The Honorable
Roberto Ongpin
Minister of Commerce and Industry
In office
July 23, 1979 – February 25, 1986[1]
Serving with Luis Villafuerte (1979–1981)
PresidentFerdinand Marcos
Preceded byVicente Paterno
Succeeded byJose Concepcion Jr.
Mambabatas Pambansa (Assemblyman) from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry
In office
June 12, 1978 – June 30, 1984
Preceded byPosition created
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Personal details
Born(1937-01-06)January 6, 1937
Manila, Commonwealth of the Philippines
DiedFebruary 4, 2023(2023-02-04) (aged 86)
Balesin, Polillo, Quezon, Philippines
Alma mater
ProfessionBusinessman
Known forChairman, CEO, and Director of Alphaland Corporation[2]

Roberto Velayo Ongpin (January 6, 1937 – February 4, 2023) was a Filipino businessman who served as the Minister of Commerce and Industry (initially as Minister of Industry) during the Marcos administration.[3] His younger brother Jaime served as the Minister of Finance of the Philippines under Marcos's successor, President Corazon Aquino.[4]

In the 2018 ranking by Forbes of the world's richest, Ongpin was named as the Philippines' twelfth wealthiest Filipino (up from sixteenth in 2017),[5] with a net worth US$3.72 billion.[6]

Early life and education

Ongpin was born on January 6, 1937.[7] He was the second of seven children by Luis Roa Ongpin and Lourdes Morales Velayo. He grew up in the neighborhood of Pinaglabanan in San Juan, which was then a suburb of the City of Manila and a part of Rizal province.[8] He was a great-grandson of Román T. Ongpin, a businessman and philanthropist who aided Filipino revolutionaries against the Spanish and American colonial administrations in the Philippines. The Ongpins have been named as among the "most influential and enduring families of the Philippines" for their contributions to the nation's growth.[9][10][8][11]

Ongpin attended school through a scholarship. After graduating high school from the Ateneo de Manila, he went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (cum laude) from the Ateneo de Manila University in 1957. He became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in 1958, after which he briefly joined Philippine Manufacturing Company (now Procter & Gamble Philippines).[12]

In 1961, Ongpin earned his Masters of Business Administration from Harvard University.[13] It was during his time in Harvard that he met and married his wife of 55 years, Monica Arellano of Valparaiso, Chile. They have two children together, Stephen Arellano Ongpin and Anna Arellano Ongpin. He also has two other children from different mothers, Michelle Schroer Ongpin, and Julian Stone Ongpin. He has three grandchildren.[14][12]

Early career

Sycip, Gorres, Velayo & Company

After moving back to the Philippines in 1963, Roberto V. Ongpin was recruited by his maternal uncle, Alfredo Velayo to work for "the Philippines' largest multidisciplinary professional services firm," Sycip Gorres Velayo & Company (SGV). According to SGV founder Washington Sycip, Ongpin was "one of the most aggressive and effective managers" he has ever known. In 1966, two years after joining the firm, Ongpin – who was barely 30 years old at that time – was named a managing partner of SGV. He served the firm from 1964 to 1979.[12][15]

Minister of Trade and Industry

In 1979, Ongpin became the Philippines' youngest Commerce and Industry minister at the age of 42 when he accepted the invitation of then Philippine President, Ferdinand E. Marcos, Sr., to join his cabinet.[12]

During his seven years as minister, Ongpin grappled with the deteriorating economy as political instability made funding from international agencies and banks difficult for the government. On occasion, he personally had to negotiate financing for the Philippines with other world leaders, including the Sultan of Brunei Hassanal Bolkiah, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, and Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.[16][12][17]

In 1984, with "the Philippines facing a debt and foreign exchange crisis, the black market exchange rate soared to Php 30 per US Dollar (versus the official rate of Php 14 per Dollar)", Ongpin was credited with stabilizing the Philippine peso by establishing the "Binondo Central Bank," a dual exchange rate system that allowed the government to narrow the rate gap by directly intervening in black market currency prices.[18][19]

1986 People Power Revolution

In the early hours of February 22, 1986, as Ongpin was preparing to go to Malacañan Palace for a meeting with President Marcos, U.S. Ambassador Stephen Bosworth, and Special Envoy Philip Habib, he noticed that his military escorts had been pulled out. Ongpin's subsequent calls to then-Defense Minister Juan Ponce Enrile inquiring about the whereabouts of his security detail inadvertently alerted Enrile that Marcos may have already been aware of his plans to stage a coup d'etat. This triggered Enrile's hasty break from the government, eventually leading to the People Power Revolution that installed Corazon C. Aquino as the new Philippine President.[20][19]

