BIG (family) BUSINESS
Insights and reports on elite families behind major conglomerates
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Several headlines pop up in your feed. “Gabby’s gamble, Piki’s cleanup.” “Family feud explodes into leadership battle.” “ABS CBN not a party to Lopez family fight.” Same family, same ₱2 billion argument, three very different stories. As readers, it is easy to pick a side based on which headline lands first. As business journalists, we…
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In May 2008, Meralco’s annual stockholders’ meeting turned into a 13‑hour corporate siege—boos and chants, dead microphones, SEC orders, and a walk‑out press conference in a nearby mall. This eyewitness account traces how that day unfolded and how it quietly set up the end of Lopez control of Meralco.
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NOTE: This was a story I wrote a year as part of my coverage of how the Lopez family lost control of a ‘crown jewel,’ Meralco. This was published on May 25, 2009
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This was among the few times the Lopez family members admitted publicly the pain and rift behind-the-scenes in the deals involving Meralco, the business power company in the country they once controlled. This was published in 2009 on the news sites of ABS-CBN and Newsbreak, both of which are now dead links. Reposting the story’s…
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NOTE: This was a story I wrote piecing together the inner workings of a business deal announced to a shocked Manila business community in 2008. From various interviews, I learned how Ramon Ang’s weekend visit to Cebu to charm Winston Garcia of state pension fund GSIS resulted in last minute changes on who the Lopez…
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NOTE: This was a story I wrote a year as part of my coverage of the Lopez family’s battle against a hostile Arroyo government in 2008. The family business was under attack due to the conglomerate’s media arm ABS-CBN’s news coverage that was critical of the then Arroyo government. This story is a post-mortem of…
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NOTE: This was a 2-part exclusive explainer series I wrote as part of my comprehensive coverage of how the Lopez family handled an adversary, GSIS chief Winston Garcia, in the boardroom of a ‘crown jewel,’ Meralco. The first part discussed the personality differences and gripes between the two camps, while the second part is a…
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NOTE: This was a story I wrote a year as part of my coverage of the Lopez family’s battle against a hostile Arroyo government in 2008. The family business was under attack due to the conglomerate’s media arm ABS-CBN’s news coverage that was critical of the then Arroyo government. This story is a post-mortem of…
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The documentary answered the question: What did the late tycoon John Gokongwei Jr, the subject of my biography project, leave behind?
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While we were sleeping, Filipino dollar-billionaire Manny Villar earned the right to (temporarily) use the channels that once belonged to the Lopez family’s ABS-CBN. This is how it happened.
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Having experienced world wars and political upheavals, Filipino-Chinese tycoon Carlos Chan has this short and sweet advice to businessmen going thru difficult pandemic times.
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JOB OPENING! I’m doing a biography project about an Asian tycoon. I need a research assistant who can handle and organize multimedia content.
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Last April 7, the city of Makati sent a congratulatory certificate and a P100,000 check reward to Bienvenido Tantoco Sr., the 84th resident who has lived up to 100 years. Chump change for one of the Philippines’ richest men. But more than the longevity milestone is his humor. His daughter had said he has been keen to…
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Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala pays tribute to a key non-family member who mentored him way back when he was still learning the ropes of the family conglomerate
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The kids of late Henry Sy Sr, once the Philippines’ richest man, are “decisive leaders, promote value-driven management, and espouse pragmatic, stick-to-the-knitting, stay-with-the-business-you-know philosophy.”
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Is there politics in the Manila Water ownership changes? Or is this just business?
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Two of the richest Filipino families just announced a water deal that is suspect for its timing. One is at the bitter end of Duterte’s tirades against the business elite, the other an ally.
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Philippines’ richest congressman Michael “Mikee” Romero is now the majority owner of the local affiliate of budget airline AirAsia. Romero’s stake in the Philippine AirAsia was raised to 44.5%, higher than Malaysian AirAsia founder Tony Fernandes and partner’s 40%. Romero acquired the AirAsia Philippines stakes of Ambassador Fred Yao and Maan Hontiveros. Romero, Yao, Hontiveros…
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Jon Ramon Aboitiz, 70, was a pillar in one of the wealthiest, most enduring, and aggressively expanding conglomerates in the Philippines
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FERNANDO ZOBEL DE AYALA is Management Man of the Year 2018, the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP) announced today. This makes the Zobel de Ayalas the family with most members (three) in this elite list. Previous to Fernando, his father Jaime and brother Jaime Augusto, or JAZA, were separately featured as “Management Man of…
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P98 million to P2.1 million was the range of average executive pay the most valuable listed firms paid each of their top executives in 2017
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Businessman Dennis Uy, a close friend of President Rodrigo Duterte, delivers a speech on being a disruptor
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Henry Sy, the only Filipino in Forbes’ annual list of Top 100 world dollar-billionaires, is richer than Elon Musk who is half his age.
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NOTE: This was a story I wrote a year after the Lopez family ‘sacrificed’ their stake in Meralco. In 2008, the family business was under attack due to the conglomerate’s media arm ABS-CBN’s news coverage that was critical of the then Arroyo government. This story captured the sentiments of the patriarch then, Oscar Lopez. This…
Lala Rimando 