for Foreign Relations used to lead the National Transmission Corp. as president.

Previously, he was board adviser to the Philippine National Oil Company. He had also served as a board member of the Manila Electric Co.

Mr. Ortiz died at the age of 66. — Adam J. Ang

Netflix goes heavy on Korean content, with crime, sci-fi, romance, and drama

This year, streaming service Netflix announced that it is going hard on Korean content as the popularity of such content is going global on the back of titles such as Kingdom, according to a Netflix executive. Now, the company has revealed its slate of Korean shows with genres spanning crime and sci-fi, alongside romance and drama.

“When it comes to Korean content, Asia is still our biggest market, and our Asian audience really loves watching Korean content, but what Kingdom has shown actually is that depending on the show, there’s a possibility to actually expand the audience base beyond Asia and beyond romance,” Minyoung Kim, vice-president for Korean content in Netflix, told reporters during a March 20 video conference.

Kingdom started airing in 2019 and is a political supernatural period drama about a deceased king coming back to life as a plague spreads which turns people into zombies.

Now in its second season, Ms. Kim said the show is “the best example to explain how we’re contributing into expanding that audience base,” as the show became a hit in Asia and “traveled really well outside of Asia.”

In January, Netflix announced that it had inked deals with South Korean entertainment companies CJ ENM’s Studio Dragon and JTBC to beef up its Korean slate.

“Our goal has been to build Netflix as a home for best in class Korean content, whether by licensing or originals. And we have a strong belief in the Korean creative community… we’re becoming more and more confident that Korean [content] is very important in helping us grow in Asia,” she said.

In late 2019, Netflix uploaded Crash Landing on You, a romantic drama about a South Korean woman crash-landing into North Korea and into the hands of a North Korean soldier.

The series made it into the top ten lists in the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand.

Ms. Kim noted that Bong Joon-ho’s film Parasite (2019), which won the 2020 Academy Award for Best Picture among other awards, helped in opening up the market for Korean content.

“[Parasite] made the gate wider for a lot of these great stories… outside of Korea and Asia. And [it helped] a lot of our audiences to also lower the barrier that existed… they are more open to experiencing shows that are not in their local language,” she said.

NEW SHOWS COMING
Starting March 28, Netflix will be streaming Rugal, a sci-fi series about a disgraced police officer accused of murdering his wife and then joining a special organization trying to defeat a terrorist organization.

Thriller Extracurricular, which airs starting April 29, follows a group of high school students who turn to a life of crime to pay their tuition and how their actions come back to haunt them.

The King: The Eternal Monarch meanwhile is a romantic-fantasy-drama about relationships of people in two parallel universes. It airs in April (no specific date).

In June, Netflix will release It’s Okay Not to be Okay, a romantic drama about two people who fall in love as they heal each other’s emotional and psychological wounds.

Currently, the newest shows to hit Netflix are Itaewon Class, Hi, Bye Mama!, Hyena, Hospital Playlist, Kingdom Season 2, and My Holo Love.

Netflix also announced three more titles currently in production: a travel reality show Twogether about two celebrities going on a trip to various cities in Southeast Asia to meet their fans and become friends; The School Nurse Files, a paranormal series about a school nurse who has supernatural abilities; and another paranormal series, Sweet Home, about a boy moving into a haunted apartment complex after the death of his family. — Zsarlene B. Chua

Bria Homes offers online payments

BRIA HOMES, Inc. said its homeowners can use various online channels to remit their monthly payments amid the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine.

In a statement, the mass housing developer said online and over-the-counter banking options include Union Bank, Metrobank, BDO, Security Bank, RCBC, PNC, and AllBank.

For online banking accounts, homeowners can indicate Bria Homes, Inc. as the biller name, and their reference number as the bill number.

Bria homeowners can also use GCash (under ePrime biller), or any of the payment centers: Sinag Pawnshop, WalterMart, 7Eleven, LBC, Cebuana Lhuillier, Pinoy Pera Padala, CVM, PeraHub, ExpressPay, True Money, Raquel Pawnshop, Netopia, Bayad Center, TouchPay, Palawan Pawnshop, ECPay, Villarica Pawnshop, PhlPost, The Landmark, USSC, and Robinsons Department Store.

“Measures to safeguard the health of its homeowners include routine cleaning and disinfecting of common areas in all BRIA communities…. In compliance with strict quarantine protocol… only residents of Bria Homes are allowed entry into its gated communities,” the company said.

