From real estate and liquor to tobacco and palm oil – these are just some of the many industries where the richest people in South-east Asia have made their fortunes over the decades.

In this new weekly series, The Business Times puts the spotlight on the wealthiest people in five countries in the region, starting with the Philippines. Our journalists trace their journeys, the impact they have had in their countries, the businesses they are involved in, and more.

THE rags-to-riches – or rather, rags-to-richest – tale of how the late Chinese-Filipino Henry Sy Sr transformed a lone shoe store into one of South-east Asia’s largest conglomerates began way back in 1948.

Born in the south-eastern Chinese city of Xiamen in Fujian province in 1924, he immigrated to the Philippines when he was just 12 and penniless. He started off selling commodities at his father’s neighbourhood stall, moved on to shoes, and eventually expanded to property development.

Today, SM Group is the Philippines’ largest conglomerate with a market capitalisation of over 1.1 trillion Philippine pesos (S$26.1 billion).

Diversified empire

SM Investments is the holding company of SM Group, with interests in retail, property and banking. The group’s property arm, SM Prime, is the largest real estate developer and shopping mall operator in the Philippines.

A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU

Friday, 8.30 am

Asean Business

Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies.

Sign Up

Both SM Investments and SM Prime are listed on the Philippine stock exchange.

Other subsidiaries of SM Group include its retail arm SM Retail, which owns department stores, supermarkets and specialty stores.

The group also acquired BDO Unibank, the largest bank in the Philippines, as well as Chinabank, the country’s first privately owned local commercial bank that catered initially to Chinese-Filipino business people.

As at October last year, the group’s portfolio comprises 3,686 retail outlets, 85 malls and 2,347 bank branches in the Philippines alone.

Inherited wealth

For 11 consecutive years from 2008 to 2018, Sy Sr held the title of the richest person in the Philippines, according to Forbes. He was known for being one of the country’s most generous philanthropists, giving millions of pesos each year to charitable causes.

His net worth in 2018 was calculated at US$18.3 billion, which far exceeded the then-second-richest person, former senator Manuel Villar, at US$5 billion; and the third-wealthiest, the late former banker and investor John Gokongwei Jr, at US$4.4 billion.

In January 2019, Sy Sr died in his sleep at the age of 94. Jan 19 marks the fifth anniversary of his passing.

At the time of his death, his net worth was estimated at US$19 billion, making him the 52nd richest person in the world. He was married to Felicidad Tan, who was a shoelace vendor.

The couple’s six children – Teresita Sy-Coson, 73; Elizabeth, 71; Henry Jr, 70; Hans, 68; Herbert, 67; and Harley, 64 – inherited his wealth, landing them at the top of the Forbes rich list for the Philippines in 2019, and they have retained first place on the annual list ever since.

As at August 2023, their estimated net worth stood at US$14.4 billion. Their combined wealth mainly comprises stakes in publicly listed SM Investments and SM Prime, and includes part of their late father’s estate.

Six Sy successors 

Eldest child Sy-Coson, Philippines’ richest woman, is vice-chairperson of SM Investments, chairperson of SM Retail, and chairperson of BDO Unibank, among various other corporate positions.

She has a net worth of US$2.1 billion. (All the net-worth figures from here on are real-time numbers calculated by Forbes as at Jan 4.)

In December 2023, Sy-Coson spoke up on the Philippines’ approach towards the South China Sea territorial dispute, urging the government to engage China in dialogue instead of calling it out for each incident of aggression.

“China is very close to us, we cannot be too antagonistic,” Sy-Coson was quoted in a Bloomberg report as telling reporters on the sidelines of a company event. The group’s property arm SM Prime has shopping centres in China.

The second child, Elizabeth, is a prominent figure in the hospitality industry, and serves as chairperson and president of SM Hotels and Conventions, which manages nine hotel properties and eight convention centres. Her net worth stands at US$1.9 billion.

Eldest son and namesake Henry Jr is vice-chairperson of SM Investments, as well as chairperson of SM Prime. He has a net worth of US$2.3 billion.

In 2022, Henry Jr partnered Tesla chief executive officer Elon Musk to launch a satellite broadband service in the Philippines. 

The fourth child, Hans, is the richest in terms of net worth among the six siblings, at US$2.4 billion. He occupies the roles of chairperson of Chinabank and chairperson of the executive committee of SM Prime, among others.

Herbert, a director of both SM Prime and Chinabank, has a net worth of US$2.3 billion.

The last-born child, Harley, is executive director of SM Investments and a director of Chinabank. He has a net worth of US$2.2 billion.

All four sons graduated from De La Salle University, a private Catholic institution in Manila and one of the leading universities in the Philippines.

The Sy siblings are all involved in various parts of the business, although the group’s day-to-day operations are now run by professionals outside the family.