The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said it would review Taiwan Broadband Communications’ (TBC) initial public offering (IPO) in Singapore in May to determine if the company violated the Cable Radio and Television Act (有線廣播電視法).
TBC is the nation’s fifth-largest multiple cable system operator.
Media reports have said that the cable operator may be exploiting a loophole through the IPO to help attract funds from Chinese investors, which could undermine Taiwan’s national security.
NCC chief secretary Wong Po-tsung (翁柏宗) said the IPO should have been reviewed and approved by the commission before it was held, adding that it would ask TBC’s management to come answer questions from NCC commissioners.
The NCC said it became aware of the case after reading a story published in the Chinese-language Business Weekly at the end of April. It then lodged an inquiry with the Investment Commission asking for more information about the case.
“We discovered that TBC did not seek approval from the Investment Commission before launching its IPO, so we asked the Investment Commission to look into the matter,” NCC specialist Chan Yi-lien (詹懿廉) said.
Chan said the IPO was launched in Singapore under the name Asian Pay Television Trust using funding from Singapore-listed Macquarie International Infrastructure Fund and Macquarie Korea Opportunities Fund, which are run by the Macquarie Group. The trust owns 100 percent of TBC’s shares.
On May 22, the Investment Commission asked TBC about changes in the company’s investment structure and investors’ rights after the IPO was held. The Investment Commission did not receive a full answer from the operator until Aug. 1, according to the NCC. On Aug. 5, the Investment Commission turned over the company’s response to the communications agency.
Andy Hsieh (謝煥乾), director of the NCC’s communication management department, said the case would be reviewed for compliance with the Statute for Investment by Foreign Nationals (外國人投資條例) and the Cable Radio and Television Act.
“The statute requires investors to secure the approval of administrative authorities if they invest in businesses that allow restrictive investment from foreign investors,” Hsieh said.
He added that Article 23 of the act states that the central regulatory agency may reject applications from foreign investors planning to establish or operate cable radio or television services without the resolution of the review committee if it deems that the foreign investment would have an adverse effect on national security, public order, or society.
Hsieh said that his department is gathering information on the changes made to TBC shareholders’ rights and investment plans since 2006, adding that a final ruling would be issued by NCC commissioners.
TBC issued a statement that the trust had made it clear when it launched the offering that Chinese investors are banned from purchasing shares. The fund can ask Chinese investors to sell their stakes in the fund and can suspend the rights of these investors if they refuse to comply.
Rain is to increase from Wednesday morning as Severe Tropical Storm Kong-Rey approaches, with sea warnings to be issued as early as tomorrow afternoon, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. As of 8am, Kong-Rey was 1,050km east-southeast of the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春) heading in a northwesterly direction toward Taiwan, CWA Forecast Center Director Lin Po-tung (林伯東) said. Rainfall is to increase from Wednesday morning, especially in northern Taiwan and Yilan County, he said. A sea warning is possible from tomorrow afternoon, while a land warning may be issued on Wednesday morning, he added. Kong-Rey may intensify into a moderate typhoon as it passes
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
Taiwan yesterday issued warnings to four Chinese coast guard vessels that intruded into restricted waters around the Taiwan-controlled Kinmen Islands, according to the Coast Guard Administration (CGA). The four China Coast Guard ships were detected approaching restricted waters south of Kinmen at around 2 pm yesterday, the CGA’s Kinmen-Matsu Branch said in a statement. The CGA said it immediately deployed four patrol boats to closely monitor the situation. When the Chinese ships with the hull numbers "14512," "14609," "14603" and "14602" separately entered the restricted waters off Fuhsing islet (復興嶼), Zhaishan (翟山), Sinhu (新湖) and Liaoluo (料羅) at 3 pm, the Taiwanese patrol
A former member of the US Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU), formerly known as SEAL Team 6, said in an interview with Business Insider that the elite unit’s role in a Taiwan Strait conflict would be more limited than some might expect. The report follows an earlier one in September by the Financial Times, which said the “clandestine US Navy commando unit” has been training for missions to help Taiwan if it is invaded by China. “You don’t use a scalpel for a job a hammer can do,” the former Navy Seal said to Business Insider on condition of anonymity.