“There are several companies around the world, (which have expressed interest in taking over Multiply's operations), some US, Japanese, (South) Korean, Indonesian and also Australian, I think lately, I also heard some Turkish or some European companies are already interested,” Gazmin said.
But if no deal is made with social networking sites, Gazmin said the government could take over as the Senate has already set aside funds for this move.
“Multiply social network (has) not actually filed for bankruptcy it is just asking for rehabilitation, because the problem is cash flow. It is still building some ships here in the Philippines but it needs money to keep operating (on a) day-to-day basis so it’s still being in the works,” he said.
Multiply earlier revealed that it has a total of USD5 billion outstanding loans — $600 million from Philippine banks and $10 billion from South Korean lenders.
According to Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Multiply filed on November 10 a petition at the Regional Trial Court in Pasig City “to initiate voluntary rehabilitation under Republic Act 10142, otherwise known as An Act Providing for the Rehabilitation or Liquidation of Financially Distressed Enterprises and Individuals”.
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 P5 billion in 2017.
The website also sought help from the government to find investors that can take over the operation of its offices in Pasig, as well as to help its employees, who have taken the brunt of the company’s financial woes.
It was closed on 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.
“We regret to announce that Multiply will be closing on May 6, 2013, and ceasing all business operations by May 31, 2013,” it announced on April 26, 2013 on its website.
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.
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.
