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                      A S I A   P A C I F I C

            Wednesday, October 6,1999, Vol. 2, No. 194

                            Headlines


* C H I N A  &  H O N G  K O N G *

CITY TELECOM: Sued for payment of nearly $29 million
GUANGDONG INVESTMENT TRUST: Sued for $39 million
REGAL HOTELS INT'L HOLDINGS: Debt-reduction sale stalled


* I N D O N E S I A *

BANK BALI: Pressure to release audit report rising
PT RICKY PUTRA GLOBALINDO: Restucturing completed
PT SARASA NUGRAHA: To begin restructuring talks


* J A P A N *

NIIGATA CHUO BANK: FSC declares insolvent
NIIGATA CHUO BANK: Bank of Japan to offer special loans
NIPPON TRUST BANK: To post first-half loss


* K O R E A *

DAEWOO GROUP: Gov't to set aside money to buy company debt
DAEWOO GROUP: Being urged to speed up asset sell off
DAEWOO MOTORS: Gov't looking at non-GM options
KOREA FIRST BANK: Newbridge Capital to appoint foreign CEO


* M A L A Y S I A *

ADVANCE SYNERGY: Reaches restructuring with creditors


* P H I L I P P I N E S *

MONDRAGON INT'L PHILIPPINES: PAGCOR objects to resuming ops
MONDRAGON INT'L PHILIPPINES: Asks for 100 day standstill


* T H A I L A N D *

SAMART CORP.: May sign Bt7.6 billion restructuring soon


==============================
C H I N A  &  H O N G  K O N G
==============================

CITY TELECOM: Sued for payment of nearly $29 million
----------------------------------------------------
New World Telephone (NWT) has filed a writ in support of a
claim for a repayment of about $28.8 million from City
Telecom (HK) related to the provision of a direct dial
international switched telephone service.

The writ, filed in the High Court on Saturday, said NWT
agreed to provide the switched telephone service to City
Telecom in March.   Under the deal, City Telecom was to
settle within a period of 30 days after NWT issued an
invoice. City Telecom was to pay interest at the rate of 2
per cent above prime lending rates as quoted by HSBC if the
payment was overdue.

The writ claims NWT has issued four invoices from March to
June for total charges of about $33.1 million but that City
Telecom has only paid a total of about $4.3 million in June
and July.  Both NWT and City Telecom were not available for
comment.  

This is not the first major litigation between telecommuni-
cations firms.  Hongkong Telecom commenced legal action in
February against NWT and New T&T, alleging they owed it
$426.5 million for improperly diverting delivery fees which
HKT paid them last year.  At that time, NWT said it has
conducted the business in accordance with the entitlement
given by the Office of the Telecommunications Authority
(Ofta) and so the claim should not be justified.

But a HKT official said it had detected what he described
as "call-hijacking" about six months ago, and the $426.5
million claim covers in-bound international calls dating
back about a year ago.  The same official also said the
company is in constant talks with the two companies over
this issue.

The company attempted to seek restitution through
negotiations and commercial arbitrage but said these two
approaches have failed.  The official said HKT paid NWT
$281 million and New T&T $145.5 million.  Analysts said the
increasingly cut-throat competition in the local
telecommunications market has resulted in an increasing
number of litigations.  (Hong Kong Standard  05-Oct-1999)

GUANGDONG INVESTMENT TRUST: Sued for $39 million
------------------------------------------------
CCIC Finance has filed a writ against the bankrupt
Guangdong International Trust & Investment Corp (Gitic)
seeking repayment of about US$39.3 million related to a
syndicated loan.

The writ, which was filed on Saturday, said Gitic made a
written obligation on 3 April 1997 in connection to a
syndicated loan jointly provided by CCIC Finance and other
lenders.  Both CCIC Finance and Gitic were not immediately
available for comment.

Gitic - a fund-raising arm of the Guangdong government -
was ordered to close last October after it was found unable
to repay matured debts.  Gitic filed for bankruptcy in
January, with debts of 36.17 billion yuan (HK$33.94
billion) and only 21.47 billion yuan in assets.  Its
locally-listed subsidiary Gitic Enterprises, which is
engaged in construction materials business, has recorded a
net loss of $15.6 million for the six months to 30 June,
with a 59.1 per cent drop in turnover.

