The Luksic family, South America’s wealthiest with a combined fortune of about $25 billion, is reaping the benefits of a bet on global shipping and port logistics more than a decade after it first entered the industry.
An initial 2011 investment by its holding company Quinenco SA in Chilean shipping firm Compania Sud Americana de Vapores SA, or CSAV, was met with skepticism from analysts and investors after it initially posted steep losses. The family stepped in to put up more than half of a $1.2 billion capital raise in 2012, and executives had to negotiate waivers with banks and bondholders to spin off its tugboat fleet.
Quinenco progressively increased its stake in CSAV, which struck a deal in 2014 to merge its operations with Hamburg-based Hapag-Lloyd. CSAV now owns 30% of the world’s fifth-largest shipper, and the pandemic-fueled bonanza in the industry caused by clogged supply chains and surging freight rates has paid out handsomely.
Read the full story on Bloomberg here.