Later career

Business ventures

Belle Corporation and Atok-Big Wedge

After the fall of the Marcos government, Ongpin pursued his own business interests. Among his first ventures was Belle Corporation with Benito Tan Guat. As chief executive officer of Belle Corporation, Ongpin was involved in the creation of its flagship development, Tagaytay Highlands.[21][22] Ongpin was also the chairman of the investment holding company Atok-Big Wedge, Inc, involved in general investment, as well as mining, real estate, manufacturing, processing, lending and borrowing money.[23]

Alphaland

Ongpin owned 94% of the shares of Alphaland,[24] and was chairman of Alphaland Balesin Island Club, Inc., and the City Club at Alphaland Makati Place, Inc.; the developers of the Balesin Island Club, a resort located southwest of Polillo, Quezon Province, and the City Club, an Php 8 billion multi-use commercial residential complex with three high-rise buildings, a shopping mall, and a "3-hectare leisure, entertainment and business club."[25][26][27] The company also owns and operates Alphaland Aviation, Inc., which as of 2016, provided charter services to Balesin Island Club located in Lamon Bay, Quezon province.[28][29] In September 2017, Ongpin launched Alphaland Baguio Mountain Lodges, a 300-home development in Baguio. The project was developed at a cost of P5 billion,[30][31] and opened in 2018.[32]

PhilWeb

In 1979, Ongpin acquired control of South Seas Oil and Mineral Exploration Co. Inc., a mining and exploration company incorporated on August 20, 1969.[33] The company became PhilWeb.Com, Inc. in 2000 and transformed itself into an internet company, upon the stockholders' approval of a restructuring plan which involved changes in the company's name and primary purpose, among others. The stockholders would further change the company's name to PhilWeb Corporation in 2002, a move that was approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) later that year.[34][35]

In August 2016, Ongpin resigned his post as chairman of PhilWeb Corporation, after being tagged by President Rodrigo Duterte as being part of the oligarchy, which was followed by a subsequent order to halt the online gambling industry, which was the core business of Philweb.[36] Ongpin later clarified that Philweb is "not an online gaming company," but was merely the "software providers of e-Games, which is actually owned by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR)."[31] The unexpected singling out of Ongpin by President Duterte puzzled many observers, with some speculating that he might have just been a victim of the Philippines' "murky" politics.[37] Ongpin, however, stressed that he "bears no rancor" towards Duterte, even stating that "he is my President, and I will do all I can to support him and his policies."[24] Ongpin's decision to sell his shares in PhilWeb to former president Marcos' son-in-law, Gregorio Araneta III, lessened the political pressure on himself and the company, and allowed him to focus on his other business interests.[38][29][39]

Other local and international business affiliations

Ongpin became a Board of Trustee member of the Philippine Institute of Pure and Applied Chemistry (PIPAC) when it was established in 1973 by faculty members of Ateneo de Manila University's Department of Chemistry, which was led by Dr. Modesto T. Chua. PIPAC was established to provide professional services including chemical testing, consultancy, technical training, and research and development services. He also played a role in the construction of PIPAC's own building in 1984.[40]

Ongpin was also the chairman of the Philippine Bank of Communications, Inc. (PBCOM) until 2012,[41] Eastern Telecommunications Philippines, Inc., (2006–2011),[42][43] La Flor dela Isabela (1996),[44] Sinophil Corporation,[45] RVO Capital Ventures Corporation,[46] Tabacalera Incorporada,[47][48] Connectivity Unlimited Resource Enterprise, Inc. (2006),[49][50] and Philippine Global Communications, Inc. (PHILCOM; through Belle Corporation).[51] He also served as the vice chairman of Philex Mining Corporation.[52]

Ongpin was also a director in the following corporations:

Ongpin was also affiliated with various foreign companies, including Acentic GmbH (until 2017),[55][56][57] Developing Countries Investment Corporation,[53] and Dragon Oil plc.[45] He was also a deputy chairman of the South China Morning Post,[53][54] a vice-chairman of AIA Capital Corporation (Hong Kong),[53] and a non-executive director at E2-Capital Holdings Ltd (now known as CIAM Group Ltd),[53] Forum Energy Plc UK,[53][54] and Shangri-La Asia Ltd.[53][58][59]

Death

Ongpin died in his sleep on Balesin Island, Polillo, Quezon, on February 4, 2023, at age 86.[60][61][62][63]