Gitic Enterprises earlier said the bankruptcy proceedings
had affected business and confidence of its suppliers and
customers.  Gitic Enterprises is now repaying $57 million
to its creditors by instalment, but worries that it might
fail to repay the full amount of debt.  (Hong Kong Standard  
05-Oct-1999)

REGAL HOTELS INT'L HOLDINGS: Debt-reduction sale stalled   
--------------------------------------------------------     
Regal Hotels International Holdings' plan to sell its North
American hotels to Millennium & Copthorne (M&C) may have
run into an obstacle. Regal, the 74 per cent-owned hotel
unit of Paliburg Holdings, had said its debt load would be
cut by $5 billion through the proposed hotel sale.  

The company said yesterday it had missed last Thursday's
deadline to sign a definitive sale agreement with M&C, a
unit of CDL Hotels International.  M&C on September 3
signed a memorandum of general agreement to acquire Regal's
interests in 29 North America hotels valued at US$725
million.

Regal and M&C yesterday refused to explain why the
September 30 deadline to finalise the agreement was missed.  
Regal said it would continue to hold discussions with M&C
"on a non-exclusive basis", triggering speculation that it
might also start talks with other potential buyers for the
North American Hotels. However, "we consider the talks to
be exclusive", said Gerry DeSilva, a spokesman for CDL
Hotels.

Mr DeSilva said the memorandum M&C signed with Regal was
binding. Moreover, analysts said they doubted whether any
potential buyers would be willing to agree to a higher
valuation of the hotels than M&C.  Consequently, the
financial restructuring plan of Century City International
could be adversely affected if the hotel sale falls
through, according to analysts. Century City owns 60.4 per
cent of Paliburg.

After repaying debt on the North American hotels, Regal is
expected to gain at least $200 million under the proposed
arrangement with M&C.  It would also retain a 50 per cent
interest in 16 of the 29 hotels. The market viewed the
proposed sale of the hotels negatively, as investors
complained Regal would lose a major income source,
according to brokers. Regal's share price yesterday fell
two HK cents to 66 cents, while Paliburg Holdings was
unchanged at 66 cents. (South China Morning Post  05-Oct-
1999)


=================
I N D O N E S I A
=================

BANK BALI: Pressure to release audit report rising
--------------------------------------------------
Pressure was rising here and abroad yesterday for the
outgoing Indonesian government to make public the full
results of an audit conducted on the Bank Bali scandal,
press reports said.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank
have given Jakarta an October 10 deadline for a full public
disclosure of the audit conducted by PriceWaterhouseCoopers
(PwC), the Kompas daily quoted an MP as saying.  The
deadline was contained in a letter sent by the two
institutions to the Indonesian government, said Ichsanuddin
Noorsy, the secretary of a parliamentary special committee
for investigating the Bank Bali case.

"The letter from the IMF and the World Bank was sent last
Friday," Noorsy said.

The government has so far only released a summary of the
PwC report and the full audit results are in the hands of
the state Financial Audit Board and the Indonesian police.
Based on its own investigation and the PwC audit results, a
parliamentary committee has found irregularities in the
Bank Bali case and named seven government officials and six
businessmen as suspects in the scandal.

Indonesian police have detained five suspects in the case.
The chairman of parliament's Independent Review Committee
(IRC), former finance minister Mar'ie Muhammad, was quoted
by Bisnis Indonesia daily as saying the committee will seek
a full disclosure of the PwC audit.  This would enable
legal action to be taken against those suspected of
involvement.

The scandal swirling round Bank Bali involves a commission
of US$80 million it paid to a private firm connected to the
ruling Golkar party to collect interbank loans that should
have been paid out automatically.

The IMF has suspended talks on its ongoing bailout
instalments to Jakarta and the Asian Development Bank said
it will hold up further loans until the Bank Bali case is
resolved.  Both Habibie and Golkar have denied charges the
money was to be used partly to fund Habibie's bid to return
to office in November.

The bank scandal has greatly weakened public confidence
here and abroad on the government's willingness to
eradicate corruption and collusion practices in the
country.  It has also jeopardized the country's costly but
urgently needed bank restructuring program, and presented a
serious hindrance to the attempt by Habibie to run for a
second term later this month.  His accountability speech to
the national assembly, due on October 14, risks being
rejected by the legislature.  (Business Day  05-Oct-1999)

PT RICKY PUTRA GLOBALINDO: Restucturing completed
-------------------------------------------------
Publicly listed men's wear maker PT Ricky Putra Globalindo
(JSX: RICI) said it has completed the restructuring of $
US20 million of its remaining debt.