Phoenix to power GBP Cebu plants

PHOENIX Petroleum Philippines, Inc. is set to power Global Business Power Corp. (GBP) after the firms’ exclusive agreement on Monday.

The listed oil company will supply a total of 1.1 million liters of fuel to GBP’s two power plants based in Toledo City in Cebu for three months.

“This partnership is a result of the consistent and excellent service experiences we provide for our partners, as well as the high-quality fuel products we continue to offer to them at the best value,” Phoenix Petroleum Chief Operating Officer Henry Albert R. Fadullon said in a statement.

Phoenix Petroleum will be meeting the fuel requirements of the two GBP plants every month starting April.

For five years now, the oil firm has been supplying fuel for the energy company, which runs five power generation units around Mindoro and the Visayas.

GBP is a joint venture among Beacon PowerGen Holdings, Inc., JG Summit Holdings, Inc. and Meralco PowerGen Corp.

On Monday, shares in Phoenix Petroleum slipped by 2.06% to close at P9.50 each. —Adam J. Ang

Gov’t rejects all bids for T-bills as rates spike due to uncertainty

THE GOVERNMENT rejected all bids for the Treasury bills (T-bills) auctioned off on Monday as rates spiked with the offer undersubscribed as investors opted to hold cash amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

The Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) rejected all bids for T-bills worth P14.5 billion across all tenors yesterday, which made up only 72.5% of the P20-billion offering.

Broken down, bids for the 91-day T-bills totaled P7.53 billion against the P6-billion initial offer. Had the three-month papers been fully awarded, the average rate would have risen 81.7 basis points (bps) to 3.841% against last week’s rate of 3.024%.

For the 182-day papers, the Treasury rejected all bids worth P4.12 billion against the P6-billion program. Had it made a full award, the six-month papers would have fetched an average rate of 4.766%, jumping by 136.8 bps from the 3.398% fetched previously.

The BTr likewise did not award any 364-day papers as total tenders stood at just P2.85 billion or only 35.62% of the P8-billion plan. If fully awarded, the one-year securities would have fetched an average rate of 5.35%, higher by 179.3 bps than last week’s rate of 3.557%.

National Treasurer Rosalia V. de Leon told reporters in a Viber message that they opted to reject all bids across the tenors due to higher rates, as investors made “throwaway bids” since they want to hold on to their cash amid uncertainties due to the virus.

“Throwaway bids. Preference to hold cash with lingering virus. Not serious bids,” Ms. De Leon said.

She said this trend of higher rates and low bids is “expected to continue” but will “hopefully not” spill over to the next quarter.

The BTr has yet to release its borrowing program for the second quarter.

Meanwhile, a bond trader said the result was expected as demand for T-bills is still low as the “market was not able to fully absorb the T-bills auctioned off last week.”

“Last week’s auction was an evidence that the trend of falling yields for T-bills is over. The BTr probably rejected the bids to prevent yields from rising again. Investors prefer cash and that may just be the trend for a while,” the trader said in a Viber message.

The trader said a “throwaway bid” is a defensive way of bidding where investors place offers for higher returns as these are expected to be “rejected or awarded close to the high accepted yield.”

President Rodrigo R. Duterte placed Luzon under enhanced community quarantine until April 13 to contain the spread of COVID-19 that has infected 396 and killed 33 people in the country as of Monday.

On Tuesday, the BTr will offer P30 billion worth of fresh seven-year Treasury bonds (T-bonds).

The Treasury has set a P420-billion local borrowing program this quarter, broken down into P240 billion in T-bills and P180 billion via T-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

FDCP to help quarantine-affected audio-visual workers

THE Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) has created a program to assist audio-visual workers displaced by the suspension of work due to COVID-19.

“The FDCP DEAR (Disaster/Emergency Assistance and Relief) Program is not a one-off initiative. Though this was inspired by the COVID-19 crisis, we want to learn from this and make sure that the agency is better prepared in handling such cases in the future. As a permanent program of the FDCP, this disaster fund will be activated every time there is an emergency and the State of Calamity declared by the President,” FDCP Chairperson and CEO Mary Liza B. Dino, said in a statement on Monday.

