Sy was 94 years old.
“[He] passed away peacefully in his sleep early Saturday morning,” according to a statement released by one of the conglomerate’s officials, adding that the particulars of the retail magnate’s wake and interment were still being worked out.
Sy had been the country’s richest man for 11 years in a row, according to Forbes magazine, which estimates his net worth at $19 billion.
He was the founder of the SM Group and was the chairman emeritus of SM Prime Holdings Inc., SM Development Corporation, and Highlands Prime Inc., BDO Unibank Inc., and honorary chair of China Banking Corporation.
First SM store
Sy opened the first ShoeMart store in 1958 and has since evolved into a conglomerate with three main lines of businesses – retail, banking, and property.
He was also a generous donor to charitable causes, allotting millions of pesos each year to finance the college scholarships of thousands of deserving but underprivileged Filipino youth, among others.
Sy changed the Philippine landscape with his shopping mall empire, turned SM into a household brand and malling into a national past time, and redefined the limits of banking.
“He was a happy man knowing that he left our world a better place to live in,” SM Investments Corp. chair Jose Sio said in a text message.
Read the original article on elevenmyanmar.com.
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