The repayment of the debt in syndicated loan would be
extended for five years , corporate finance manager Tjiong
Tek Siong said.  Siong said the agreement was reached after
16 months of negotiation with its creditors facilitated by
the Jakarta Initiative that seeks to facilitate talks
between Indonesian corporate debtors and their creditors.

Originally the company had US$ 31.7 million in debt, but
part of the loan has been repaid or converted into shares.
With the settlement made of the US$ 20 million of its debt,
the company has completed dealing with 92% of its total
debt.  Siong said the company's remaining 8% debt is in
export credits.  (Asia Pulse  01-Oct-1999)

PT SARASA NUGRAHA: To begin restructuring talks
-----------------------------------------------
Garment maker PT Sarasa Nugraha (JSX:SRSN) is ready to hold
talks with investors on the restructuring of its Rp211
billion debt, scheduled to be due for repayment within the
next two months, a company official has said.  Corporate
secretary Hari Mulyono said that the company plans to focus
on producing high-quality garments.

"In the first semester of 1999 the company produced 213,040
dozen garments," he said. "In 1997 we produced 472.334
dozen and in 1998 518.036 dozen garments."

He added that 100% of the company's products are exported,
shipping 90% to the US and the remainder to Europe, Japan,
and Australia.  The company's consolidated financial report
as of June 30 1999 shows that it has short-term loans of
Rp263.7 billion, down from Rp498.257 billion on June 30
1998.  In the first quarter of 1999 the company recorded a
net profit of Rp33.9 billion compared to a net loss of
Rp153.4 billion in the same period of 1998.

The company was hit with forex losses of Rp78.1 billion in
1997 and Rp104.2 billion in 1998.  The stronger US dollar
caused the company's debt to rise from Rp132.3 billion to
Rp221.7 billion in 31 December 1998 and Rp211 billion in
June 30 1999.  On June 30 1999, the company's assets stood
at Rp140.038 billion, Rp103.180 billion in current assets.
(Asia Pulse  04-Oct-1999)


=========
J A P A N
=========

NIIGATA CHUO BANK: FSC declares insolvent
-----------------------------------------
The Financial Reconstruction Commission has declared
Niigata Chuo Bank (TSE:8538) insolvent and sent in
administrators to manage its assets, commission chief Hakuo
Yanagisawa said Saturday.

Yanagisawa said the bank's failure to raise capital had
precipitated the failure, leading to accelerated
withdrawals and a fall in its share price. The
administrators include an official from the Deposit
Insurance Corp., a public accountant and a lawyer. After
examining the assets, they will sell bad loans to the
Resolution and Collection Corp. and seek a buyer to take
over healthy assets.

All deposits will be protected. The Ministry of Finance
announced the same day that the second-tier regional bank
had 14.1 billion yen in negative net worth as of September
1998. The capital ratio as of the end of March 1999 stood
at 2.01%, according to the MOF. (Asia Pulse  04-Oct-1999)

NIIGATA CHUO BANK: Bank of Japan to offer special loans
-------------------------------------------------------
The Bank of Japan will offer uncollateralised loans to
Niigata Chuo Bank (TSE:8538) from Monday. The loans,
requested by Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa, are expected
to enable the troubled regional lender to continue
repayment of deposits and debts to other banks.

The BOJ lent the bank 9.8 billion yen (US$ 92.15 million)
on Friday when it defaulted on debts in the bank's checking
account with the BOJ. The account is used to settle
payments between financial firms. That money will be
switched to special loans, to be collected later from
Niigata Chuo, Yoshiharu Obata, executive director of the
central bank, said.  (Asia Pulse  04-Oct-1999)

NIPPON TRUST BANK: To post first-half loss
------------------------------------------
Nippon Trust Bank Ltd. (TSE:8405) will post a pretax loss
of 10 billion yen (US$ 94 million) for the first six months
through September, well below the 500 million yen pretax
profit previously projected, bank officials said Thursday.

The bank has cut earning outlook because it intends
disposing of 22 billion yen in bad loans, up from the
planned 6 billion yen, in accordance with a Financial
Supervisory Agency recommendation.  As a result, for the
full year ending March, the bank expects a pretax loss
of 10 billion yen, down from the projected profit of 1
billion yen.

