From Our Print Edition

Spanish billionaire Amancio Ortega, the 24th richest person in the world, revealed last month that his family’s investment company Pontegadea had purchased five warehouses in the U.S. worth about $722 million, reports Bloomberg. Strategically located in five states — Tennessee, South Carolina, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Texas — the properties are leased long-term to companies such as Amazon, FedEx, Nestlé, TJX and Home Depot.

According to FreightWaves, Ortega is the latest large real estate investor looking to cash in on the booming U.S. logistics real estate market, joining heavy hitters such as Prologis, Elion and CBRE. Experts say the U.S. will need to add nearly 1 billion square feet of warehouse space by 2025 to meet growing demand. But as capacity dwindles and property values rise, small firms are selling to big investors like Ortega for top dollar. As a result, the logistics real estate market is dominated by real estate magnates who then rent those properties for a premium to companies in desperate need of capacity.