Vanguard Properties emerged from an unlikely beginning in October 2015, when Luso-Swiss investor Claude Berda visited Lisbon and, within days, decided to invest heavily in Portuguese real estate. Together with José Cardoso Botelho, a seasoned entrepreneur in Portugal's property sector, Berda founded the company in 2017. Their partnership combined substantial financial backing from Berda's European family office with Botelho's intimate knowledge of the local market.
Berda had previously built his wealth through AB Group, a major French audiovisual content company he sold in 2017, and later became Switzerland's largest private real estate player with a portfolio generating over 950 million Swiss francs in annual rents. The company made its first Portuguese acquisition in March 2016, moving rapidly to secure assets before prices climbed further.
By 2025, Vanguard Properties operates 22 urban and tourist projects across Lisbon, Oeiras, Algarve, and Comporta, representing a total investment exceeding 1.2 billion euros. The portfolio spans approximately 1,027,781 square meters of gross building area above ground. Projects include Castilho 203, a renovated office building converted into luxury residences, and Tomás Ribeiro 89, a 15-million-euro rehabilitation of a 1920s building in Avenidas Novas featuring seven floors with individual apartments priced between 1.5 and 3 million euros.
The developer employs over 60 specialized staff and maintains banking relationships with multiple Portuguese institutions including Millennium BCP and Caixa Geral de Depósitos. In 2019, Alexandre Berda joined the company, ensuring family continuity in Portuguese operations.