The council noted that many of the workers in the audio-visual (AV) industry — mostly the freelancers, which include talents, production staff, and technical crew members — are paid on a “per day” basis and follow a “no work, no pay scheme,” and are thus left without means to support themselves while the crisis continues.

The program will include audio-visual workers registered in the FDCP National Registry “which maintains the database of the different sectors of the audio-visual industry including AV industry workers” and “provide assistance in accessing social services, skills development workshops and program, basic legal assistance, and work opportunities,” according to the statement.

The DEAR program will provide “financial assistance to disaster-affected freelance AV workers who suddenly lost work as a direct result of a major disaster,” and is meant to complement the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) of the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) which covers private companies whose employees regardless of status (regular, contractual, project-based).”

Those qualified for the program are AV workers who have suddenly become unemployed for at least seven working days as a direct result of a major disaster and are not eligible for other government-instituted benefits. A flat-rate financial assistance of P8,000 will be given to those with approved application and is for one-time only.

Those who are not part of the registry may apply for both the program and the registry concurrently.

“FDCP emphasizes that DEAR benefits are not payable to individuals who are entitled to or qualified for regular unemployment compensation, waiting period credit, or benefits from the DoLE, Social Security System (SSS), their local government unit, their own employer, and similar agencies,” the statement read.

The FDCP aims to give financial aid to 2,000 AV workers on its initial launch and priority will be given to low-income individuals such as technical crew and production staff.

“The FDCP guarantees that it will be working to get more funds and hopes to expand its support to as many as 20,000 freelance AV workers to cover the other sectors of the industry through the program,” it said.

“The audio-visual industry is unique. While we have the regular employees that can be covered by government instituted programs, there is the 70% of the workers in this industry who are not under an employer-employee relationship, without 13th-month pay and leave credits. It’s FDCP’s goal to make sure that they are not left behind. They may not have an employer to run to, but they should have us, the government, that they can turn to in these hard times. It’s time to band as one so we can look after our industry. We can weather this pandemic together,” Ms. Dino said.

In exchange for the assistance, FDCP beneficiaries “must commit to rendering return service by participating in at least two FDCP-led or FDCP-supported events, activities, or projects as a volunteer worker or professional, serving in the capacity of their field.”

“The return service must be rendered for free within two years upon the receipt of the DEAR Program assistance,” the council said.

For more information on the requirements for the program and other inquiries, contact dearnationalregistry@fdcp.ph or visit http://fdcp.ph/dear-program and the FDCP National Registry Facebook page. — Zsarlene B. Chua

Palm Beach West tower topped off

DEVELOPER FEDERAL Land, Inc. recently topped off the first tower of Palm Beach West in the bay area of Pasay City.

Palm Beach West — Misibis Tower is part of Metro Park, Federal Land’s master-planned community. The low-rise condominium offers amenities such as pools, play areas, meditation gardens, and jogging paths.

Aside from Misibis, Palm Beach West also has Siargao, Coron and Baler towers.

United States court dismisses Bangladesh Bank case vs RCBC, Bloomberry for roles in 2016 heist

THE COMPLAINT filed against Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) and a local casino by Bangladesh Bank in relation to the 2016 heist has been junked by a US court as it cited the failure of the petitioner to state a federal racketeering claim and as the court refused to exercise jurisdiction over all other state law claims by the petitioner.

In a filing with the local bourse on Monday, the Yuchengco-led lender said the Federal Court of New York granted its motion to dismiss the case in an opinion and order dated March 20.

“The case filed by Bangladesh Bank was dismissed for failure to state a federal racketeering claim. The Court also declined to exercise jurisdiction over all other state law claims of Bangladesh Bank,” RCBC said in a filing.

RCBC’s motion was based on the grounds that the case belonged to a Philippine court and the lack of subject matter jurisdiction of the federal court on the issue.

In a separate filing, Bloomberry Resorts Corp., the parent unit of another defendant, Bloomberry Resorts & Hotels, Inc., which operates Solaire Resort & Casino where the stolen money was laundered through, explained that the US court found the petitioner to have failed to state a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) claim or RICO conspiracy claim.

The said civil case was filed by Bangladesh Bank to collect the $81 million it allegedly lost to North Korean hackers who sent multiple remittance orders out of the central bank’s account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Some of these orders were said to be allowed to be transacted through four correspondent banks in New York and were then remitted to alleged fictitious accounts with RCBC where they were transacted, converted and lost.

