To Members and Friends:


I am delighted to begin this update by welcoming back Rodolfo “Pong” Ma. Ponferrada as the President of Alphaland Corporation. Pong first joined me in 2006. He worked with me during the early days of Balesin Island Club, starting as General Counsel and then rose all the way to Executive Vice President. Then in 2016, he decided to start his own law firm.


He has now “seen the light” and will be rejoining me on September 1, 2022 just a few days from now, as President of Alphaland.


Pong did his B.S. in Management at Ateneo de Manila University, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude, and then went on to the University of the Philippines for his law degree, where he graduated Cum Laude and Valedictorian of his class. He topped the bar in 2001—I believe with the highest marks ever at that point. Pong is one of the brightest guys I have ever worked with, and I am truly happy to have him back.


Balesin International Memberships


Balesin Island Club is completing its 10th year of operation. It has been a fruitful and happy decade and we now have more than 2,300 members. Balesin is today on everyone’s “bucket list.”


Everyone who is anybody in the Philippines is already a Balesin member. However, we have only 37 “international members” (non-resident members). So it is now time to focus on selling more Balesin International Memberships (BIMs) so that we can keep improving and enhancing Balesin.


We started this effort a couple of months ago with worldwide commercial spots on CNN. Click: Balesin Island Club TV Ad at CNN. These spots are only 30 seconds long, but we have had a very enthusiastic response.


We are now in the process of building an organization to actively market our BIMs. These international memberships are priced at US$50,000, similar to Gold memberships, with 7 free villa nights a year at Balesin, plus 2 complimentary nights at The Alpha Suites, our 260-room all-suite hotel in Makati, rated by Tripadvisor as “Best of the Best.” Because Balesin is basically a weekend club, we actually have less than 20% annual occupancy, so there will be no impact on existing members.


We will be appointing international sales agents who will be paid a 10% commission (or US$5,000) for every BIM sold.


It occurs to me that some of you may have friends or relatives overseas who may be interested in being a Balesin international sales agent. If so, just let me know so that I can invite them to join our international sales organization.

Balesin International Gateway (BIG)


In March this year, we started “moving earth” in Patnanungan Island, for our new project known as Balesin International Gateway (BIG). Only 21 nautical miles from Balesin, BIG totals 750 hectares of land that we have accumulated over the past five years. BIG will have an international airport, a championship golf course, 5 to 10 hotels averaging 200 rooms each and about 3,000 home sites. Unlike Balesin, BIG will not be a membership club and will be open to the public, primarily internationally, with its international airport allowing visitors to fly directly from their worldwide residences, bypassing crowded Manila.


BIG is a huge project and will take about 10 years to develop, in several phases.


Alpha Beach Club (ABC)


As our first project on BIG, we will have a Clubhouse approximately the size of the Balesin Sala, with a large pool and about 30 nipa hut cabañas along the beach. There will be no villas at ABC to begin with. The concept is for guests to have daytime visits to ABC where they can view the island, have a nice lunch and then return to Balesin to spend the night.


We have acquired a 12-seater Agusta AW139 helicopter, which flies from Balesin to BIG in only 10 minutes. In addition, we are now searching for a hydrofoil like a Hong Kong-Macao ferry, which will take only about half an hour to get there, with about 100 pax. Before these Christmas holidays, ABC will be operational and will be an additional offering for your Balesin visits.

Balesin Football Center (BFC)


I cannot end this update without telling you about Balesin Football Center (BFC). Football (soccer) is a hugely popular sport all over the world except in the Philippines, where we love basketball. When you think about it, we really should place more importance on football, where height does not matter. Did you know that Lionel Messi is only 5’6” tall?


We have had a soccer pitch for some time now but only with Bermuda grass. All of the top football pitches in the world have FIFA-approved artificial turf surfaces. In March, we began replacing our football pitch with the superior FIFA-approved artificial turf. We are also building a grandstand and a BFC Lounge at the Sports Center.


Balesin already has its beautiful villas and many resort amenities. Balesin can easily attract international football teams to train and practice at Balesin Football Center during the winter season, while their families enjoy the Balesin resort. We have been in contact with La Liga in Spain, Bundesliga in Germany, the Premier League in the UK, and many teams from France, Italy, and Japan; and they are all very keen. Again, BFC will be operational before the holidays.