Andres Soriano

Who was Andres Soriano?

Andrés Soriano, Sr., also known as Col. Andres Soriano, was a Spanish Filipino businessman. He was a leader of the Philippine Falange during the late 1930s until he applied for Filipino citizenship.

He was best known for expanding the original San Miguel Brewery that became San Miguel Corporation. He also established philanthropies and encouraged good employee relations by sharing profits with his more than 16,000 employees by establishing a pension plan that paid retired employees 25% of their salary, with guaranteed sick leaves and medical benefits. He was also known as the founder of Philippine Airlines, Asia's first air carrier. In 1935, during commonwealth era, Soriano established Commonwealth Insurance Company, a non life insurance company.

Soriano served as secretary of finance, agriculture and commerce during the wartime cabinet of the Quezon administration. Soriano also served with USAFFE and later as a colonel on General Douglas MacArthur’s staff in the Southwest Pacific Theater.