Greek real estate businessman Ioannis Papalekas has cemented his position as the second-largest shareholder in Capital Product Partners (CPLP), Evangelos Marinakis’ US-listed company.
Following an initial $160m investment to acquire 18% of the company in late December and further purchases on the open market in early January, Papalekas vehicle Yoda PLC added a further batch of 563,201 common CPLP units between 30 January and 23 February.
The latest buys, revealed in a stock exchange filing on Monday, boost Yoda’s stake to 25.7%.
The Marinakis family remains the largest shareholder by far in the New York-listed gas carrier and container ship owner, with a participation of about 54%.
When it revealed a stake in CPLP in December, Yoda described the move as an “arm’s length” investment as part of a “business plan to further invest and expand its activities in the shipping sector”.
On Monday, the hotel and real estate company listed on the Cyprus Stock Exchange elaborated that it acquired its latest batch of CPLP stock “for investment purposes as [it] believed that such Common Units represent … an attractive investment opportunity”.
Having set out in business in 2019, Nicosia-based Yoda was known until October 2022 as Papaduck Investments.
Papalekas, Yoda’s controlling shareholder, is the founder of the London Stock Exchange-listed real estate company Globalworth Real Estate Investments.
Papalekas, who left Globalworth in December 2020, has been described in the past by the Greek press as the “King of Romanian real estate”. He has also attracted interest for owning the famous Nammos club on the Greek island of Mykonos.
Yoda chief executive Alon Bar is an Israel-born manager experienced in financial services and real estate investment.
According to Yoda’s website, CPLP has not been its only shipping investment. Bulkers have featured in its asset portfolio as well, although it is not clear if this is an ongoing investment or a past one.
CPLP aims to become a pure-play LNG carrier company after eventually shaking off a legacy fleet of 14 container ships.
