Hans Sy, President and Chief Executive Officer of SM Prime Holdings Inc. (SMPHI), has decided to go on an extended hiatus.
 
This  was confirmed by Teresita Sy-Coson, vice chairperson of SM Investments Corp. (parent company of SMPHI), who said: “He wants to have more free time for himself and his organization is developed enough to take on many of his responsibilities.”
 
Sy-Coson added that the new SMPHI president is Jeffrey C. Lim, who served as  SMPHI executive vice president and SM Development Corp. president.
 
In a Facebook post shared by SM executive Chiqui Torres Tan, she wrote: [Hans Sy] “honored his family last night, the ones who lovingly stood by him as he tirelessly built one mall after another, and surprised us all with the announcement of his semi-retirement.

Photo courtesy of Chiqui Torres Tan via Facebook

 “It is time to stop and smell the roses,” Sy reportedly said on Saturday (July 2, 2016) during the annual gathering he hosts for SM company executives. This year, the party was held at the newly opened Conrad Manila Hotel in Pasay City.
 
Sy has been president of SMPHI since 2004. He also holds several key positions in SM subsidiaries and affiliates.
 
Under his helm, SMPHI has grown into one of the largest integrated property developers in Southeast Asia. It started as a mall developer and operator and grew to be the biggest retail shopping center developer and operator in the country. At present, SMPHI has 58 malls in and outside Metro Manila and six shopping malls in China.
 
All the property businesses of the SM Group are also folded into SMPHI through affiliates and subsidiaries. SMDC is the residential business component that sells affordable condominium units. SM Prime’s commercial business units, the  Commercial Property Group is engaged in the development and leasing of office buildings in Metro Manila, as well as the operations and management of buildings and other land holdings such as Mall of Asia Arena within the SM Bay City complex in Pasay City. Its hotels and convention centers business unit develops and manages various hotel and convention centers across the country such as the SMX convention centers, Radisson Blu, Conrad Manila, Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay, among others.