Hong Kong conglomerate First Pacific yesterday said it had paid US$750 million for a 17.2 per cent stake in the Philippines' dominant telecommunications player, Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT).
The long-awaited takeover translates to a 27.4 per cent voting interest in PLDT, enough to give First Pacific a controlling interest its managing director Manuel Pangilinan said.
Mr Pangilinan has long been trying to raise First Pacific's presence in the Philippines. Last year, the company lost a high-profile fight to wrest control of food and beverage company San Miguel Corp from the Cojuangco family.
The PLDT deal makes First Pacific the dominant player in Philippine telecoms by far.
First Pacific's Smart Communications is the country's largest cellular phone company, with a 54 per cent market share. PLDT subsidiary Piltel has 21 per cent.
PLDT is the leading long-distance telephone company and has a 68 per cent share of the fixed-line telephone market. Smart has 3 per cent of the fixed-line market.
