Water may not be a sexy investment in most parts of the world, but in Manila the IFC clearly begs to differ. The private sector investment arm of the World Bank, has just sunk $50 million of loans and equity into the Ayala-controlled Manila Water.
The water and sewage company has a 25 year concession that encompasses an area of Manila holding 5 million people, of which it serves around 85%. Adding to the mix it plans a $70-100 million domestic IPO next year.
Domestic IPOs in the Philippines are not frequent. The last IPO was in 2002 - a $121 million deal for Bank de...
