Ayala Land, the property arm of billionaire Jaime Zobel de Ayala and his family’s Ayala Corp., will spend 6.24 billion pesos ($108 million) to acquire a part of the headquarters of Philippine broadcast giant ABS-CBN, which is trying to reduce its debt.

Ayala Land will buy three hectares of ABS-CBN’s 4.4-hectare headquarters and pay in installments, the media company said. ABS-CBN’s offices and studios will be shifted to the remaining 1.4 hectares, it said in a statement to the stock exchange.

Proceeds from the sale will go to partially pre-pay outstanding bank loans, according to ABS-CBN, which has shrunk in size and been losing money since Congress didn't renew its broadcasting franchise in 2020.

The franchise’s non-renewal effectively shut ABS-CBN’s TV and radio operations, which gave its controlling owner, the Lopez family, influence in business and politics. Since losing the congressional franchise, ABS-CBN has not made a profit, laid off hundreds of employees and cut costs.

While its shift to online platforms and partnerships with broadcasters to distribute its content and programs are showing promise, ABS-CBN’s reduced revenue base isn’t growing fast enough to cover operating and financing costs.

Its losses contracted in the first nine-months of 2024, but ABS-CBN has accumulated 37.08 billion pesos in losses since 2020. It had 45.12 billion pesos in liabilities at the end of September, of which 33.03 billion pesos are current.

ABS-CBN’s airwave clout didn’t shield the Lopez family when former President Rodrigo Duterte publicly attacked the broadcaster’s negative coverage and for an ad against him that aired during the May 2016 elections, which he won by a landslide.

Following Duterte’s public attack, his allies in Congress didn’t renew ABS-CBN’s license, citing violations of its previous franchise, tax issues and labor cases.

ABS-CBN’s 4.4 hectare headquarters complex in Quezon City is in a bustling residential neighborhood surrounded by condominium towers, apartments, bars, restaurants and retail shops. It’s a block away from a luxury residential project of Shang Properties, the Philippine real estate arm of Malaysian billionaire Robert Kuok, which is Ayala Land’s rival in high-end developments.

Ayala Corp. was started by the grandfather of Jaime Zobel de Ayala in 1834 as a distillery in Manila. The company has expanded into banking, real estate, telecommunications and energy. The family has a net worth of $2.6 billion, according to Forbes Asia’s Philippine rich list published in August.

Aside from ABS-CBN, the Lopez family’s business interests include property developer Rockwell, industrial park operator First Philippine Holdings and First Gen, one of the country’s biggest power producers. The family has a net worth of $300 million.