Over USD$400 Million Argentine Investment In Florida

I recently returned from a month of mongering in BA, and the Business section of the Miami Herald had an article about the USD$220 million purchase of the beachfront Bal Harbour Club by an Argentine company, Consultatio. Consultatio is owned by Argentine businessman Eduardo Constantini. The article went on to say that Consultatio had also made a 2009 purchase of the former Sonesta Key Biscayne Hotel. The article did not give the price paid for the Key Biscayne property, but I speculate (based on other sales in South Florida and the fact the it was a beachfront hotel) that Consultatio paid at least USD$150 million for the Key Biscayne property. The Key Biscayne property is being developed into over 150 condos, starting at USD1. 6 million each. Construction is slated to finish in 2014. The Bal Harbour project will feature approximately 250 condos priced at more than USD$2. 0 million each. The article also stated that the two Miami purchases were the first USA expansion for the Argentine firm.

Coming at a time when the Argentine economy is characterized by high inflation, import controls, a thriving black market in dollars, dumb politicians, etc. In other words the economy is in the toilet. These two purchases raise some interesting questions and / or speculation:

1. Who is Eduardo Constantini?

2. Who are the investors in Consultatio?

3. Where did the USD that Consultatio paid for the Florida properties come from?

4. What are the political connections of Mr. Constantini?

5. Does Consultatio plan to sell many of the condos to wealthy Argentines (real estate is harder to trace than bank accounts, and much safer than under a mattress)?

6. If conditions, and the political situation, were different, would Concultatio make some, or all, of the investment in Argentina rather than the USA?

The above come immediately to mind. I am sure that the readers of this forum have many others.

Tres3

The Argentine government will hide those secrets better than Eric Holder hides information implicating his and his boss' complicity in over 2500 felonies.