Fiber broadband provider Converge ICT Solutions, Inc. signed a P3-billion term loan agreement with the state-owned Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) to help finance its terrestrial and subsea domestic fiber backbone network expansion.
The agreement would also support the internet service provider’s working capital requirements, Converge said in a press release on Friday.
The total loan package will include an additional short term loan line and a facility for trade transactions amounting to up to P2 billion.
“This loan package will provide Converge with financial flexibility as we continue to connect Filipino households to our pure fiber network nationwide,” Converge President Maria Grace Uy said.
“We expect this financing facility to strengthen our balance sheet and help us reach our goal of covering 55% of Filipino households by 2025.”
Converge set P20 billion in capital expenditures for 2021 to fund its nationwide expansion, connecting Visayas and Mindanao to its national fiber backbone.
By the end of June, the Converge pure fiber network has reached over 8.2 million homes, accounting for 32% of Philippine households.
“There is still huge pent-up demand for high-speed broadband connectivity in the country. And the need for quality internet services became even more critical when the pandemic happened. Suddenly, the home became the office, the school, entertainment center, and marketplace in one,” Converge Chief Executive Officer Dennis Anthony H. Uy said. — Jenina P. Ibañez