It may not seem like it, but during a 20-minute walk in Brickell, the financial center of Miami, one can come across several skyscrapers owned by Spanish families. One of them is the Llorens family, ranked 27th on the Spanish rich list. Originally from Tárrega, they own Epsa Internacional, one of the most discreet multinational companies in Spain. Epsa is involved in earthmoving for mines and infrastructure, but they discovered that besides moving earth, they could also buy and develop properties. This is how they operate in the USA, where their real estate activity amounts to 560 million, mostly in Florida.
In their own way, Spanish wealthy individuals have embarked on the conquest of the USA. About twenty major fortunes have accumulated 11.053 billion in real estate investments in the country, mostly in the form of offices, logistics warehouses, and large hotels. Surnames like Losantos, Masaveu, Riu, Suqué, Portabella, or Moratiel accompany Amancio Ortega, the spearhead of the opulent Spanish fleet. The Galician magnate holds properties worth 6.7 billion in the country, 30% of his portfolio.
In the heart of Miami's wealthiest neighborhood lies Brickell Key, an island in the bay where, like in Indian Creek - where Julio Iglesias owns a house and several plots (for sale) - one can only access by a bridge. On the islet stands Le Courvoisier Centre (or Brickell Key Center), the North American headquarters of the Asturian Masaveu family and the first of the buildings they acquired back in 2015. The Masaveu family are partners of EDP and Bankinter, they manufacture cement, wines, deal with timber in the Amazon, but above all, they buy real estate in the USA.
Over the past decade, they have accumulated seven buildings in the country: five office buildings (in Dallas, Miami, Houston, and Washington) and two hotels (in Los Angeles and San Diego), "all of the highest quality and in prime locations," as stated by the Masaveu Corporation, along with 2,301 parking spaces. In 2023, the Oviedo-based company made its latest transaction in the area, acquiring a 2,000 square meter plot in Brickell that, they claim, "presents high potential for a future development project."
Unaffected by Trump's tariff policies, Spanish capital values the legal security, dynamism, and numerous opportunities of the American market. Individually, several of the Masaveu Herrero brothers have their own investments. Fernando Masaveu, the family's visible head, invests 42 million euros, for example, in Boston and Miami through the company Moresna LLC and its 13 subsidiaries.
It may be a historical stubbornness, but Florida and Miami, the fifth city in the USA, are the main entry point for Spanish wealthy individuals. It was there that Amancio Ortega began his American adventure two decades ago and where he established his operations center, at the Southeast Financial Building, a 55-story building at 200 Biscayne Boulevard, housing the office of Patricia Alonso, his operations director in the subcontinent. For Ortega, Miami is his second base - after Seattle - with four major properties and an investment of 1.32 billion.
In the Miami area, the Moratiel family is another major investing family. Their current wealth was built through the sale of the transport company Auto Res. A significant portion of the proceeds were allocated to real estate in the USA through their holding company MDR Americana LLC, investing 227 million (2023), mainly in offices, retail spaces, and residential properties.
Prior to the pandemic, the Suqué family, owners of casinos and wineries in Catalonia and Latin America, joined the real estate assault by acquiring a boutique hotel, the Axel Beach Miami, with 163 rooms, catering to the LGBTQ community, just a stone's throw from South Beach.
In the same destination, the Canarian-German Kiessling family reaps the benefits of the Loro Parque aquariums. They have two companies - based in Brickell, of course - valued at 35 million, to which the parent company of their business, Loro Parque SA, has lent an additional 88.5 million.
If Miami is the starting point, Manhattan is the goal. In the same building as the Kiessling family, the Sabadell Financial Center, Allegra Tribeca Inc, the family's real estate companyLosantos Ucha is located. The family of Riojan origin specializes in the Anglo-Saxon market and particularly in the USA, where their investments total 627 million (2023). Mario Losantos and his family are expanding in the logistics sector as landlords for Amazon, Merck, Pfizer, and Fedex, with a dozen warehouses and 1.2 million square meters available, in residential areas and even with a restaurant in New York. In the summer of 2024, they acquired a logistics platform in Austin, Texas.
However, their flagship project is the One Boerum Place building in the Brooklyn neighborhood, considered the first skyscraper in New York built with Spanish capital. Inspired by the iconic Flatiron building, it was constructed between 2016 and 2021 and includes 138 luxury apartments and five commercial spaces. Allegra led the project from scratch, from land acquisition, design, and conceptualization of the building - which houses several art pieces - to construction, marketing, and subsequent management. It cost 249 million euros and in 2024, 40.5 million of the remaining 157 million were paid off. The skyscraper contributes 35% of the 40 million dollars generated by their real estate holdings in the USA.
In New York, the Losantos family has various residential projects, some of which were sold "with significant profits," as stated by the company. Under Alegra Tribeca Inc, their holding company in the country, there are 24 subsidiaries. Apart from New York and the logistics business, Losantos owns a commercial space leased to Fresh Market in Florida and a 2,500 m2 building of lofts for rent in Chicago. In late 2024, Apple backed out of selling its flagship store in Boston (Boylston St) to Allegra for 88 million. Apple retained ownership due to the uniqueness of the property, which included an interior staircase designed by Steve Jobs.
The largest Spanish investment in New York was made by Amancio Ortega in 2022, acquiring the 19 Dutch Tower for 450 million (64 floors). However, it is the siblings Luis and Carmen Riu Güell and their hotel chain Riu Hotels & Resorts that have excelled in the city in recent years. "2024 has been very good, and we expect an equally good 2025," stated Luis Riu, their CEO, during Fitur.