Equity-based Crowdfunding for 5-star Resort Weissenhaus Grand Village & Spa by the Sea

BERLIN - July 10, 2014 - PRLog -- On 15 July at noon, the crowdfunding platform Companisto (www.companisto.com) will start its first real estate financing round.   Two years after the pre-launch and two weeks after the grand opening of the superlative five-star-superior resort Weissenhaus Grand Village Resort & Spa, which is situated directly by the Baltic Sea, everyone may invest in the luxury resort founded by internet millionaire and major investor Jan Henric Buettner.

A "Paradise at the Baltic Sea"

Situated in the middle of nature, directly by the Baltic Sea, and only 100 km north of Hamburg, a village that had existed for more than 400 years has been turned into a superlative luxury resort – Weissenhaus Grand Village Resort & Spa – over the last nine years.

On the 75-hectare area of Weissenhaus directly by the Baltic Sea, more than 40 historic buildings ranging from a castle and a reeds barn to a boathouse have been extensively restored. No matter whether they relax in the newly built thermal bath in the castle, which is one of the world's best spas, take a walk at the 3-kilometer beach, or stay in the castle or one of the numerous other buildings, guests at Weissenhaus may experience a very special combination of apparent contradictions: tradition and modernity, authenticity and exclusivity, and 5-star-superior comfort and confident nonchalance rather than outdated conventions.

Invest Together with Internet Millionaire and Major Investor Jan Henric Buettner

Jan Henric Buettner, the owner and founder of Weissenhaus Grand Village Resort & Spa, made a name for himself as early as in the 80s, when he was involved in the application for a mobile telephony license at Axel Springer Verlag (a major German publishing house). In the 90s, he supervised the development of AOL Europe and later became the CEO of AOL Germany among other things. Afterward, Buettner moved to the U.S. and created a group of international venture capital funds (BV Capital/e.ventures), which has invested an amount of more than USD 1bn so far. Moreover, he is an advocate of a rather new type of investment that connects interested investors and exciting projects in a simple way and that does not require any brokers, banks, or funds: equity-based crowdfunding.

To create the five-star-superior resort Weissenhaus Grand Village, which offers guests more than 60 suites and rooms and several restaurants, some of them directly by the sea, Buettner has invested roughly EUR 65m so far; this amount came mostly from his personal assets. However, he has not only adopted new approaches in the construction and operation of the Grand Village Resort, but also in its financing, for he will start an exceptional crowdfunding campaign together with Companisto that will enable all investors to participate in a project of this magnitude for the first time and to call a share of Weissenhaus their own.

"When I went to the U.S. with the idea of becoming a venture capitalist in 1997, this form of corporate financing was still very new in Germany. The same applies to crowdfunding and equity-based crowdfunding today. It is my personal concern to change this situation because it is high time that entrepreneurs and private investors, particularly in Germany, interacted directly with each other without having to rely on outdated bank or investment company structures," Buettner explained.

Starting on 15 July 2014, everyone interested may profit from the success of the luxury resort via the crowdfunding platform Companisto. Investors who purchase Weissenhaus shares on Companisto will receive a fixed interest rate of 4 % p.a. and participate in the revenue of the resort and in increases in the value of the property. Investments are guaranteed by a land charge on the property and by Buettner's private assets.

In regard to the structure of the shares, Weissenhaus and Companisto have paid particular attention to putting investors, the owner, and his co-investor Andreas von Blottnitz on an equal footing and completely harmonizing their interests without any hidden costs, e.g., for banks or investment companies.

Companisto is the first major equity-based crowdfunding platform to offer real estate financing

So far, Companisto has solely offered investments in young companies, but the platform is now offering an entirely new class of assets. Investors will thus be able to add another asset class to their portfolio in order to diversify it. At the same time, Companisto is demonstrating that equity-based crowdfunding is also suitable for the realization of large projects and for investments in businesses that are not considered start-ups. Moreover, an investment in Weissenhaus offers calculable annual returns and payouts and is thus a true alternative to other investments in times of low interest rates.

Participate in the crowdfunding campaign at www.companisto.com/weissenhaus from its beginning at noon on 15 July.

For press materials on Weissenhaus, please see: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/4pmfpacnfcht3t8/AAAjY3GtWOHkb5...