Jose Cojuangco - 1960s

1960s

In the 1960s, Cojuangco's bus company and banking arm expanded to open satellite offices all over the country. The Bank of Commerce was the preferred intermediary/ local bank of American companies in Manila. He then divested from Bank of Commerce less than a month before the stockholder's meeting to avoid the embarrassing situation of being unseated by his brother Itoy, his nephew Danding and his other nephew Monching, who wanted greater influence in the bank. Afterwards, he opened First United Bank. With perseverance First United became a major bank under his helm.

Due to the geographical proximity of his Hacienda Luisita and the Paniqui Sugar Mills which he managed on behalf of the entire family, there were times when more than 90% of all raw sugar milled in central Luzon were processed through Cojuangco-owned companies. The Cojuangco family owned so much land in Central Luzon that they could dictate the price of rice and non-Visayan sugar.