References

  1. ↑ "The Secretary". DTI. Retrieved October 25, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Board of Directors and Executive Officers". Retrieved June 15, 2018.
  3. ↑ "Businessman Roberto V. Ongpin dies at 86". CNN Philippines. February 5, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
  4. ↑ Mydans, Seth (December 8, 1987). "Jaime Ongpin dies". The New York Times. Retrieved October 24, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Filipino billionaires". Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  6. ↑ "Forbes richest list". Forbes. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
  7. ↑ "Philippines, Manila, Civil Registration, 1899–1984," database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QK1C-HVTY : May 26, 2016), Roberto Luis Melchor Ongpin, January 6, 1937; citing Birth, Manila, Metropolitan Manila, Philippines, Civil Registry Office, City Hall of Manila; FHL microfilm 1,511,288.
  8. 1 2 "Stories about Roberto V. Ongpin". The Philippine Star. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Roberto V. Ongpin Family Tree". Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Ongpin Family Tree". Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  11. ↑ "The Most Influential and Enduring Families of the Philippines". Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 "Roberto V. Ongpin interview". February 24, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Roberto V. Ongpin Forbes Magazine profile". Forbes. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  14. ↑ abs-cbnNEWS.com, Judith Balea. "Ongpin: I was a technocrat, not crony". Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  15. ↑ "History of SGV". Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Lee Kuan Yew Interview". September 26, 2011. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  17. ↑ "RVO Interview". The Philippine Star. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  18. ↑ "Debt crisis and adjustment, R.S. Dohner, P. Intal, Jr" (PDF). Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  19. 1 2 "US sets conditions to save Marcos". February 25, 2013. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  20. ↑ "People Power Day one". Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  21. ↑ "Ongpin on Belle Corp". The Philippine Star. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Benito Tan Guat profile". June 19, 2016. Retrieved October 26, 2016.
  23. ↑ "ABW profile on Bloomberg". Bloomberg News. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  24. 1 2 "Life in the fast lane". Forbes. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  25. ↑ "Alphaland City Club caters to urban family lifestyle". January 30, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  26. ↑ "Alphaland City Club opens in Makati". September 6, 2013. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  27. ↑ "Balesin Club profile". Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  28. ↑ "Ongpin's aviation firm seeks to operate domestic flights". BusinessWorld. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  29. 1 2 "Ongpin airline flies, luxury yacht sails past thunderstorm Digong". Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  30. ↑ "Ongpin unveils luxury Benguet real estate development". Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  31. 1 2 "Alphaland on a roll". BizNews Asia. July 14, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  32. ↑ Nitura, Jam; Mistal, Samantha (March 19, 2021). "Here's How Much It Costs to Stay at Heart Evangelista's Favorite Mountain Lodge Near Baguio". Preview. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  33. ↑ "Philweb Corporate History". Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  34. ↑ "History". PhilWeb Corporation. Retrieved February 8, 2023. At the annual stockholders' meeting on May 31, 2002, the stockholders approved the change in corporate name from "PhilWeb.com, Inc." to "PhilWeb Corporation". The stockholders also approved the inclusion of the gaming business as an additional secondary purpose of the Company. The SEC approved these changes on November 5, 2002.
  35. ↑ "Company Information". PSE Edge. Retrieved February 8, 2023. In 2000, the Company again changed its corporate name to PhilWeb.Com, Inc., together with a change in its primary purpose to that of an Internet company. In 2002, the corporate name was changed to the present one.
  36. ↑ Dela Paz, Charisse (August 7, 2016). "PhilWeb reveals 'main reason' behind Ongpin resignation". Rappler. Retrieved August 9, 2016.
  37. ↑ Villamor, Felipe (November 5, 2016). "New York Times – Push to Give Marcos a Philippine Hero's Burial Finds an Ally in Duterte". The New York Times. Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  38. ↑ "Manila Bulletin – Which way Mr. President?". Retrieved November 11, 2016.
  39. ↑ "Araneta Group acquires Ongpin shares in PhilWeb". Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  40. ↑ Philippine Institute of Pure and Applied Chemistry (PIPAC) (February 7, 2023). "Post | LinkedIn". LinkedIn. Retrieved February 10, 2023. PIPAC condoles with the family of Former Trade and Industry Minister Roberto V. Ongpin (RVO). RVO became a PIPAC Board of Trustee member when PIPAC was established in 1973...
