The municipalities of Matosinhos, Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia took centre stage at the 2026 edition of MIPIM 2026, the world’s largest property industry event, held in Cannes. Under the Greater Porto project, the delegation brought together the largest business delegation ever, comprising 23 sector-specific companies and political and technical representatives from the three municipalities, with the aim of promoting this Atlantic Front as a strategic hub for investment in housing, urban regeneration and sustainable projects.

A strategic delegation
The delegation included companies such as Chave Nova, Glowing+Krest, Keo, Avenue, Casais, Emerge, Mota-Engil Real Estate Developers, Garcia Garcia, Geo Investimentos, Lionesa Business Hub, Orien, Promiris/GaiaHills/Quadra, VPM Real Estate, Alma Development, ASL Engineering for People, Castro Group, Horizonte, IDS, Lencastre Advogados, MassLab, Mome, Mutant ArchitectureDesign, Omega Group and Réplica Real Estate, reflecting the diversity and innovative capacity of the region’s business community.
The political delegation included figures such as Marta Pontes, Councillor for Trade and Investment for the Municipality of Matosinhos; Hugo Beirão, Councillor for the Economy and Entrepreneurship, Mobility and Transport, and Tourism and Internationalisation for the Municipality of Porto; Luís Archer, Executive Board Member of Porto Vivo SRU; Pedro Meira, Municipal Director of the Mayor’s Office of the Municipality of Vila Nova de Gaia; and Amorim Pereira, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Gaiurb.

MIPIM: a showcase of impressive figures
The 2025 edition of MIPIM once again established itself as one of the global property sector’s leading events, bringing together over 20,000 delegates from 90 countries. One of the highlights of the event was the strong presence of institutional investors. Around 5,000 investors attended the event, including 50 fund managers. In total, the investors present represented approximately €4 trillion in assets under management, demonstrating the financial scale and significance of the event for the global flow of capital in the property sector. With these impressive figures, MIPIM 2025 reaffirmed its status as an essential forum for bringing together global capital, public decision-makers and property developers, helping to foster partnerships, identify trends and guide the development of the international property market in the coming years.

Greater Porto’s agenda: networking and opportunities
Greater Porto began its participation in MIPIM 2026 with a programme that included institutional events, strategic reflection on the future of cities, and presentations of Portuguese property projects to international investors.
The official opening of the event featured a speech by economist Philippe Aghion, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2025. A world-renowned expert on the dynamics of innovation and economic growth, Aghion opened the 36th edition of the event with an analysis of the economic and technological transformations that are redefining global competitiveness and the development of the cities of the future.
For MIPIM participants, the presentation offered a strategic perspective on key issues for the property sector and urban development, namely the role of innovation and technology in promoting more sustainable and resilient cities, the importance of public and private investment in accelerating the ecological and digital transition, and the contribution of public policies to stimulating productivity, strengthening competitiveness and promoting balanced territorial development.
The Greater Porto stand hosted several presentations by the Greater Porto municipalities – Matosinhos, Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia – which showcased projects and investment opportunities to developers, investors and international partners. These sessions formed part of the joint strategy for promoting the region and internationalisation, enhancing the visibility of real estate and urban projects developed in the region.
The Municipality of Matosinhos presented its strategy, positioning itself as the “Atlantic Gateway” and a dynamic economic ecosystem, capable of offering solid opportunities for investment and innovation. The announcement of the Matosinhos Metrobus (BRT) marks a key milestone in a strategic development plan for the north-western corridor of the Porto Metropolitan Area. More than just a means of transport, this project, co-financed by the Just Transition Fund, acts as a catalyst for connectivity, integrating and enhancing a portfolio of property investments and transformative urban projects in the region.
The Metrobus will form the backbone of an integrated planning model, centred on sustainable mobility and decarbonisation, in line with the city’s ambition to achieve carbon neutrality.
The territorial coordination has been strategically designed to ensure connections between Francisco Sá Carneiro Airport, the Port of Leixões, Exponor and new development hubs, leveraging major ongoing projects and strengthening the integration between transport, urban regeneration and private investment.
The Matosinhos ecosystem is further strengthened by the future São Mamede de Infesta (SMI) Metro Line, coordinated with Metro do Porto, which connects structured urban development areas comprising residential zones, business parks, university hubs and green spaces, forming a network that combines quality of life, mobility, productivity and territorial competitiveness.
By consolidating a polycentric, sustainable and well-connected city, Matosinhos reaffirms itself as a territory in transformation, prepared for the future and open to national and international partnerships, with an excellent public transport infrastructure supporting urban regeneration and economic competitiveness. The municipality’s strategic planning it combines urban development with private investment, creating a high-quality city and solid opportunities for investors.
The City of Porto presented the Morro da Sé Student Residence Project at the MIPIM 2026 Municipal Showcase, an initiative focused on urban regeneration to meet the growing demand for student accommodation.
The project involves the renovation of several buildings in the historic centre to create accommodation for around 110 students, whilst helping to revitalise the area and increase the supply of housing for university students.
With around 193,000 students in higher education institutions in the region for the 2024/2025 academic year, the Porto Metropolitan Area faces the challenge of ensuring adequate accommodation for this population. The strategy involves integrating new halls of residence into the urban fabric and enhancing historic areas through regeneration.
According to the developers, ensuring student housing is also an investment in the city’s economic development. By attracting and retaining talent, Porto strengthens its competitiveness and creates the conditions to attract businesses and investment, consolidating its international standing — already recognised on several occasions by the Financial Times.
The municipality of Vila Nova de Gaia began its presentation “Gaia – How do we boost Greater Porto” with a zoom-out of a NASA image, which offered a rare and striking perspective of the area. A view that symbolises unity , the continuity and fluidity of a region that transcends borders and is built collectively, with an innate symbiosis.
Zooming in on the municipality, it reflects its scale and resilience, with unrivalled territorial diversity and an extraordinary capacity for development.
This presentation highlighted the territorial diversity and the main pillars of a structured strategy for sustained growth, aiming to respond to the challenges of the future with a concrete objective: to improve people’s lives, create momentum and opportunities.
The scale of the municipality was highlighted, covering 165 km², with 25 km of riverbank along the Douro and 15 cm of Atlantic coastline, and with over 310,000 inhabitants (2024 estimate), making it the most populous in the Northern region and third largest nationally.
The polycentric urban network, the main national road and rail links, and the strong business presence in the industrial, logistics and commercial sectors are reflected in the distinct potential of five territorial units. The challenge lies in the cohesion of Gaia, offering a horizon of confidence for investment.

Greater Porto’s participation in MIPIM 2026 aimed to consolidate the region’s international standing by promoting an integrated, innovative and competitive urban area within the European real estate investment landscape. Through this joint presence, Greater Porto reinforced its strategy to attract international investment, promote flagship projects and enhance the region’s economic and business ecosystem.