The bank may be unable to collect 901 million yen in loans
to a semi-public firm in Hokkaido, which has filed for
special liquidation.  (Asia Pulse  01-Oct-1999)


=========
K O R E A
=========

DAEWOO GROUP: Gov't to set aside money to buy company debt
----------------------------------------------------------   
South Korea announced yesterday it will set aside at least
20 trillion won (S$27.2 billion) to buy Daewoo Group debt
from shaky finance companies two weeks earlier than
planned, aiming to head off a fresh financial crisis.

The move, which will increase the state-controlled bond
stabilisation fund by almost 10-fold, is part of a package
of measures intended to shore up firms that manage money
for one in six Koreans.  Trust companies will also be
allowed to sell an additional 14 trillion won of
beneficiary certificates to attract cash.  The moves will
help allay concern that trust companies would not be able
to meet demands for repayment next month, when investors
will be allowed to withdraw up to 80 per cent of
investments used to buy Daewoo debt.

"If necessary, the fund will be increased further so that
it will keep buying bonds from investment trust companies
without any limit," said Mr Kim Seok Dong, a director at
the Financial Supervisory Commission.

In addition, the trusts will be allowed to invest in bonds
rated below investment-grade, and a plan to require them to
value securities at current market prices by next July was
delayed.  The government said last week it will grant tax
breaks and other benefits to those who buy the new bonds,
saying it will help prevent a mass exodus from the trust
companies.  The government will also guarantee investments
in trust funds by promising to provide public funds if they
cannot meet redemptions.

The nation's 24 trust companies hold 27 trillion won worth
of debt sold by Daewoo.  The trusts buy about half the
domestic debt sold by companies and the government each
year.  A collapse of the trust companies would remove a
crucial source of funds for Korean companies, push interest
rates higher and derail the nation's economic recovery.

In another development, Korea First Bank and five other
domestic creditors of Daewoo Group said debt-restructuring
plans for seven of the group's 12 key units will be ready
by Oct 31, earlier than planned, in an attempt to calm
investor nerves.  Daewoo Group will cede ownership control
of the seven units -- including appliance maker Daewoo
Electronics Co, shipbuilder Daewoo Heavy Industries Co and
truckmaker Ssang-yong Motor Corp -- to creditors.  
(Bloomberg News, Straits Times  05-Oct-1999)

DAEWOO GROUP: Being urged to speed up asset sell off
----------------------------------------------------
A top government economic policy maker urged South Korea's
troubled Daewoo Group on Saturday to accelerate selling off
assets to improve its severe cash shortage.

Economy and Finance Minister Kang Bong-kyun was the second
senior government official to warn that if Daewoo does not
move quickly to resolve its financial woes, it could drag
down the entire economy.  President Kim Dae-jung has urged
the nation's bloated conglomerates to slim down. Other
conglomerates have sold assets and refocused on
profitability, but Daewoo has continued to expand.

Daewoo has an estimated $50 billion in debt against $65
billion in total assets. It must unload most of its 40
subsidiaries to pay the debts, the government said. Daewoo,
South Korea's second-largest conglomerate, narrowly escaped
becoming South Korea's largest-ever bankruptcy early this
week when creditors agreed to delay for six months
repayment of $8.3 billion in short-term debt and to extend
$3.3 billion in new loans.

But doubts persisted over Daewoo's commitment and ability
to unload the subsidiaries within six months. Korean stock
prices plunged by 7.3 percent on Friday -- the third-
largest drop in the stock market's history.  Moving to
contain the panic, Lee Hun-jai, head of the government's
Financial Supervisory Commission, said Friday that credit
banks will help Daewoo's restructuring by selling $8.42
billion of Daewoo stock and real estate the conglomerate
put up as collateral.

The sale of subsidiaries will also help Daewoo raise funds
to improve the financial standing of its two main companies
-- the flagship trading arm Daewoo Corp. and Daewoo Motors,
the country's No. 2 car maker, the government said. Credit
banks will begin converting unpaid loans into equity to
lower Daewoo's debt and make the subsidiaries more
attractive for sale, officials said.

But Daewoo share owners and credit banks could suffer
losses because some Daewoo subsidiaries will have to reduce
their capital to make them more attractive for sale, Lee
said.  (NewsHound  04-Oct-1999)

DAEWOO MOTORS: Gov't looking at non-GM options
----------------------------------------------
Rather than waiting to see the outcome of ongoing
negotiations between GM and Daewoo for the sell off of
Daewoo Motor, the government has been busy shaping a plan
on how to deal with the debt-ridden Korean car company
following the financial crisis at its parent firm.

