Andrew Tan was born in Fujian province China in 1952, the son of a factory worker. While still a child, his family moved to Hong Kong, sharing an apartment with several other families. In his late teens, he moved to the Philippines, and attended the University of the East in Manila where he graduated in accountancy.

After graduation, Andrew Tan embarked on his business career, founding Alliance Global Group. He started by developing large apartment complexes in and around Manila. Over the years, the business’ interests have diversified, and under the Alliance umbrella, there are several distinct companies.

Megaworld Corporation is the real estate arm, concentrating on developing condominiums. Suntrust Properties and Empire East Land Holdings Inc subsidiaries. Emperador Distillers, Inc is a distillery best known for its Emperador Brandy. Its innovative advertising helped make it the best-selling brandy in the world in 2006. Golden Arches Development Corporation runs the franchises for McDonald’s in the Philippines.