Emilio Yap: Wealth, Business Empire, and Life Outside Work

01/07/2024

Emilio Yap was a Chinese-Filipino business tycoon who built his fortune from shipping (Philippine President Lines), pharmaceutical (Euro-Med Laboratories), banking (Philtrust Bank), publishing (Manila Bulletin), tourism (Manila Hotel), and education (Centro Escolar University). He passed away on April 7, 2014, at the age of 88, and his wealth was distributed to his family.

The Yap family was listed by Forbes as one of the 50 richest Filipinos in 2023. This was despite a significant decrease in total net worth ($445 million) from 2016 ($1.1 billion).

Net Worth: $445M

Deceased 2014 at the age of 88

In His Youth

Yap was born in Fujian Province, China, on September 24, 1925. In a 2012 interview with Asian Dragon Magazine, he said that his father traveled around the country to teach, leaving his mother to care for him, an only child. He moved to Manila, where his grandfather used to own a trading shop, to study. But when the shop closed down, he went back to Fujian. It was the second trip to the Philippines that made him settle down in the archipelago. His uncle funded his travel to Manila and then, from there, went to Dumaguete to assist a trader.

Emilio Yap's Business Empire

Yap's interest in business, specifically trading and bidding, started during World War II. He moved again from Cebu to Manila, where he worked in a T-shirt factory. The young Yap saw the opportunity of selling white T-shirts to Japanese soldiers, and this allowed him to save enough capital to start his own business. He sold T-shirts, ball pens, and watches. After the war, he went into trading, particularly buy-and-sell of GI jeeps and trucks, and established U.S. Automotive in 1947.

Realizing that he needed ships to carry the surplus vehicles he was trading, Yap established Philippine President Lines in 1960. His trading and shipping businesses played a crucial role in the post-World War II reconstruction and industrialization of the Philippines as he was also importing refurbished public works equipment.

Yap invested in the Manila Bulletin in upon the invitation of Swiss-Filipino BGen. Hans M. Menzi.

Manila Bullet was originally called Daily Bulletin, a shipping journal started by Carson C. Taylor and H.G Farris in 1900. The publishing house was renamed as Bulletin Publishing Company in 1912, then it was acquired by Menzi in 1957. The company was reincorporated as Bulletin Publishing Corporation in 1959.

By 1982, Yap had acquired the company from Menzi. Then, he was elected as Chairman of the Board in 1984 and remained in the seat until his death. Bulletin Publishing Corporation's e-name was changed to Manila Bulletin Publishing Corporation in 1989. By 1990, it became the first newspaper company listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange.

Under Yap's leadership, the newspaper not only expanded its influence but also became a trusted authority on national events and business trends. His approach mirrored that of media titans like William Randolph Hearst, Joseph Pulitzer, and Rupert Murdoch, who built newspaper empires that shaped their respective countries' narratives.

Beyond the Manila Bulletin, Yap acquired and expanded several other national and vernacular publications, including Liwayway, Bannawag, Bisaya, and Hiligaynon. These publications reached a broad audience across various regions, ensuring that news and information were accessible to Filipinos from all walks of life.

In 1988, his eldest son, Emilio Jr., started a pharmaceutical company called Euro-Med. Yap acquired a majority share at the Manila Hotel in 1995, then added Centro Escolar University to his business portfolio in 2002.

When the family patriarch died in 2014, his businesses and stakes were distributed to the family. Basilio, Emilio’s son, has taken the helm of the family’s vast business empire.

The Yap family, as of September 2023, owns 78.09% of Manila Bulletin through their companies, U.S. Automotive Co., Inc., with 54.20% and USAUTOCO Inc. 23.34%. Basilio sits as Manila Bulletin's chairman, while Emilio C. Yap III, Basilio’s nephew and Emilio's grandson, is vice chairman.

As chairman of U.S Automotive Co. and its subsidiaries USAUTOCO, Inc. and Manila Bulletin Publishing Corporation, Basilio oversees a diverse range of enterprises. Under his leadership, the family’s flagship publication, the Manila Bulletin, has shown remarkable resilience.

In 2022, the Manila Bulletin reported a profit surge to P45.2 million, more than double the previous year’s earnings. This growth was driven by increased revenues and a strategic reduction in expenses, highlighting the company's effective cost management.

Basilio also chairs other companies of their family. These include the non-media businesses that were either established or acquired by his father: the Manila Hotel, Manila Prince Hotel Corporation, Centro Escolar University, Philtrust Realty Corporation, Cocusphil Development Corporation, and Seabreeze Enterprises, Inc. He also sits as vice chairman of Euro-Med Laboratories Philippines, Inc. and director of MH F&B Ideas, Inc. and TMH Transport Limousine Services, Inc. He is chairman emeritus of the Philippine Trust Company (Philtrust) Bank.

Outside the Boardroom

One of Yap's most significant legacies was his philanthropic work. In 1997, he was conferred the Noble Knighthood of the Pontifical Order of St. Sylvester by Pope John Paul II. The citation of his Papal Award said: "For the work he had done for the good and the growth of the Church and the promotion of Catholic values."

Upon turning 75 in 2000, he ceased celebrating his birthday and instead donated to various charitable causes, both in the Philippines and internationally.

In 2015, an entire hall at the Philippine Red Cross Tower along EDSA was named after him.

Because of his service in the government, business industry, and civic organizations, Yap received over 400 awards and citations. Philippine and international universities also conferred him 23 honorary doctoral degrees.

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