“[A] part of which went through Philippine casinos where they were used to purchase gaming chips and were played in the casino and junket rooms,” Bloomberry Resorts said in its filing with the local bourse.

In January 2019, a Makati City court convicted Maia Santos-Deguito, a former RCBC branch manager, for eight counts of money laundering for the $81 million stolen from Bangladesh Bank’s account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in 2016.

Ms. Deguito had to pay $109.5 million in fines and was sentenced to imprisonment for four to seven years for each count.

BONDS
Meanwhile, in a separate development, RCBC said it is eyeing to raise at least P3 billion from its latest offering of fixed-rate peso bonds to be used to boost asset growth, refinance its maturing liabilities and for other funding purposes.

The lender said they pushed through with the bond issuance despite the Luzon enhanced community quarantine due to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic as it wants to boost confidence in the capital markets’ capacity to provide support for business activity.

In a separate filing with the local bourse on Monday, the bank said this upcoming bond issue is the fourth tranche of its P100-billion bond and commercial paper program where P69.5 billion remains unissued.

The bonds have a tenor of two years and carry a rate of 4.848% per annum. They will be offered until March 27, unless the offer period is adjusted, depending on RCBC’s assessment.

“The funds raised from the bond offer will be utilized to support asset growth, refinance maturing liabilities, and other general funding purposes,” the bank said.

The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp. (HSBC) is the sole lead arranger and bookrunner for the transaction, while RCBC Capital is the financial advisor for the bond issuance. Together, RCBC and HSBC will be the selling agents for the papers.

The lender said they eye to list the bonds on the Philippine Dealing and Exchange Corp. on April 7, subject to market and other conditions.

Before this tranche, RCBC also tapped the local market in 2019 for the first three issuances out of its P100-billion bond program through the P15-billion ASEAN Green bonds issued in February 2019, P8 billion in ASEAN sustainability bonds in June 2019, and the P7.5 billion issued in November.

The bank said they acknowledge the challenges in logistics and execution in offering the bonds due to the lockdown.

“By proceeding with the program documentation set up and with the bonds issuance, the bank works towards conveying to the public that capital markets remain open to support business activity,” it said.

Last week, Bank of the Philippine Islands said it expects a delay in the listing of the P42 billion it raised via bonds this month due to the disruption in business operations due to the quarantine.

Meanwhile, BDO Unibank, Inc. postponed its P5-billion offer of two-and-a-half-year bonds in a move to allow investors to reassess their investment and liquidity amid the month-long lockdown in Luzon.

RCBC saw its net income jumped 25% to P5.4 billion in 2019, supported by the better performance of its core business, high margins, strong trading gains, as well as higher fee-based income.

Revenues also climbed 35% to P35.9 billion bolstered by growth in its interest income from loans and receivables.

Its shares closed at P16.50 apiece on Monday, down by 50 centavos or 2.94% from previous session. — LWTN

Stuff to do at home (03/24/20)

Here are activities to pass the time at home during the second week of quarantine:

BAYANIHAN MUSIKAHAN
Bayanihan Musikahan gathers Pinoy musical artists online through marathon singing. The movement is aimed at raising funds to help urban poor communities in Metro Manila amidst the COVID-19 lockdown. For more information and live shows, visit https://www.facebook.com/pg/bayanihanmusikahan/about/?ref=page_internal. To donate, visit https://donate.paymaya.com/products/philippine-business-for-social-progress.

NHCP DOCUMENTARIES ON YOUTUBE
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) makes Philippine history education accessible through documentaries on YouTube. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/historymuseumsPH/posts/997233837339314. Titles include: Jose Rizal: Sa Landas ng Paglaya; Apolinario Mabini: Talino at Paninindigan; Kababaihan ng Rebolusyon; and Gregoria de Jesus: Lakambini ng Katipunan.

ONLINE WRITING WORKSHOP WITH RICKY LEE
Screenwriter Ricky Lee will be conducting free writing workshops on April 8, 15, and 22. Interested applicants must be at least 18 years old and a Filipino citizen. Submit a letter of intent and a writer’s bio to banalramel@gmail.com. Deadline is on March 27, 11:59 p.m. The workshop is limited to 50 participants.

