Intrigue Surrounds Marcos Crony’s $150-Million Deal
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MANILA — Eduardo Cojuangco, a close associate of Ferdinand E. Marcos who fled into exile with him, sold controlling interest in Asia’s largest food and beverage firm today in a $150-million transaction shrouded in mystery.
Stockbrokers said Cojuangco, who controlled 33 million shares in the San Miguel Corp., sold them to a group led by Andres Soriano, whose family founded the firm in 1890, in the biggest single-day stock transaction in the nation’s history.
Soriano, 35, a U.S. citizen, is believed to be a supporter of President Corazon Aquino.
The circumstances surrounding the sale were intriguing. Brokers said there was speculation that Marcos might have been the real owner of the shares, which were in a trust account. The Aquino government has claimed that the deposed president controlled many companies through front men.
Brokers could not say who authorized the sale of the San Miguel shares.
San Miguel makes the Philippines’ most popular beer and is one of the top 10 corporations in the country. Its gross revenue in 1984 was estimated at $500 million.
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