2014 Philippines' Richest

Henry Sy

Philippines’ remittance-driven economy outperformed most of its neighbors; driven by an on-going consumer booms and a surge in tourism and outsourcing. The country’s economy grew by 7.2% in 2013, faster than 6.8% recorded in the previous year. The siege in the southern Philippine province of Zamboanga, the 7.2 magnitude earthquake and typhoon “Yolanda” which struck central Philippines failed to significantly dampen the country's economic performance.

There are now 10 billionaires (as of March 2014), down from 17 in 2013. Henry Sy retained his top spot for years now. Notable billionaires who missed this year’s cutoff are: Jaime Zobel de Ayala, the Aboitiz family, Lucio & Susan Co of “Puregold,” Emilio Yap, Roberto Ongpin, Inigo & Mercedes Zobel and Manuel Villar.

1. HENRY SY, P506 Billion ($11.4 Billion) 89 years old, Diversified

The Philippines' richest person (No. 97 world’s richest) merged his vast property assets under mall operator SM Prime Holdings to create a company with a recent market cap of $9.3 billion. In November, 2013 his property unit SM Land snatched a $1.2 billion contract to reclaim land in Manila, next to his Mall of Asia complex. Despite big moves, Sy's fortune dropped by $1.8 billion mainly because shares of his holding firm SM Investments tumbled 30% in the past year. They took a hit when the company sold some shares to institutional investors at a discount to market price. Son Henry Sy Jr chairs SM Prime, while son Hans is group president.

2. LUCIO TAN, P270 Billion ($6.1 Billion) 79 years old, Diversified

Lucio Tan's LT Group owns Asia Brewery, maker of popular Beer na Beer, and a stake in Philip Morris-Fortune Tobacco, which has an estimated 80% market share of the country's cigarette market. Tan increased his holding in Philippine National Bank in January to nearly 60% by buying an 11% stake for nearly $200 million. He's still in talks with San Miguel to sell his remaining 51% stake in Philippine Airlines whose value has surged giving Tan's fortune a boost. He also owns Hong Kong based Eton Properties. Tan got his start as a chemical engineer and mopped floors to pay for school. He enjoys flying helicopters.

3. ANDREW TAN, P208.6 Billion ($4.7 Billion) 61 years old, Diversified

Filipino tycoon Andrew Tan gets bulk of his fortune from holding firm Alliance Global Group which has interests in food and beverage, real estate, gaming. Its shares gained by more than a third on higher earnings and expansion into high growth provinces, boosting his net worth by $750 million. Planned IPO of Resorts World Manila, which he controls with casino operator Genting Hong Kong was postponed last June, 2013. In September, he took brandy maker Emperador Distilleries public through a backdoor listing. Son of a factory worker, Tan worked in a watch store to pay for college. He started selling kitchen appliances before making his first fortune in brandy.

4. ENRIQUE RAZON, P186.4 Billion ($4.2 Billion) 54 years old, Ports

Port and casino magnate Enrique 'Ricky' Razon inherited Manila-based International Container Terminal Services (ICTS) from his father in 1995 and built it into a global port operator with 27 ports in 19 countries. In an ongoing overseas expansion, he bought a port in the Honduras for $624 million for a 10-year concession but sold his stake in a Cebu terminal for an undisclosed price. While the company's shares are up by more than a fifth from a year ago, Razon's fortune is down by $700 million due to shares of his casino firm Bloomberry Resorts falling by close to 40%. Six months after opening his $1.2 billion Solaire Resort & Casino in Manila Bay last year, he fired casino manager Global Gaming Asset Management of Las Vegas for allegedly not doing its job. This dispute which is now under arbitration in Singapore, resulted in Global Gaming deciding that it would sell its minority stake. Unfazed, he's looking to expand to Latin America and Macau where current gambling licenses expire in 2020. He supports kiteboarding and golf. Wife Lizzy is a trustee at Child Protection Network, a non-profit that takes care of abused children.

