Football legend Lionel Messi’s real estate investment trust (REIT), Edificio Rostower Socimi, has debuted in Spain’s Portfolio Stock Exchange at $59.58 (EUR 57.4) per share, translating into a market capitalization of $232 million, Reuters reported Tuesday.
REIT details
The Argentinian player was named Chairman of the real estate trust, and Messi’s family investment vehicle, Limecu Espana 2010, is the only shareholder, the report showed. The report added that Messi’s wife, Antonella Roccuzzo, is the board’s vice president, while Alfonso Nebot, who runs Messi’s family office, is a member of the board.
Edificio Rostower Socimi owns seven hotels in Spain and Andorra, three office spaces, five apartments in Spain, and apartments in London and Paris. The company was founded in 2013 and posted a $1.76 million loss in 2023.
Most of the company’s investments are in the Spanish region of Catalonia, where the World Cup winner moved in 2000 to join FC Barcelona. Messi lived there until he left the club in 2021 to join France’s Paris St Germain, and he currently plays for Inter Miami. Messi has repeatedly said in the past that he plans to return to live in Barcelona with his family after retiring from football.
Portfolio stock exchange
Portfolio Stock Exchange’s Chief Executive, Santiago Navarro, told Reuters that the trust plans to open up to new investors. He said that the exchange, which launched in 2023 and supervised by the Bank of Spain, only allows trading when a company seeks to sell shares or increase its capital.
Navarro explained that the approach allows greater flexibility and control as well as lower costs compared to traditional initial public offerings, adding that any purchase request order must first be approved by shareholders.
The choice of the Portfolio exchange for Messi’s REIT listing is unusual, as it’s smaller and less well-known than the BME Growth index, which is popular among REITs in Spain, according to a Bloomberg report. Investors usually list REITs in order to meet legal requirements to benefit from the special tax regime in Spain, rather than to raise cash, the report added.
Spain’s government said in November that it plans to increase the corporate tax rate paid by REITs, but failed so far to garner support in parliament for its approval, according to Reuters.
Forbes ranking
Messi is ranked as the world’s third-highest-paid athlete on Forbes’ The World’s Highest Paid Athletes 2024 list, boasting total earnings worth $135 million—of which $65 million were earned on-field as of May of this year.
