Will large investments in racing pigeons really take off, or could this investment idea just fly away with your money? Europa Trust Company investigates.
Global investment trends are changing at a rapid rate. High-net worth individuals are no longer content with investing money in banks, gold or art. They are now setting new trends with more unusual forms of investment.
Pigeon racing, which can be traced back to 220 AD, is rapidly becoming a serious form of international investment.
Pigeon racing is the sport of releasing specially trained pigeons to “race” back to their homes or race area.
The recent auction of the famous Belgian breeder Leo Heremans, proved that the racing pigeon industry is experiencing a huge international surge of investment in the birds.
The auction generated a world record of €4.3m in bird sales. At the auction a 1-year old pigeon named Bolt, became the world’s most expensive racing bird after being sold for €310,000 (£260,000) to a Chinese businessman.
The auction consisted of 530 racing pigeons and nine of the 10 top birds went to China and Taiwan highlighting a new Far East trend of investment.
China alone now has 300,000 active pigeon fanciers. Breeding pigeons for racing is a serious business with particular attention being focused on bloodlines for performance. At the auction Bolt’s parents fetched a combined total of €184,000.
Nikolaas Gyselbrecht, CEO of the auction house Pipa believes that there is no economic impact on the sale of racing pigeons due to the fact that bidders come from around 20 different countries.
“If there is a crisis in one country, it might be less so in another.” said, Gyselbrecht
The racing pigeon investment trend is seeing profitable returns due to large amounts of prize money in international pigeon racing being offered and even larger returns on the sale of top birds.
The sudden surge of investing in racing pigeons has shifted to the Far East with record amounts being paid for top birds. The birds have become so precious there that most of the purchases are used for breeding only.
Global investment trends change at a rapid rate. High-net worth individuals are no longer content with investing money in standard forms. Investing large sums of money in racing pigeons appears to have taken off in the Far East.
Europa Trust Company Ltd always advises clients to seek professional financial advice before making sudden investments so that their money does not fly away.
