Tatang’s successor

With the way all key business units in the SM group are consolidated and restructured, it looks like the estate planning of the country’s wealthiest man Henry Sy or “Tatang” is nearing its conclusion.

But there’s one more stone left unturned and this is for Tatang’s successor as chieftain of the largest conglomerate in the Philippines—SM Investments Corp. —to be named.

It’s likely that the official changing of the guard will happen soon.

On the property side, key businesses have been consolidated and the leadership passed on to Henry Sy Jr. (chair) and Hans Sy (president). Banco de Oro has long been under the control of eldest child Tessie Sy-Coson with the help of professional manager Nestor Tan (president).

To recall, Tatang opened the first ShoeMart store in 1958 and the SM group he founded since evolved into a dynamic group of companies with five lines of businesses—shopping malls, retail, financial services, real estate development and tourism, hotels and conventions.

Most bets are on Sy-Coson, the eldest and probably the most influential female businessperson this side of the world, to lead the second generation Sys in the next phase of SM’s growth.

Sy-Coson nurtured Banco de Oro from a marginal player in the 1990s to the country’s biggest and most profitable bank to date and has led the group through ups and downs in the Philippine economy.

We won’t be surprised to see Sy-Coson, currently vice chair of SMIC, officially named as the captain of the SM ship soon. As in, very soon. Doris C. Dumlao

Salaries and bonuses

It might be one of the most aggressive conglomerates in town when acquisitions are concerned, but certainly no one can accuse top officials of San Miguel Corp. of being greedy when it comes to bonuses.

In fact, the company’s latest filing showed that the estimated bonuses to be paid out to its top officials for 2014 (for the previous year’s work) actually dipped.

According to SMC’s filing, the total compensation of the chief executive officer (that is still, officially, Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco Jr.) and other senior executive officers like Ramon Ang will hit P317.6 million in 2014. This is slightly lower than the P362.1 million the company paid its top officials in 2013.

This is on account of lower bonuses (P125.2 million in 2014 versus P173.6 million in 2013) being paid to the conglomerate’s top tier management.

Even while bonuses for the head honchos were lower, their basic salaries did increase during the same period—to a total of P160.5 million in 2014 from P145.9 million.

Despite this, SMC continued to make its officers smile. The company filing said that directors and officers collectively received P231.1 million in salaries and bonuses. This was higher than the P211.8 million paid out to the group in 2013.

“The board is being conservative. Matipid kami,” Ang told Biz Buzz when asked about the bonuses of top officials. But they’re generous with the troops, apparently. Daxim L. Lucas

Retirement deferred

What’s the last thing you need when your organization is going through crucial time? Answer: One of your top lieutenants skipping town.

That was the prospect Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando M. Tetangco Jr. faced when one of his most senior officials, Assistant Governor Cyd Tuano-Amador, asked last month to be allowed to retire. (As we previously reported, Tuano-Amador plans on moving to Australia to be with her family).

Tuano-Amador’s decision to retire comes at a crucial time for the BSP. The central bank, which has masterfully steered the economy through the global financial crisis of 2008, recently started tightening monetary policy settings last March. And this tightening cycle will take time. Tetangco himself had said several times that it would be a gradual process. The BSP wants to make it as smooth as possible to avoid any possible shocks that could lead to economic instability.

So where does this leave Tuano-Amador, head of the BSP’s monetary policy sub-sector? She previously wanted to hang up her gloves at the end of May 2014. Fortunately, she’s agreed to stay on for a few more rounds. She told Biz Buzz that she decided to move her retirement to the end of this year.

Her family in Australia will have to wait just a little longer. The country still needs her. Paolo Montecillo

MVP, INC hook up

If the Smart Araneta Coliseum is any indication, businessman Manuel Pangilinan has a thing about cornering the naming rights to large sports and entertainment venues.

And the trend continues, apparently, after the MVP group recently sealed a partnership agreement with the Iglesia ni Cristo for its soon-to-be inaugurated Philippine Arena.

Expected to be named the world’s largest indoor venue, the Philippine Arena—being built in Bulacan—will have a seating capacity of 55,000, which is more than double the existing capacities of the Smart Araneta Coliseum or the Mall of Asia Arena.

The arena is being built within a 75-hectare mixed-use development called Ciudad de Victoria.

If the name of that site sounds familiar, it’s probably because the ‘Victoria’ brand is used regularly for the projects of New San Jose Builders Inc., which is, in turn, owned by businessman Jerry Acuzar—the brother-in-law of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. Talk about the MVP group tapping into a well-connected network.

Under the deal, MVP-led Metro Pacific Investment Corp. “committed to a strategic partnership with INC to help bring Ciudad de Victoria and Philippine Arena to life, including providing state-of-the-art utilities infrastructure and telecommunication facilities,” our company source tells us.

The Philippine Arena—we’re still waiting for word as to whether any MVP group brands will be appended to its name—will be inaugurated in July this year, in time for the centennial anniversary celebration of the politically influential church.

Need we point out that an INC endorsement is believed to be a critical element of a successful electoral campaign? Non sequitur, really. We just felt like mentioning it. Daxim L. Lucas

E-mail us at bizbuzz@inquirer.com.ph. Get business alerts and a preview of Biz Buzz the evening before it comes out. Text ON INQ BUSINESS to 4467 (P2.50/alert).

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