STATE-owned pension fund Social Security System (SSS) has increased its investment in construction firm Megawide Construction Corp. to 5.17 percent.
The pension fund has invested an additional 3 percent on the company from the previous 2.17 percent, spending some P2 billion for the said acquisition.
SSS now holds 110.53 million shares of Megawide, the percentage of which will allow the pension fund to have one board seat.
Megawide said that the board seat will be filled by SSS Commissioner Jose Gabriel M. La Viña.
SSS has been eyeing participation in the booming infrastructure sector given the government’s focus on its flagship “Build, Build, Build” program. SSS Chairman Amado D. Valdez has said their entry into Megawide is an opportunity to maximize the returns on the institution’s investments.
“Our entry into Megawide is highly strategic. We see investments in the infrastructure sector as viable, given the level of funding being poured by the public and private sectors into the infrastructure drive and the volume of projects across the country,” Valdez said.
“We are mandated to secure robust and recurring sources of revenues to finance and support the pension of our beneficiaries,” he added. “We are confident in Edgar’s vision for Megawide and the continuing progress of our infrastructure sector.”
“It is encouraging that the SSS, the country’s biggest pension fund, is willing to invest in Megawide,” Megawide Chairman Edgar Saavedra said. “It is an outstanding vote of confidence in the company’s vision, and we are motivated to work even harder so that we can deliver positive returns for all our stakeholders.”
As a long-term institutional investor of public funds, the SSS is known for its adherence to strict investment guidelines and commitment to transparency, corporate governance and compliance, according to Saavedra. “It is this identity that motivated the company to extend SSS an invitation to be part of its governing board. SSS is a public fund and their intention is to ensure solid returns for the hard-earned money of millions of hardworking Filipinos,” he added. “In consideration of who they represent, we felt that they should have a bigger voice in the company.”
Investment reserve fund of the pension fund for private workers as of end-September 2017 stood at P490.32 billion, 5.6 percent higher than the P464.42 billion recorded at end-2016.
Meanwhile, Megawide recorded a consolidated net income of P1.7 billion in the first nine months of 2017, 7 percent higher than last year.