  41. ↑ Dumlao, Doris C. (January 2, 2013). "Ongpin leaves PBCom". Inquirer Business. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  42. ↑ Dela Peña, Zinnia B. (March 17, 2006). "Ongpin group takes control of ETPI". Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  43. ↑ Alcuaz, Coco (October 20, 2011). "Ongpin firm sells Eastern Telecom stake to San Miguel". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  44. ↑ Sison, Norman (June 2, 2014). "A hidden historical landmark echoes Philippine cigar". Philstar.com. The Philippine Star. Retrieved February 10, 2023. La Flor de la Isabela passed into Filipino hands in the 1990s when it was acquired by tycoon Roberto Ongpin.
  45. 1 2 3 "Dragon stake increased". The Irish Times. January 25, 1997. Retrieved February 10, 2023. Mr Roberto Ongpin, director of Sinophil and joint deputy chairman of Dragon, said the investment was made because "Dragon's prospects are significantly undervalued, hence my share purchase today".
  46. ↑ "Shares of Ongpin-led Alphaland jump 50%". Rappler. March 1, 2013. Retrieved February 10, 2023. Alphaland is a joint venture between a fund management by London-based private equity firm Ashmore Group, and Ongpin-led RVO Capital Ventures Group.
  47. ↑ Arceo-Dumlao, Tina (August 31, 2014). "Tabacalera finds right blend of tradition, innovation". Inquirer Business. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  48. ↑ "Tabacalera finds right blend of tradition, innovation". Tabacalera Incorporada. December 11, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2023. The company went through several corporate upheavals through the years until the cigar-making unit was bought by the group of former trade minister Roberto V. Ongpin in the 1990s.
  49. ↑ "CURE to replace Piltel as mobile phone unit". Philstar.com. July 3, 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2023. ...Connectivity Unlimited Resource Enterprise (CURE), a telecommunications company it acquired from the group of businessman Roberto Ongpin...
  50. ↑ Cuevas-Miel, Likha C. (April 29, 2008). "Ongpin group gives up 3G business: Smart acquires smaller rival". The Manila Times. Archived from the original on August 8, 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  51. ↑ Felix, Rocel (March 1, 2000). "Ongpin files P300-M countersuit versus APC". Philstar.com. The Philippine Star. Retrieved February 10, 2023. APC filed a P150-million suit against Ongpin... for illegally appropriating for themselves corporate opportunities and business that properly belong to APC's Philcom (Philippine Global Communications Inc.) and PhilCom Interactive Systems Inc. (Philcom Interactive). APC, a company owned 49-percent by Belle Corp., from which Ongpin and his ally Jaime Gonzales were ousted from the board during its stockholders meeting last year...
  52. ↑ "High Court delists Ongpin, Philex share dispute from court records". bworldonline.com. BusinessWorld. January 30, 2023. Retrieved February 10, 2023. The case stemmed from a lawsuit filed by Mario E. Ongkiko, a shareholder of Philex, who alleged that Mr. Ongpin as director and vice-chairman of Philex violated SEC rules when he supposedly used insider information to make short-swing profits.
  53. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Roberto Ongpin – Biography". marketscreener.com. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  54. 1 2 3 4 5 "Microsoft Word – SMC 17A _main body_ _final_" (PDF). San Miguel Corporation. December 31, 2009. p. 19. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  55. ↑ "PhilWeb sells stake in Acentic GmbH". GMA News Online. GMA News. January 3, 2017. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  56. ↑ ABS-CBN News (January 12, 2010). "Ongpin-led firms complete purchase of stake in European tech firm". Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  57. ↑ Dela Peña, Zinnia B. (December 24, 2009). "Ongpin group acquires 65% of German TV firm". Philstar.com. The Philippine Star. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  58. ↑ "Roberto Ongpin". Forbes. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  59. ↑ "Philippines richest list". August 5, 2016. Retrieved October 25, 2016.
  60. ↑ "Business tycoon Roberto Ongpin, one of Philippines' richest, dies at 86". ABS-CBN News. February 5, 2023. Retrieved February 5, 2023. Ongpin died in his sleep Saturday night, Feb. 4, in Balesin, the exclusive island resort he built as part of a wide portfolio of investments in real estate and gaming.
  61. ↑ Salting, Ed Paolo (February 5, 2023). "Tycoon and ex-Trade chief Roberto Ongpin, 86". The Manila Times. Retrieved February 8, 2023. Tycoon and former Trade minister Roberto "Bobby" Ongpin passed away on Saturday, February 4, his nephew announced on Sunday. "Roberto Velayo Ongpin, chairman of Alphaland Corporation, passed away in his sleep last night in Balesin Island. He was 86 years old," Apa Ongpin said in a Facebook post.
  62. ↑ Burgos, Jonathan (February 5, 2023). "Philippine Tycoon Roberto Ongpin, Founder Of Alphaland, Dies At 86". Forbes. Retrieved February 8, 2023. Tycoon Roberto Ongpin—founder and chairman of Philippine real estate developer Alphaland—died peacefully on Saturday at age 86.
  63. ↑ Gonzales, Iris (February 6, 2023). "Billionaire, former trade minister Roberto Ongpin, 86". Philstar. Retrieved February 8, 2023. ... Roberto V. Ongpin – fondly called "RVO" – died in his sleep last Saturday night, cradled in the arms of his beloved Balesin island... He was 86.
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