Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands

The Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands, originally known as La Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas^[1] is the provenance and oldest business institution^[2] in the Philippines, founded in 1886.

The Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands (CCPI) has its origins in the Spanish period from a Royal decree by the king of Spain, Alfonso XII through the Queen Regent Maria Christina when "Cámara" institutions^[1] were throughout the Spanish colonies; and the Camara was established by this decree on April 9, 1886.^[1] On June 17, 1887, its statutes and bylaws were initially approved by the Gobierno Superior of the Philippines, and finally approved by the Queen Regent Maria Cristina on February 9, 1888. Henceforth the Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas held its first General Assembly and elected the following officers on May 24, 1887.

Sr. Don Francisco Godínez succeeded the founding president Sr. Don Joaquín María Elizalde in 1890, followed by Sr. Don José de Echeita in 1895. After the Spanish–American War in 1898 as conflicts subsided, on July 19, 1903, the Camara de Comercio de Manila held a session wherein Sr. Luis Hidalgo, Sr. Teodoro Yangco, Sr. Vicente Somoza and Sr. Faustino Lichauco called forth a meeting to create a Filipino Chamber of Commerce and thus, Cámara de Comercio Filipina was born. In the said meeting, Don Francisco Reyes was elected as the President.

The "Cámara de Comercio Filipina" held its first session and elected Governor General William Howard Taft as the Honorary President. The Chamber ushered advocacies, programs and projects from its founding in 1886, towards edifying the Philippines^[3] as "Pearl of the Orient", a description coined by the Spanish Jesuit historian Juan Delgado in 1751 and phrased by José Rizal in his final poem, "Mi Último Adiós" ^[4][5] for its culture and historical significance.

Martial Law imperatives made the Chamber take a backseat from 1977 until 2014, the year when the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, recognizing its status, bestowed Markers upon the chamber in 3 languages: Spanish, English, and Filipino – the languages that span the Chamber’s existence; thus the Chamber rekindled itself as the "Provenance Chamber of History" with the theme, "History Builds the Future."; and in 2021 the Chamber adopted a continuing guide themed "Navigating the Future as its Work Program advocacy for the coming years."

A chronological listing of the Chamber's presidents and their terms:

Among the founders of the Chamber were representatives of the cross-section of the economy. They were: Don Juan Rodriguez, shipbuilder; Don Miguel Velasco, real estate owner; Sr. Rogaciano Rodriguez, businessman; Sr. Francisco Reyes, banker, who was the first president from 1903-1904; Don Ricardo Aguado, businessman; Sr. Teodoro Yang-co, real estate owner; Sr. Luis Hidalgo, businessman; Don Pedro A. Roxas, real estate owner and businessman; Sr. Rafael Reyes, real estate owner and industrialist; Sr. Tomás Sunico, industrialist; Sr. Vicente Somoza Cua-Peco, real estate owner and businessman; Dr. Aristón Baustista, industrialist; Don Vicente D. Fernández, attorney-in-fact of Don Pedro P. Roxas; Sr. Telésforo Chuy-dian, real estate owner and businessman; Don Bernandino Hernandez, businessman; Sr. Faustino Lichauco, real estate owner and importer; Don Ramón Soriano, real estate owner and importer; Sr. Tomas Argüellles, architect; Sr. Ignacio Sy-yap, businessman; and Don Rafael del Pan, lawyer.

The first organizational meeting of the founders was held at the residence of Don Juan Rodriguez on Calle Vives in Manila's San Nicolas district. It was presided by Don Miguel Velasco. In this meeting, the group adopted "Cámara de Comercio de Manila" as the name of the organization. It was later changed in 1919 to "Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands / Camara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas".^[8]

The change of sovereignty in the country from Spanish to American changed the tenor of business in the islands. Vicente Madrigal, Juan B. Alegre, Jose V. Ramirez, Alfonso M. Tiaoqui, Vicente P. Genato, Manuel E. Cuyugan, Vicente T. Fernandez and other prominent members of the Camara proved themselves leaders in espousing improved business relations in the Philippines.^[9]

On May 3, 1915, the members of the Camara de Comercio Filipinas amended its by-laws, and on June 19, 1915, its Escritura Social was ratified.

By 1919, English began to be used instead of Spanish, thereby the Cámara was also officially referred to in documents as the Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands. On July 17, 1933, During the 3rd session of the 9th Philippine Legislature, the Secretary of Agriculture and Commerce was authorized to sell to the Chamber a land for its building and approved therein on December 6, 1933.^[10] On September 15, 1934, The Chamber was issued title to its own land, and through the contributions of private businesses, the Chamber's 3-storey building, designed by the architect Juan Arellano,^[11] was built and inaugurated in 1937 with Philippine President Manuel Quezon officiating^[1] with then-President Aurelio P. Periquet y Ziálcita.

After the end of World War II, upon the attainment of Philippine independence, on April 6, 1949, the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Department of Commerce and Industry issued a Reconstruction of Records of the Chamber of some lost documents where the Chamber was named as Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas (and henceforth, Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands).^[12]

Before the Chamber’s founding, the necessity for unilaterally voicing the interests of the business community in the Philippines was a dismissive concept. However, manifold concerns confronting the conduct of business emboldened the Chamber towards issues essential to the material progress of the country.

The Chamber’s official publication, named the "Revista de la Cámara de Comercio de las Islas Filipinas" released its maiden issue in 1927, subsidized by Leopoldo R. Aguinaldo (who became a Chamber president), and who later renamed the magazine’s name to "COMMERCE". The change in name was made to identify it as the official organ of the Chamber.

COMMERCE Magazine had two sections for English and Spanish readerships, but was later reformatted into a wholly English language publication. It was printed in a deluxe format, on heavy paper, which made it the most expensive, authoritative and exclusive trade publication in the Philippines.^[9] In January 1952, Dr. Jose R. Katigbak was appointed to manage the magazine, assisted by M.M. de los Reyes. The Board of Editors headed by Dr. Katigbak included Domingo Abadilla and Hilarion Vibal as staff, followed by other prominent members of the Chamber who took turns in running the publication, such as Teofilo Reyes, Hilarion Vibal, Benito Medina, Carlos de Lara and George Yulo.

The publication of COMMERCE was halted during the Philippine Martial Law regime. In 2015, José Luis U. Yulo Jr. (56th President of the Chamber) and Denissa G. Venturanza (Executive Director) decided to revive the publication. Currently, COMMERCE Magazine (Philippines) is issued regularly on a quarterly basis.

• The Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands Historical Marker (English)
• Chamber of Commerce of the Philippine Islands, Intramuros
• Interior of Chamber Building
• Ang Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Foundation, Inc. Historical Marker

• Pearl of the Orient
• Economic Compass Pillars 5 (ECOMP-P5)