Vol. XXII, No. 5-A [ BusinessWorld Online ]
Saturday, August 2, 2008 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
THE HOME DEVELOPMENT Mutual Fund (HDMF), popularly known as Pag-IBIG Fund, will raise up to P7 billion from the sale of bonds next year, the president of the government-owned financial institution said yesterday.
Pag-IBIG chief Federico S. Quimbo said the five-year bonds would be issued in either the latter part of the first quarter or the early part of the second quarter of 2009 to raise funds for housing projects.
"It is a regular going concern... of the fund in terms of lending, which is an opportunity for us to make money. The certainty of issuance is dependent on loan take-up and interest rates prevailing. The money will be used for relending," he said in a telephone interview.
HDMF is eyeing either retail or institutional investors to generate more money for housing on anticipation of increased demand.
Lending has increased by 70% to P12 billion, in the last five months, Mr. Quimbo noted.
"We don’t have bonds maturing in the short run. We want to take advantage of our financial position," he said. — R.A.M. Rubio
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