Amancio Ortega, the richest man in Spain, owns more than $17.2 billion in real estate across the world.
The founder of fast fashion label Zara brought in 621 million euros through his real estate assets last year, according to Bloomberg. Ortega’s company, Pontegadea, revealed its holdings for the first time this week.
Ortega spent nearly $2.4 billion on property last year and has sunk more than $3 billion into real estate over the last few years.
Among his big buys was last year’s $72.5 million purchase of the Dana Hotel and Spa in Chicago and the purchase of two Seattle office buildings.
His real estate portfolio makes up about a third of his $58.5 billion net worth. Most of his net worth is tied up in his 59.3 percent stake in Zara parent company Inditex SA. He took in more than 1.64 billion euros in Inditex dividends alone last year.
The 84-year-old also made some big investments in energy and telecommunications in recent years.
As is true for many of the world’s wealthiest people, the coronavirus pandemic has negatively impacted Ortega’s finances. His net worth has dropped $16.9 billion since the beginning of the year thanks in large part to a 22 percent drop in Inditex SA’s stock price this year.
He’s still the 14th richest person in the world. Among the 20 richest people in the world, only Warren Buffet has seen his net worth fall by more. [Bloomberg] — Dennis Lynch