5. JOHN GOKONGWEI, P173.1 Billion ($3.9 Billion) 86 years old, Diversified

Patriarch John Gokongwei who founded conglomerate JG Summit debuts on the Forbes billionaires list on better understanding of his holdings. JG has interests in airlines, telecoms, property development, banking, hotels and power generation in the Philippines. Late last year, he bought a 27% stake in Manila Electric Company for $1.6 billion. Retail arm Robinsons Retail Holdings, which he controls, went public in what was the country's largest IPO in 2013, raising $620 million. Brother James Go chairs JG Summit, son Lance is president. The family has endowed Gokongwei Brothers Foundation, which was established in 1992, with over $2 billion in shares.

6. DAVID CONSUNJI, P146.5 Billion ($3.3 Billion) 92 years of age, Construction

Former concrete inspector David Consunji founded construction outfit DMCI in 1954 in a one-room office in Manila. Got start building chicken houses for the government's bureau of animal industry and went on to construct hotels, hospitals and other landmarks such as a palace for the Sultan of Brunei. Now the Philippines-listed company gets most of its income from power generation, real estate and infrastructure. In December, 2013 it snatched a $26 million contract to renovate Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1. He also controls Semirara Mining, the nation's largest coal producer. Last April, he took a controlling stake in London-listed nickel mining outfit Toledo Mining and delisted it in December. Son Isidro runs both DMC and Semirara.

7. GEORGE TY, P102.1 Billion ($2. 3 Billion) 81 years old, Banking

George Ty's Metrobank is the Philippines second largest lender. Holding company, GT Capital, saw strong earnings in real estate, power and banking operations over the past year; but shares in Metrobank fell nearly 5% in January on the Fed's plan to cut its stimulus program. It also owns stakes in Toyota Motor Philippines, Philippine AXA Life Insurance. Plan to take power company, Global Business Power public was put off after company sold stakes to Manila Electric and Japan's Orix. Ty founded the bank in his twenties, stepping down as chairman in 2006 in favor of son Arthur. Hobbies include swimming and collecting art.

8. TONY TAN CAKTIONG, P75.5 Billion ($1.7 Billion) 61 years old, Fast food

Chef's son Tony Tan Caktiong, started out in 1975 with two ice cream parlors. Now his Jollibee Foods is the Philippines largest fast-food outfit, with nearly a dozen different chains including Chowking, Greenwich Pizza; more than 2,700 stores in the Philippines and overseas. Wealth of restaurant mogul, who also owns the Burger King franchise in the Philippines, got a boost as Jollibee's shares gained 50% over last year on strong sales growth and continued expansion. It recently formed a joint venture in the UAE to expand in that market. He stepped down as Jollibee's chief executive last August ceding spot to brother Ernesto but remains chairman.

9. ROBERT COYIUTO, JR., P66.6 Billion ($1.5 Billion) 61 years old, Power

His late father, Robert Coyiuto, Sr., was a veteran insurance businessman, who built the family's privately-held Prudential Guarantee & Assurance. Robert Coyiuto, Jr. now chairs what is one of the largest insurance companies in the Philippines. He also owns PGA Cars, an auto distributor of cars like Porsche, Audi, Lamborghini and most recently the Bentley in the Philippines. The bulk of his fortune comes from his 30% holding in Philippine power transmission company National Grid Corporation.

10. ANDREW GOTIANUN, P44.4 Billion ($1 Billion) 86 years old, Real Estate

Andrew Gotianun is the founder and chair of Filipino real estate conglomerate Filinvest Development. Shares in the company comprise more than 90% of Gotianun's net worth. Run by daughter Josephine, Filinvest was shortlisted along with partner Singapore's Changi Airport Group, as one of seven bidders for the $425 million expansion of the Mactan International Airport in Cebu. But Filinvest objected after a rival company offered the highest bid, citing a conflict of interest. The family recently sold a minority stake in preparation for a share sale to raise funds for new power and hotel ventures. Son Jonathan chairs EastWest Bank, which went public last year.

Source: Forbes