What does Prem Watsa gain from Greek tourism

Prem Watsa expects to reap the rewards of his investment in Greek tourism through Grivalia Hospitality, more than a decade after entering the real estate sector.

The journey of Grivalia Hospitality is expected to be profitable in the coming years, as its projects generate income. In 2022, Grivalia Hospitality reported operational losses of €28.5 million and net losses of €39.2 million, mainly due to the fact that "the majority of projects are in the development and construction phase," as stated by the management in the release of the previous year's financial results. Revenues from Amanzoe in Porto Heli, which was fully acquired by Grivalia Hospitality in the first quarter of 2023, reached €31.2 million last year, a 9.6% increase compared to 2021. Of this amount, €12.4 million came from the operation of the Amanzoe hotel and €7.9 million from the resort's dining facilities.

Fairfax, owned by the Canadian billionaire of Indian origin, had announced the acquisition of 15% of Eurobank Properties' shares, later renamed Grivalia Properties AEEAP (it was listed on the Greek Stock Exchange until 2018), with an investment of €43 million. Ten years later, Prem Watsa controls 100% of Grivalia Hospitality, which serves as the tourism real estate arm of Grivalia.

The deal that brought full control of Grivalia Hospitality to Fairfax took place on July 5, 2022. Up until that point, the company was jointly owned by Eurobank S.A. (25%), Eurolife ERB Insurance Group (25%), and the British fund M&G Investment Management Limited (50%). Since then and up to the present day, Fairfax has injected liquidity into the company, with two increases in share capital. On July 11, 2022, it was decided to increase the share capital by €15.13 million, and on March 24, 2023, a further increase of €59.37 million was approved.

The "security" it provides to the management of Grivalia Hospitality has been discussed by George Chrysikos, the company's CEO, who established the Grivalia Hospitality platform in 2015 with the goal of attracting capital to Greece's high-end tourism sector. "We have a major shareholder who supports us both financially and psychologically," he said, referring to the possibility of Grivalia Hospitality going public to raise capital.

Moreover, Prem Watsa's support for the executives of the luxury resort development company is evident. In 2022, a new stock distribution program for Grivalia Hospitality and Grivalia Management executives, amounting to €20 million, was approved. Watsa's mention of George Chrysikos in March 2023, before Fairfax shareholders, highlighted the significance by stating, "We gratefully add the name of George Chrysikos to the name of Richie Boucher from Bank of Ireland, who was our first billion-euro person."

Building a €1 billion resorts portfolio

Since September 2022, the headquarters of Grivalia Hospitality has been relocated from Luxembourg to Greece, with the management indicating that this move reflects confidence in the prospects of the Greek economy. One of the company's significant projects in the pipeline is the redevelopment of Asteria Glyfada, where it will operate a hotel and villas under the management of One & Only. This project, valued at approximately €300 million, is set to kick off this current quarter.

Furthermore, in Voula, the company is planning to establish a luxury camping (or glamping, as it's called, representing the new trend in alternative tourism) site managed by the Greek hotelier Domes. Additionally, Grivalia Hospitality has made investments of nearly €19 million in Petali, where it will construct a luxury resort that will mark the arrival of the Six Senses chain (a member of Intercontinental) in Greece. The goal is for the resorts portfolio to soon reach a value of €1 billion.