The government recently announced that it will go ahead
with rescheduling Daewoo Motor's loans to ensure that the
firm survives, with a plan to eventually sell it off once
it is standing on its own feet. The government said that it
could not wait for the outcome of Daewoo's negotiations
with the U.S. auto giant as there has been little progress
in talks since the signing of a memorandum of understanding
August 6, which has so far only seen GM conducting ongoing
due diligence.

GM has said that the ball is in the court of the government
and creditor banks, which must propose the amount of loan
write-offs and equity-debt conversion for the Korean car
firm.  

Meanwhile, the government believes that once Daewoo Motor,
which is W16 trillion in debt, spins off the Ssangyong
Motors division, the whole issue will be simplified
greatly, as it will be easier to settle conflicts among
creditors after Ssangyong is spun off. Ssangyong has assets
of W3.8 trillion and debts of W2.4 trillion, and German
auto industry giant DaimlerChrysler, which currently has a
technical alliance with Ssangyong, has been expressing
interest in taking it over.  (Digital ChosunIlbo  05-Oct-
1999)

KOREA FIRST BANK: Newbridge Capital to appoint foreign CEO
----------------------------------------------------------
Newbridge Capital of the United States will soon appoint a
new foreign chief executive officer for Korea First Bank,
said Weijian Shan, managing director of its Asian branch.
Shan said during a press conference at KFB headquarters
yesterday that the U.S. investor had already selected the
new CEO for the bank from the foreign financial community
in Seoul.

"We have someone in mind. He is a veteran in another
banking industry. And he is a foreigner," Shan said, adding
he is not in a position to disclose the name yet.  He added
that KFB's management will shortly be taken over by a new
task force comprised of foreign and local banking experts.
"The new management is going to be comprised of foreign
banking experts and senior Korean members of the bank,"
Shan said.

Following completion of the terms of investment (TOI)
between Newbridge and the government there has been a lot
of speculation on who will head KFB's new management. Some
believe the present head will continue to run the bank
while others have said there will be a new crew taking over
the bank immediately after the deal closes.

According to Shan, the final purchase agreement will be
hammered out in the next two months. Asked to comment on
the possible streamlining of existing KFB executives and
staff, Shan failed to promise there would be no cutbacks
and would only say that he has no idea what will happen
with the existing management team.

On the subject of KFB employees and the number of branches,
Shan said that Newbridge has not changed its stance since
the last press conference.

"The size of the bank is just about right," Shan said.
However, at the same time, he hinted that there may be an
adjustment to the employment scheme.  "Our objective is to
expand the bank and develop new products, not to shrink the
size of the bank. Still, the banking world is dynamic and
the size may change. That is for future management to
decide," he said.

On April 27, this year, in an effort to control rumors, a
senior Newbridge official said there would be no further
layoffs or branch closures.  KFB currently operates 339
branches across the nation, four overseas offices, and two
international joint venture firms.  It has 4,829 employees,
down from over 8,000 before the financial crisis and a
total of 4.5 trillion won in paid-in capital.

As for how long Newbridge plans to hold on to KFB shares,
Shan firmly said that the U.S. investor will keep the
assets much longer than what the general public expects.

"We will keep KFB shares until we maximize its potential
value. Newbridge is a long-term private equity investor,"
he said.

The local financial community believes that the U.S.
investor will sell the KFB assets within four to five
years. But according to a Newbridge official, the term will
be much longer.  For the business scope of KFB after the
Newbridge takeover, Shan said the bank will focus on the
middle market.

"We will focus on the consumer financing and middle market
sector which the bank lacks at present," he said.

Newbridge's takeover of a 51 percent stake in KFB was
completed with the government and the U.S. investor signing
the terms of investment in the 500 billion won ($416
million) deal.  The U.S. investor agreed to inject another
200 billion won in the next two years as bank earnings
improve.  The government in return has promised to give a
two-year guarantee to cover KFB's non-performing loans
(NPLs) accruing during the cited period.

