Valter Mainetti

Biography

He graduated in 1973 in Political Science at the Sapienza University in Rome, with Aldo Moro as his thesis supervisor.

In the mid-seventies he began working in the family businesses, in activity since the beginning of the 1900s in Italy and the United States, operating within the industry of iron construction and real estate. His maternal grandfather, Luigi Binda, had in fact founded a company in New York City in 1919 specialized in the assembly of iron structures (amongst the work carried out there are also the Chrysler Building and the expansion of the New York Stock Exchange). Even his paternal family’s company had been involved, since 1910, in the realization of works in iron, and then following World War II began building mechanical and industrial plants, such as the Sincrotrone in Frascati, the Alfa Romeo in Arese, the Steelworks in Terni and Taranto.

In 1987 he assumed the leadership of SAGEFIM Partecipazioni Spa, the parent company of the real estate business. The company's activities had gradually been oriented towards social housing.

In 1999, with the introduction in Italy of the law on real estate funds, he completely restructured the businesses both in Italy and in the US under the brand Sorgente Group, which he conceived, directing the activities towards real estate finance and the acquisition of iconic buildings.

As CEO of Sorgente Sgr, in 2001 he launched the first real estate fund, "Michelangelo", intended for institutional investors, with portfolio investments in prestigious real estate such as the Chrysler Building and Flatiron Building in New York City; in 2009 through the Donatello Fund he acquired the Galleria Colonna in Rome, renamed Galleria Alberto Sordi; followed in 2012 by the Fine Arts Building in Los Angeles and in 2013 the Clock Tower of Santa Monica.

Today he is the major shareholder of Sorgente Group Alternative Investment (US) that includes Sorgente Group SpA (Italia), Sorgente Group of America (US), Main Source (Luxembourg) and Holding Star (UK). The Group operates in the finance, real estate, investment management, infrastructures, restoration works, hotels and clinics, communications and publishing. Furthermore, Sorgente Group owns 30% of 'Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno'. By means of a subsidiary called 'Musa Comunicazione', the Group also holds 100% shares of the newspaper ‘Il Foglio Quotidiano’ and 40% shares of ‘Tempi’.

Sorgente Group manages an asset of more than €5 billion.

In June 2013 he was honored in Italy with the title “Cavaliere del Lavoro” for the Real Estate and Finance Industry sector; is the first time that an entrepreneur operating within real estate finance receives the Cavalierato title.

He received on December 16, 2016 the title of Honorary Professor from the University of Parma in “Corporate Finance and Real Estate”, for his long standing collaboration with the university (he has been Professor at the University of Parma for 10 years).

The relationship with art

Mainetti is a collector of ancient artworks.

Together with the Fondazione Sorgente Group, of which he is president, he collects classical sculptures and antique paintings, as well as committed to the recovery of Italian artworks acquired abroad, with the aim of promoting Italian cultural heritage by organizing exhibitions and events in partnership with Italian and foreign institutions and museums.

Publishing Activity

In April 2016 Valter Mainetti acquired a 97.48% stake in the publishing company of the newspaper Il Foglio through Musa Comunicazione, a company of Sorgente Group, of which he is the majority shareholder and CEO.

Honors and awards