Sharon Cuneta, 58, made big bucks as a celebrated movie star, but it was her smart investments that grew her money and made her a billionaire.
At a media junket for the fifth anniversary celebration of In Life Sheroes held at The Peninsula Manila, the Megastar disclosed that it was her father Pablo Cuneta who taught her how to handle her earnings well.
When PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) asked if she remembers when she made her first million, Sharon answered, smiling, “I was 15, 16.”
It was her talent fee for her very first movie, Dear Heart, which she co-headlined with Gabby Concepcion in 1981.
Sharon explained, “Coz I started singing at 12. I did my first movie at 15.
“At that time, I was [the highest-paid] newbie. I was being paid the suweldo of a superstar that time.
“Coz my dad gave that price for Dear Heart thinking they would say, ‘Sobra naman.’ E, kinol. So, biglang napilitan, happily.
“So, I really saved it. My parents didn’t touch my money.”
Since then, Sharon said she really made it a point to invest her earnings.
PEP.ph asked again, when did she make her first billion?
Sharon initially answered that it was at the age of 30, when she married former Senator Kiko Pangilinan.
Then she clarified that she was in her early to mid-30s when she earned her first billion pesos, finally crossing it off her bucket list.
“I answered I made my first billion before I married Kiko — mali pala ako!” Sharon explained in a text message sent out to the select entertainment editors who interviewed her at the junket.
“I was making a mental list of my savings’ timeline. When I got home, ngek.
“First million dollars at around 24.
