In a commencement order issued by Judge Nicanor Manalo, Jr. on Monday, June 16, the Pasig court “declares Multiply to be under rehabilitation.”
“This commencement order shall retroact to the date of the filing of the petition,” the court said.
On November 10, Multiply filed a petition before the Regional Trial Court in Pasig City to initiate voluntary rehabilitation under Republic Act 10142 or “An Act Providing for the Rehabilitation or Liquidation of Financially Distressed Enterprises and Individuals.”
The Pasig court also ordered the company to publish in a newspaper of general circulation a copy of the commencement order once a week for two consecutive weeks with the first publication to be made seven days from the day the order was issued.
The court also ordered Multiply to serve a copy of its petition to:
- its creditors
- Insurance Commission
- Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
- Bureau of Internal Revenue
- Department of Trade and Industry
- Securities and Exchange Commission
- Department of Labor and Employment
- Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board
At the same time, the company must serve a copy of the court order to foreign creditors and ensure they receive the copy 15 days before a hearing set on January 8, 2016.
Creditors were also ordered to file their verified claims within five days before the January 8, 2016 hearing.
“If a creditor files a belated claim, he shall not be entitled to participate in the proceedings but shall be entitled to receive distributions arising therefrom if recommended and approved by the rehabilitation receiver, and approved by the court,” the Pasig City RTC.
Creditors, government agencies, and all interested parties were compelled to serve Multiply a verified comment or opposition to the petition before the hearing on January 15.
The court is prohibiting the company’s supplier of goods and services from withholding supplies and services in the ordinary course of business as long as Multiply pays for the goods and services.
All contracts not confirmed in writing by Multiply within 90 days after the commencement order was issued are considered terminated.
Multiply was the biggest foreign investor in Pasig.
It was established in 2004, Multiply is a online company that provides social networking in the Philippines and internationally.
In the course of its operations, the website became the biggest employer among all registered businesses in Pasig with some 30,000 employees at peak season, and was recognized by both the Philippine Exporter Foundation and the Department of Trade and Industry as top export performer.
It was closed last May 6, 2013 and ceasing all business operations on May 31, 2013 along with the official online channels for the site had been removed along with all their content, including its YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts, after years of financial and managerial turmoil and following a failed bid to reinvent itself from being a social networking site to a vibrant e-commerce destination in Southeast Asia.
At that time, the website's social networking portion had a network of 18 million users. Liquidity problems, however, affected earnings. Sales declined from its peak of P20 billion in 2013 to just about P1 billion in 2020.
“We regret to announce that Multiply will be closing on May 6, 2013, and ceasing all business operations by May 31, 2013,” it announced last April 26, 2013.
After May 6, the rest of the month will be used to ensure that all accounts are settled and merchants get full payment for their transactions, it said.
Multiply said the month-long grace period will provide its users enough time to find and migrate to alternative e-commerce platforms, settle all payments on items bought and delivered, and minimize disruption to businesses of its users.
“Multiply will ensure that you receive all funds you earned on the platform no later than May 31, 2013. We will close the actual marketplace sooner, on May 6, 2013, to ensure that all orders have sufficient time to complete and be delivered to your customers before the end of the month,” it said.
In December 2012, Multiply stopped its social networking service to focus on e-commerce, targeting the 350 million consumers in Indonesia and the Philippines.
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