Newbridge won the right to take over KFB in competition
with other major banking concerns, including the British
HSBC, on New Year's Eve last year.  The U.S. private equity
investor was established by two leading investment firms,
the Texas Pacific Group and Richard C. Blum & Associates.
Newbridge currently manages $10 billion in commercial
capital.  (Korea Times, Digital ChosunIlbo  05-Oct-1999)


===============
M A L A Y S I A
===============

ADVANCE SYNERGY: Reaches restructuring with creditors      
-----------------------------------------------------      
Advance Synergy, a diversified Malaysian group with
businesses ranging from insurance to bottle-making,
yesterday said its creditors have agreed to a restructuring
of RM369.2 million (S$164.5 million) in debts.

It will swap RM185.9 million worth of bank loans with
redeemable loan stocks, or debts.  The remaining RM185.3
million worth of borrowings will be swapped for convertible
loan stocks. While the Malaysian economy has pulled out of
last year's recession, the worst in the country's 42-year
history, many companies are still struggling to repay their
debts.  That could delay the recovery in earnings for
banks, whose reserves were depleted when bad debts surged
to one-fifth of total loans last year.

The International Monetary Fund has noted in a report that
Asian countries' call for banks to increase loans will be
insufficient to restore lending if corporate debts are not
re-organised. Advance has been re-organising some of its
businesses.  Its 50.7 per cent-owned subsidiary, United
Merchant Group, is selling its 43.5 per cent stake in Ban
Hin Lee Bank to Southern Bank as part of a government-
prodded merger among domestic banks. (Bloomberg News,
Straits Times; Star Online  05-Oct-1999)  


=====================
P H I L I P P I N E S
=====================

MONDRAGON INT'L PHILIPPINES: PAGCOR objects to resuming ops
-----------------------------------------------------------    
The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. said yesterday
Mondragon International Philippines Inc. should not be
allowed to resume its casino operations unless it obtains a
new gaming license and pays the government its P400-million
debt.

"Mondragon cannot resume its Mimosa casino gaming
operations until Pagcor issues a new license and authority
to operate a casino," Pagcor chairman Alicia Reyes said.
She was reacting to news that Mondragon's Mimosa Regency
Casino had reopened on Friday.  "There is a serious need to
assess and evaluate the performance of the Mimosa Regency
Casino before it is allowed to resume its operations to
ensure that the government will no longer encounter the
same problems it had prior to Pagcor's revocation of the
Mimosa casino license," Reyes said.

Mimosa's reopening had the support of Clark Development
Corp., the landlord within the Clark special economic zone
in Pampanga. On Oct. 1, the Angeles City prosecutor's
office dismissed the tax case against Mondragon chairman
Antonio Gonzales. Mondragon has yet to pay CDC P325 million
in rental fees. It also owes the Bureau of Internal Revenue
P32 million and creditor banks P7.5 billion.

Mondragon intends to borrow $200 million from a US-based
trust fund to refinance a portion of its bank debts and
some projects, according to the firm's comptroller, Pierre
Paul Buhay. He declined to name the trust fund.

"We regret that because we have signed a confidentiality
agreement through their authorized representative, we
cannot identify them by name," Buhay said. "The refinancing
portion is $150 million and the additional $50 million is
for the project development construction finance."

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Mondragon
said it had already presented its loan application to the
fund through the California-based Ideal Funding Inc.  Buhay
said the trust fund had about $30 billion for lending.
"Mr. Rufo Colayco, president of CDC, is very desirous
[about] seeing the government agencies get paid whatever is
rightfully owed to them," Buhay said. He said this was the
reason Colayco supported the reopening of Mimosa.  (Manila
Times  05-Oct-1999)

MONDRAGON INT'L PHILIPPINES: Asks for 100 day standstill
--------------------------------------------------------
After a brief tussle with its creditor banks, listed
leisure firm Mondragon International Philippines, Inc.
(MIPI) is now asking for 100 more days before it begins
repayment of its 5.5-billion-peso (US$135 million at
PhP40.628:US$1) overdue obligations.

Within that period, the company expects to seal a $200-
million refinancing package that will finally pave the way
for the entry of a strategic investor for MIPI's Mimosa
Leisure Estate in Pampanga, MIPI chairman and president
Jose Antonio Gonzalez told BusinessWorld. The proposed
package entails a 7% interest rate and a repayment period
of 20 years.

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor),for its
part, said Mondragon cannot resume operations of its casino
within the Mimosa compound in Pampanga until it has paid
its standing obligations with the state-run firm.  MIPI
share prices rose 23% to PhP2.95 per share on news that the
company is talking with a California-based trust fund for
possible refinancing. Trading of the stocks was temporarily
halted pending confirmation of the news, but was resumed to
close at PhP2.95 per share.

