Who is building Bulgaria – foreign investment in the country’s economy.
- The Bulgarian real estate market has long ceased to be “local” – foreign money is increasingly behind new hotels, resort complexes, and urban neighborhoods. But who exactly is investing and how is the market divided among them?
Big capital: top 3 investor countries
Looking at the official statistics on foreign direct investment (FDI), the picture is as follows: in 2024, Bulgaria received about €1.5 billion in FDI. According to the Bulgarian National Bank, the largest investors by volume were:
- Austria – €426.7 million
- Greece – €295.1 million
- Italy – €245.9 million
If we convert this into approximate shares of the total FDI of €1.5 billion, we get:
- Austria – about 28% (426.7 / 1,500 ≈ 28.4%)
- Greece – about 20% (295.1 / 1,500 ≈ 19.7%)
- Italy – about 16% (245.9 / 1,500 ≈ 16.4%)
The remaining 36% is accounted for by other countries (Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, etc.).
- Important: FDI statistics provide a picture of the entire economy, not just hotels and residential complexes. However, in previous years, real estate and real estate transactions accounted for about a quarter of all FDI (about 24% according to an earlier study of the investment structure). Therefore, it is reasonable to say that
Austrian, Greek, and Italian capital are among the key sources of money for large development and hotel projects in Bulgaria.
