July 29, 2022

First Metro Investment Corporation was named Best Securities in the Philippines for 2022 by leading global financial publication, Asiamoney.

According to Asiamoney, “With nearly six decades of investment banking experience in the Philippines, First Metro had clear advantages when dealing with a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. It used its in-depth understanding of capital markets to find smart solutions for its clients.”

“First Metro worked on some marquee deals in the past year giving it a market share of 87 percent of all capital market transactions in 2021,” said Asiamoney editor Rashmi Kunar.

In the primary markets, First Metro worked on 22 deals during the awards period, including the P55.89-billion ($11-billion) initial public offering of Monde Nissin Corporation – the biggest IPO ever in the Philippines. First Metro was a local lead underwriter and joint bookrunner of the offering that listed in the middle of the pandemic in June 2021.

The investment bank also played an active role in debt deals, handling 10 of the 16 corporate bonds during the awards period that included fundraising for some of the top names such as the P10-billion fixed-rate bonds of Aboitiz Equity Ventures and the $400-million fixed-for-life green bonds of AC Energy (An Ayala Company). First Metro was also one of the issue managers on the Philippine sovereign‘s $1.59-billion inaugural retail onshore dollar bonds in October 2021.

“We are grateful and honored to receive this award from Asiamoney for recognizing our efforts to serve the needs of our clients, create value for them and meet the changing demands of the market,” said First Metro president Jose Patricio Dumlao.

“Our commitment has not faltered even and especially during difficult times. All of us at the First Metro Group continue to rise to the challenge, giving only our best despite the tough business environment we are in brought about by this pandemic,” he added.

The Asiamoney 2022 Best Securities Houses Awards examined domestic securities houses of 12 markets in Asia, and winners were determined through information from daily coverage of the region, proprietary polls and awards data, league tables as well as interviews and third-party sources.