Villar sells assets as 'crown jewel' Vista Land tackles nearly P50-B debt wall

Insider Spotlight

• Vista Land could sell property to outsiders for the first time, with two malls worth as much as P15 billion potentially on the block.
• Nearly P50 billion in bond maturities are coming due through August 2027, including a $420-million bond next July.
• Villar has multiple funding levers, from P22 billion in freed-up bank credit lines to asset and stake sales, although CreditSights expects lenders to demand tougher terms.

Tycoon Manuel Villar Jr. is showing a greater willingness to part with assets to protect the strongest parts of his business empire, with his sprawling water business already sold and prime real estate potentially going to outside buyers for the first time.

The sale of PrimeWater Infrastructure to tycoon Lucio Co and repayment of the water utility’s debt freed about P22 billion in group-wide bank credit limits, according to CreditSights, opening more borrowing capacity across the group.

At the center is flagship property developer Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc., which faces about P47.5 billion in identified bond maturities between December 2026 and August 2027.

Those include P21.2 billion in peso bonds and a $420-million bond due in July 2027, worth about P26.3 billion at a time when the Philippine peso continues to struggle against the US dollar. 

Malls could be next

Vista Land management told CreditSights that asset sales are a viable source of funding, including two malls worth as much as P15 billion that could be sold to outside buyers.

One is a P10-billion non-core Mandaluyong property that CreditSights believes could be Starmall EDSA-Shaw, while the other is a P5-billion mall in the southern Philippines. 

 “Management added that buyer interest exists, with some transactions potentially closing this year and next,” said CreditSights, which is part of the Fitch Group. 

Vista Land has never sold any of its malls, offices or land bank to outsiders, according to CreditSights, despite sitting on P145.5 billion in investment properties, mostly malls, and P47.7 billion in land as of September 2025.

Manuel Villar Jr. 

Vista Land chair 

Flagship real estate company

Villar remains one of the country’s richest tycoons and head of a powerful political family, with two of his children serving as senators.

CreditSights described Vista Land as one of the Villar Group’s “crown jewels”. 

Established nearly two decades ago, its roots are in the mass-market housing business that made Villar a household name.

Its brands span different segments of the housing market, including Camella, Brittany and Crown Asia, alongside a growing portfolio of malls, offices and other real estate.

More assets can raise cash

CreditSights identified several other ways Vista Land and Villar could raise billions without surrendering control of their biggest businesses:

• P25.5 billion could potentially come from selling Vista Land’s dollar investments after freeing them from bank collateral.
• P860 million to P1.72 billion could come from selling 10 percent to 20 percent of Vista Land’s 88.3-percent stake in Vistamalls.
• Nearly $500 million could potentially be raised if Villar sold just 10 percent of his 88.6-percent stake in Villar Land, although CreditSights cautioned that buyer appetite remains uncertain.
• Vista Land could also sell mature properties to VistaREIT, raising cash while keeping the assets within the broader Villar network.

Villar has already stepped in

Villar has also put his own money behind Vista Land, providing P13.5 billion in shareholder loans to help the property developer repay two previous peso bonds.

CreditSights said shareholder support remains “very robust,” with the PrimeWater transaction potentially giving Villar additional financial capacity to support the group.

Local banks remain supportive, likely with conditions 

Meanwhile, CreditSights also expects Vista Land’s longtime lenders, particularly BDO Unibank and China Bank, to remain willing to refinance loans. 

 “That said, we see the risk for these lenders to demand stronger terms than those seen during normal market conditions (all privately placed bonds are currently unsecured),” according to CreditSights. 

"Sweeteners could include higher coupons, shorter tenors, tighter covenants, and security over selected assets. We believe lenders will highly favor security over hard assets as the sweetener, considering VLL's sizable unencumbered assets,” it added.