The Lopez Heritage. Few families in the Philippines have had a history as colorful and as successful as the Lopezes. Since their beginnings in Iloilo in the early 1800's, the Lopez family has espoused business excellence, nationalism, and social responsibility. In business, they demonstrated an extraordinary resilience, staging tremendous comebacks from adversity. Under their present leader, Oscar M. Lopez, the Lopez Group is poised To reap even more success in the new millennium.

The Lopez family became sugar magnates in the 1860's, led by the first Eugenio Lopez. Kapitan Eugenio, as he was known, was famous for helping the poor and coming the rescue of starving peasants.

His most famous descendants were the brothers Eugenio and Fernando Lopez. Eugenio was a business pioneer, nationalist, and philanthropist. Fernando would be elected senator of the Republic three times, and then become vice-president for three terms.

ABS-CBN Broadcasting Corporation

With the declaration of Martial Law in September 1972, the family was targeted by the dictatorship because of its denunciations of Marcos's corruption. The regime shut down ABS-CBN and the Chronicle. To force Don Eugenio to hand over his business empire, the regime arrested his son Geny on trumped-up charges of conspiring to assassinate the president. With his son held hostage, Don Eugenio was forced to give up his holdings in a group of companies worth several hundred million dollars. But Geny was not released from prison; Don Eugenio had been double-crossed. He died of cancer in San Francisco in 1975. In 1977, Geny and his cellmate, Serge Osmeña escaped from prison in Fort Bonifacio. They made their way to the United States, where they were active in the anti-Marcos opposition.

The Lopez family fortune was in ruins. But after the EDSA Revolution, the brothers Geny, Oscar and Manolo Lopez rebuilt it. They made ABS-CBN the No. 1 network again, a position it has never relinquished. They retook control of Meralco and First Philippine Holdings. In 1993, the Lopez brothers created Benpres Holdings, the new family flagship. Since then, Benpres Holdings has ventured into strategic new areas, such as water, telecommunications, highways, land development and power generation. In 1999, the publicly listed Lopez companies constituted almost 10% of the PHISIX, with a total of P180B in market capitalization.

First Philippine Holdings Corporation Benpres Holdings Corporation

But the Lopez family believes that it is in business for more than just profit. The late Geny Lopez said: "I have always believe that public service is the only reason for our existence. Profit alone is not enough of a reason to exist. But if we can serve people, then our growth and our success will follow. If we take care of our customers, then they will take care of us. That is the kind of culture a company should have."

The Lopez family pursues public service in many ways. In 1960, Don Eugenio established the Lopez Memorial Museum, which aims to preserve the historical, artistic and literary heritage of the Filipino race. In 1968, the Eugenio Lopez Foundation donated the buildings of the Asian Institute of Management, the premier school of management in the region.

ABS-CBN Foundation Bantay Bata 163 Bantay Kalikasan

The Philippine Asia Foundation, under the leadership of Presentacion Lopez Psinakis, sends poor children to school. Geny's daughter Gina heads the ABS-CBN Foundation, which espouses many causes, including the fight against child abuse, through Bantay Bata 163. It also supports environmental protection through Bantay Kalikasan and the struggle against poverty through the Communities in Crisis program. The Lopez future is bright. Geny's son Gabby, chairman of ABS-CBN, has transformed the network into a vertically integrated entertainment and information company. Oscar's son Piki is deeply involved in the power side of the business. The two cousins are poised to carry on the legacy handed down by their forebears—the values of business excellence, nationalism, and social responsibility—the values that the Lopez family has upheld for nearly 2000 years. Don Eugenio established the first airline in Asia, became a media mogul feared and respected by the corrupt, and acquired and ran Meralco, the country's largest power utility. In buying Meralco in 1962, Don Eugenio demonstrated his belief that Filipinos could manage businesses even better than Americans. During 1962-72, he increased Meralco's power generating capacity five times. At the same time, Don Eugenio created a new corporate culture among Meralco's employees that stressed customer service and integrity. He also became legendary for his care and concern for his employees. He liked to say: "If you want to make money, give it away."

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Lopez Memorial Museum » Eugenio Lopez Foundation, Inc. : Heritage