MANILA, Philippines – The grandson of Lucio Tan Sr was appointed to several key positions in the family’s empire after the untimely death of Lucio “Bong” Tan Jr.

Bong’s son Lucio “Hun Hun” Tan III was elected as director of the LT Group, MacroAsia Corporation, PAL Holdings, Philippine Airlines (PAL), and Air Philippines Corporation, according to a disclosure by the companies to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Wednesday, December 18.

The 27-year-old will also serve as president and chief operating officer of Tanduay Distillers.

Tan III graduated summa cum laude from Stanford University in 2015 and has a degree in electrical engineering. He also has a master’s degree in computer science from the same university.

An Inquirer article published in 2015 previously reported that Tan III seemed to have no plans of joining the family conglomerate and was instead headed to join tech giant Apple.

He worked as a software engineer at Lyft before joining the family conglomerate.

The 3rd generation Tan will be crucial in lifting the earnings of embattled PAL, which is still undergoing a leadership revamp.

He will also be responsible for maintaining the market position of Tanduay, which is currently ranked as the best rum in the world. (READ: The evolving spirit of Tanduay)

Tan III will also face challenges in maintaining the family’s tobacco business, amid regulatory tightening, heftier taxes, and the rise of e-cigarettes in the market. – Rappler.com