Financial IQ: Do you know Manny "MVP" Pangilinan?

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The only thing most people can’t imagine Manuel V. Pangilinan doing is sitting at home, enjoying the pleasures of retirement.


But preparing for retirement is exactly what the businessman, philanthropist and avid sports patron Pangilinan is doing.


First Pacific Co. Ltd., the Hong Kong-based holding company that Pangilinan founded in 1981, celebrates its 30th anniversary this month.


“I hate anniversaries. I always have to give speeches and I’m not good at that. I’ve actually been accused of plagiarism,” Pangilinan says in a recent interview, adding that he usually felt “old” in times like these.


He won’t be retiring just yet as the self-confessed workaholic says there are still three items left on his to-do list that he wants to check off before he cleans out his desk.


The first is to find a young successor that will ensure the group’s continued growth over the next 30 years.


The MVP group is unlike other local conglomerates, which are usually family run. Pangilinan is a bachelor and has no offspring to anoint as heir.


“So I want to look for the talent within the company and develop them to be the next leaders of the company,” Pangilinan says. “Pilipino sana (preferably Filipino),” he adds.


On top of the list of companies Pangilinan chairs is Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT), the leading telecom firm and the country’s largest company with nearly $1 billion in annual profits.


Next is Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the biggest power distributor and the Philippines’ top company in terms of revenues.


Another is Metro Pacific Investments Corp., the company that runs North Luzon Expressway, as well as interests in water distribution and healthcare.


Outside the Philippines, the First Pacific unit Indofood Sukses Makmur Tbk is now Indonesia’s largest food company.


And Paniglinan has done all this virtually on his own.  Indonesia’s Salim family financially backs First Pacific, but Pangilinan says their influence in decision-making is “virtually none.”


Apart from his success in business, Pangilinan has also been recognized as a philanthropist. The several foundations he chairs have steered billions of pesos to benefit various causes-from disaster recovery and the government’s underfunded sports programs.


“It’s nothing against the Philippines,” he says. “But the goal is to be a giant at least in the region,” he adds.


Last on his list is, well, to make a “bucket list” of what he plans to reach before he “kicks the bucket.”


In business, the Pangilinan group has used its financial strength and influence to do pretty much whatever it wants. In real life, the man admits that he is in touch with his own mortality.

http://business.inquirer.net/3285/softer-side-of-mvp-ph%E2%80%99s-richest-eligible-bachelor