Manila Electric Co., the country’s largest power distributor by sales, and its unit, Corporate Information Solutions Inc., have agreed to sell their combined stake in CIS Bayad Center Inc. to Kayana Solutions Inc., which currently holds a 10 percent stake in the outsourced electronics payments service provider.
The transaction will shift control of Bayad to Kayana, an affiliate of the power distributor better known as Meralco. At present, Bayad is owned 85 percent by CIS and 5 percent by Meralco.
Financial details of the ownership shift were not immediately made available.
Kayana is jointly owned by PLDT Inc. with a 45 percent stake, Meralco with 27.5 percent, and Metro Pacific Investments Corp. with 27.5 percent. The acquisition is expected to strengthen Kayana’s position in the electronic payments space by integrating Bayad’s network and capabilities into its broader platform.
The planned divestment aligns with Meralco’s ongoing portfolio rationalization, while allowing Bayad to operate under an entity more focused on digital payments and rewards systems.
Bayad, a long-standing player in the payments sector, has more than 20 years of experience in outsourced collection services and is widely recognized as a leading brand in bills payment. It operates over 39,000 physical and digital touch points nationwide and processes more than 10 million transactions each month. The platform has expanded and now offers a range of financial services, including remittances, insurance, loan payouts, and ATM withdrawals, reinforcing its role as one of the country’s most extensive multi-channel payment networks.
Completion of the transaction remains subject to agreed conditions.
