the Outsider - PSE Points to Ponder

  The Philippine Stock Exchange can dream of a blockbuster Mynt listing, and it should. A deep, liquid market needs new champions. But no mega-IPO can repair a trust problem if minority investors believe the exchange is a friendly place to raise public money — and a dimly lit corridor when companies decide to leave. MerryMart’s planned delisting, pursued while its 2025 audited annual financial statements remained unavailable to investors, is exactly the kind of episode that tests whether the market’s disclosure rules protect shareholders in substance, not just in form. There is a simple rule that should govern every tender offer, especially one that may end in delisting: shareholders should not be asked to sell in the dark . MerryMart Consumer Corp. is moving toward the exit doors of the Philippine Stock Exchange just as minority shareholders are being asked to decide whether the tender offer price is fair. DoubleDragon’s tender offer covered up to 4.936 billion MM common shares , ...

  MerryMart shareholders are being asked to choose before the lights are fully on. The SEC and PSE should not let that pass. In a well-functioning market, a tender offer should sharpen a shareholder’s choice. Sell, hold, or demand more. In MerryMart Consumer Corp.’s case, the choice has instead become oddly murky. DoubleDragon Corp. is offering to acquire MM shares at ₱0.48 apiece , half in cash and half in newly issued DoubleDragon shares valued at ₱9.30 each , after agreeing to buy a 35% block from Injap Investments Inc. and launching a mandatory tender offer for the remaining 65% of MM shares. The tender offer period runs from May 18 to June 16, 2026 , with settlement scheduled for June 24, 2026 .  Yet as shareholders weigh whether to tender, the most basic instruments of judgment appear to be missing. As of this writing, PSE EDGE’s financial reports page shows MerryMart’s latest annual figures as fiscal year ended December 31, 2024 , while its latest quarterly financia...

DoubleDragon’s tender offer gives MM shareholders an exit. For many, it also turns a paper loss into something harder to ignore. When MerryMart Consumer Corp. listed in June 2020, the pitch was simple, timely, and seductive: a home-grown grocery chain, backed by Edgar “Injap” Sia II’s reputation for scaling Mang Inasal, would ride the pandemic-era appetite for essential retail and roll out a national network of stores. The company sold 1.594bn primary shares at ₱1.00 apiece , raising about ₱1.6bn in gross proceeds , with the proceeds earmarked for store expansion, distribution centers, and working capital. There were no selling shareholders in the IPO; this was a growth-capital story, not an exit.  Six years later, that story has been repriced. DoubleDragon Corporation has launched a tender offer for MerryMart shares at ₱0.48 per share , following its planned acquisition of 2.658bn MM shares , or 35% of MerryMart, from Injap Investments Inc. The tender offer covers up to 4.937bn s...