"We have sit down with 22 creditors for the restructuring
of some PhP3-billion (US$74 million) loans. We have also
talked to Urban Bank to ask creditors to give us 100 more
days," Mr. Gonzalez said.

MIPI's major creditors include Asian Bank Corp., Far East
Bank & Trust Co. (FEBTC) and United Coconut Planters' Bank
(UCPB).  The three banks earlier held a stockholders
meeting and elected a new set of officers for MIPI. They
hold 54% of the company's stocks or those of Mr. Gonzalez.
Their motion was later rejected by the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC).

But representatives of the creditor banks now sitting on
the MIPI board will not budge from their positions despite
an order from the SEC restraining them from assuming and
exercising their functions in the firm.

AsianBank senior vice-president George S. Chua, who was
elected treasurer of MIPI during the stockholders meeting,
said there will be a hearing on Thursday to determine the
validity of the meeting held last September 20.

"There is no definite decision yet on whether the meeting
was valid or not The court, (when it issued the restraining
order), is simply saying, let us wait," he said.  He said
the banks will contest the restraining order. "It's only
fair that we do," he said.

Mr. Chua said the TRO, which is good for 20 days, did not
nullify the results of the stockholders meeting. The TRO
does not render any final decision on the issue.  "The
control is not an issue. That is within our rights. The
question is when we can exercise our rights," Mr. Chua
said.

Creditor banks pushed through with the scheduled
stockholders meeting despite efforts of the MIPI management
to postpone the meeting to November since they comprised
54% of the shareholders and there was a quorum.  Eight bank
executives from AsianBank, FEBTC and UCPB were elected to
the board.

Another source said the banks went ahead with the meeting
to force Mr. Gonzalez's hand. "Creditor banks pushed
through with the scheduled stockholders meeting to compel
Mr. Gonzalez to call a stockholders meeting. He kept on
postponing it," he said.  (Business World  05-Oct-1999)


===============
T H A I L A N D
===============

SAMART CORP.: May sign Bt7.6 billion restructuring soon
-------------------------------------------------------
Samart Corporation Plc saw its share price hit the ceiling
yesterday, buoyed mainly by expectations that the telecom
company will sign a Bt7.6-billion debt restructuring
agreement this month.

At one time, Samart shares were up Bt6, or 30 per cent, to
Bt26, being one of the top gainers in the market. The price
receded to Bt24.50 at the close, or 22.50 per cent from the
previous closing of Bt22.  The company's executives
attributed the rise to the successful debt restructuring.

A company source told Reuters that the company's
shareholders and debenture holders had met on Sept 8 to
discuss the debt restructuring plan. Creditors holding
87.69 per cent of the company's total outstanding debt had
agreed to the plan, while 84.17 per cent had signed the
deal with the Corporate Debt Restructuring Advisory
Committee, a Bank of Thailand unit set up to help firms
restructure.

The company source declined to give details of the debt
restructuring or the amount involved, but said if more than
75 per cent creditors approved the plan, it would be
adopted.  Traders noted that the higher share price will
benefit the company in terms of debt restructuring provided
there is a clause in the contract concerning debt-to-equity
conversion. Then, the higher price will mean a lower number
of new shares to be issued for the creditors.

However, there was no news whether the debt restructuring
contract contains debt-to-equity conversion. At the latest
shareholders' meeting, company executives told shareholders
that the debt restructuring would involve mainly debt
rescheduling for another eight years.

Prior to the signing on Oct 20, there will be a
presentation for stock analysts on Oct 18.  Other traders
said the share price had also jumped because of renewed
rumours that Shin Corporations Plc, the operator of the GSM
mobile phone system under its subsidiary Advance Info
Service Plc, would take over the mobile phone service --
Hello 1800 -- of Samart.

A source in the telecom industry noted that it is unlikely
that Shin Corps would make such a decision. Telecom
Malaysia, the foreign shareholder of Samart, suggested
earlier that Shin Corps synergise the two services, the
source said, because Samart rents a satellite transponder
from AIS and the business synergy will help reduce the
technical problems its clients have been facing.  Shin
Corps' executives unofficially announced recently that the
company had not yet studied this proposal.  (The Nation  
05-Oct-1999)


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