DRAWING LESSONS FOR KIDS WITH MO WILLEMS
Best-selling author and illustrator Mo Willems will be hosting drawing lessons for kids called “Lunch Doodles” every weekday on YouTube. Each session will be between 20- to 28-minutes long. Mr. Willems also welcomes questions (send questions to: LUNCHDOODLES@kennedy-center.org) which he will try to answer during sessions. For sessions of “Lunch Doodles,” visit https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL14hRqd0PELGbKihHuTqx_pbvCLqGbOkF.

PAULO COELHO’S BOOKS ONLINE
Best-selling author Paulo Coelho has made his books available for free. Titles include: The Way of the Bow, The Manuscript Found in Accra, and Brida. Visit his blog at https://paulocoelhoblog.com/books-online/.

SHAKESPEARE PLAYS ONLINE
Shakespeare’s plays recorded at the Globe Theater are now available for online streaming. Titles include Hamlet and The Two Noble Kinsmen. To watch, visit https://globeplayer.tv/

SMC’s Ang calls on power producers to preserve fuel supply

THE head of San Miguel Corp. (SMC) has called on power producers in the country to save up their fuel inventories to ensure their unhampered operations during the Luzon-wide lockdown as most businesses have temporarily closed.

As it continued its operations, SMC Global Power Holdings Corp., the power unit of SMC said on Monday it still has sufficient electricity supply to power Luzon during the enhanced community quarantine from March 15 to April 14.

“If there is excess capacity today, particularly since major business and commercial centers and industries are practically shut down, then perhaps government can require power plants to only produce what is needed in order to save on fuel,” SMC President Ramon S. Ang said in a statement.

“As far as our facilities are concerned, we can assure sufficient and uninterrupted capacity supplied to the Luzon and Mindanao grids,” Mr. Ang added.

SMC Global Power has a portfolio of coal, natural gas, and hydroelectric power plants which collectively has a capacity of 2,903 megawatts representing 22% of the Luzon grid and 17% of the National grid.

“Our plants are equipped to handle the demand for reliability. Protocols have been activated in our power plants as a response to crises such as pandemics,” he said.

Shares in SMC on Monday inched up by 0.18% to close at P83.15 apiece.

How PSEi member stocks performed — March 23, 2020

Here’s a quick glance at how PSEi stocks fared on Monday, March 23, 2020.

BoC exempts donated protective gear from some import clearances

THE Bureau of Customs (BoC) said imported donations of personal protective equipment (PPE) will be exempt from Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance requirements to expedite their release to frontline personnel working to contain COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019).

In a statement Monday, the bureau said the exempt supplies include N95 face masks, shoe covers, gloves, head covers and gowns.

The BoC said that prior to customs release, importers of all goods, as a rule, are required to secure marketing authorization from the FDA via a Certificate of Product Notification (CPN) or Certificate of Product Registration (CPR) depending on the associated health risks.

However, the bureau said “foreign donations of PPEs are exempted from securing an FDA clearance” considering that these items are urgently needed.

“As to PPEs intended to enter the local market for commercial purposes, the FDA clarified that importers of PPEs for commercial purposes are exempt from presentation of a CPN/CPR prior customs release provided that they are able to provide a copy of License to Operate (LTO) and proof of application for product notification with the FDA,” it added.

According to BoC data, a total of 459 shipments of PPE and medical supplies were released as of Saturday by the bureau, which is implementing a minimal-staffing scheme.

Separately, the bureau said it is now accepting “provisional goods declarations” (PGDs) or an incomplete declaration of goods that will allow tentative release of shipments with pending documents to be provided within a scheduled date.

This is authorized by Customs Memorandum Order No. 07-2020 dated March 6 issued by Commissioner Rey Leonardo B. Guerrero.

“It shall be allowed on cases when there are no necessary permits/clearances from regulatory agencies have been presented at the time of lodgement. This may be allowed as long as the application for such permit were filed to the appropriate regulatory agency pending issuance and that necessary permits/clearances shall still be submitted within the time frame prescribed by the said regulatory agency,” the BoC said in a separate statement.

The bureau said it will also allow PGDs if a tax exemption indorsement has not been issued at the time of lodgement but an application is pending, as well as if the declarant lacks some information or documents to complete the transaction.

The CMO also stipulates that an “accepted PGD” is to be deemed a complete declaration, with regard to duties and taxes. It may be subject to tentative assessment of duties, taxes and other charges, if a tentative release was requested, and is subject to final readjustment once the pending necessary information or documents has been provided. — Beatrice M. Laforga

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