BANKING
IBT gets registration nod
The Financial Supervisory Commission yesterday gave its green light to the Industrial Bank of Taiwan’s (IBT, 台灣工業銀行) plan to change its registered entity as a commercial bank, putting an end to Taiwan’s industrial banking industry. The commission also approved the bank renaming itself as O-Bank (王道商業銀行), which becomes the nation’s 40th commercial bank with a focus in corporate loans. The bank, which has four branches, has subsidiaries such as China Bills Finance Corp (中華票券金融), IBT International Leasing Corp (台駿租賃) and IBT Securities Co (台灣工銀證券).
RETAIL
Gloria Outlets set to open
Phase-one operations of Gloria Outlets (華泰名品城) is scheduled to open its doors today to bring local shoppers the authentic outlet shopping experience previously only available abroad, the mall’s operator said yesterday. The Taoyuan-based mall is the nation’s first authentic US-style outlet mall, with a spacious village-like design dotted with courtyards and individual storefronts for each brand, according to its developer Gloria Hotel Group (華泰大飯店集團). The mall is located in a commercial area near Taiwan High Speed Rail’s Taoyuan Station. Sales are expected to reach NT$4 billion (US$121.08 million) next year, while second-phase operations are set to begin by the fourth quarter, Gloria Hotel said.
RESTAURANTS
Mr Onion sets IPO price
Mr Onion (天蔥國際), which operates two steak and pasta restaurant chains, yesterday set its initial public offering price (IPO) at NT$65 and said its debut on the over-the-counter Taipei Exchange on Dec. 24 was 971 times oversubscribed. The company’s shares closed at NT$82.62 on the Emerging Stock Market — a preparatory board for the nation’s two main bourses — yesterday after pulling back from an intraday high of NT$88. Mr Onion, which wants to issue 1.45 million new common shares, plans to use part of the proceeds for future expansion.
PHARMACEUTICALS
TWi Pharma inks agreement
TWi Pharmaceuticals Inc (安成), a developer of specialty generic drugs, yesterday announced that the company has inked an agreement with Marathon Pharmaceuticals LLC for its lead drug candidate AC-203. TWi Pharma’s subsidiary, TWi Biotechnology Inc (安成生技), and Castle Creek Pharmaceuticals LLC, a spin-off entity from Marathon Pharmaceuticals, will team up to develop and commercialize the new drug, which is currently in development, for the treatment of epidermolysis bullosa, the companies said in a statement. Under the terms of the agreement, TWiB grants CCP an exclusive license of AC-203, covering a worldwide territory with the exception of Asia.
COMPONENTS
ASE could face downgrade
Fitch Ratings Ltd yesterday said it had placed Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc’s (ASE, 日月光半導體) “BBB” foreign-currency issuer default rating, “BBB” senior unsecured rating and “A+(twn)” national long-term credit rating on watch for possible downgrade, following the company’s announcement of a proposed cash acquisition of 75.01 percent of the shares in Siliconware Precision Industries Co (SPIL, 矽品精密). ASE’s plan to acquire shares that it does not own in SPIL might cost about NT$129 billion and the deal, if it goes through, might lead to weaker leverage at ASE, Fitch said in a statement.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last