The majority shareholder of the Jeronimo Martins group, the operator of the Biedronka chain, the Soares dos Santos family lost almost 1.6 billion euros on the Lisbon Stock Exchange in 2024. However, it still remains the richest family in Portugal.
As the Portuguese newspaper “Negosios” calculated on Wednesday, the stock market assets of the Soares dos Santos family are currently worth 6.75 billion euros. A famous representative of the family, which has more than 56%. The shares of Biedronka operator are Pedro Soares dos Santos, head of the Jeronimo Martins group.
“Negosios” noted that although no other Portuguese family lost as much money on the Lisbon Stock Exchange in 2024 as the main shareholders of the Jeronimo Martins Group, Soares dos Santos remains Portugal’s richest family.
Geronimo Martins
Jeronimo Martins is the owner of Biedronka – the largest retail chain in Poland, with stores in more than 1,300 cities, which has been on the Polish market for 29 years. At the end of the first quarter of 2024, it had 3,596 branches.
In addition to the Biedronka chain operating in the Polish market, the main source of income of the Jeronimo Martins group, this investor develops among others: the retail chains Pingo Doce in Portugal and Ara in Colombia.
Overall, as calculated by the Lisbon newspaper, the stock market assets of Portugal’s six richest families decreased last year. It increased by 7.7 percent compared to 2023. These families include: shareholders of “Mota-engil” and “Sonae”, which also operate in the Polish market.
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