MANILA, Philippines (UPDATE) - Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. on Thursday said it will remain listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange. The statement was issued after Bloomberg News reported on Thursday morning that San Miguel president Ramon Ang is considering delisting its shares from the PSE to become a privately held company.

"The company contemplates to list all its operating subsidiaries, inclusive of the new businesses. San Miguel Corp. shall remain listed, owing to its iconic status in the country," San Miguel corporate information officer Ferdinand K. Constantino said, in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange posted Thursday afternoon.

In the Bloomberg report, Ang was reported to have said that disclosure rules were affecting their business strategies.

Disclosure rules are a key regulatory function of the exchange compelling listed firms to announce the details of a business transaction or decision immediately after they are made to ensure that investors have fair and equal access to market-moving information.

Ang was quoted as saying, “If your balance sheet is strong like San Miguel, you don’t need to be publicly listed. If I have my way, I will privatize it next year."

The buy back of the publicly traded shares may cost $800 million, according to Ang.

San Miguel has been diversifying away from its traditional food and beverage business to heavy industries such as oil refining, power retailing and infrastructure.

Its units Petron Corp. and San Miguel Brewery Inc. are also listed.

On Thursday, San Miguel shares rose 0.99% to P122 apiece, while the broader market advanced 0.96%.