Greek Shipping is without a doubt the largest shipping industry on the planet. In recent years, the Greek-owned fleet has exceeded 50% of the world’s tonnage, while the number of ships in the National Register of Shipping has increased significantly since 2019.

Similarly, Maritime Education in our country has been on the rise, which is being modernised, keeps pace with technological developments and now produces competent and qualified staff that can cope with the demands of the times.

These successes are not just coincidental, but one could also describe them as… genetic, since Greek seamanship since ancient times has played a decisive role in the history of our country, in trade, transport, but also in critical battles.

The seafaring of the Greeks probably did not go unnoticed even by the President of the United States, Joe Biden. At his behest, Libra Group Vice President Nikolaos Logothetis joined the USMMA, which is the only federal academy that trains and produces Merchant Marine graduates.

In this role, Nikolaos Logothetis will simultaneously advise the President of the United States, the Secretary of Transportation, and Congress on issues related to the USMMA, a U.S. school vital to its national security and economic strength.

He will serve on a Board that includes 19 members, five of whom are appointed directly by the President. The Board includes four Senators and six members of the House of Representatives.

One of the U.S. Commercial and Military Schools, the USMMA is the only federal academy that trains and produces graduating Merchant Marine officers. With 95% of the world’s goods transported by sea, the U.S. Merchant Marine Corps plays a critical role in the nation’s economy, maritime transportation and national security.
USMMA graduates make up 80% of the officers in the U.S. Navy’s Military Logistics Command Officer Force, considered the backbone of national security for the movement of troops, heavy equipment and supplies.

This particular success of Mr. Logothetis, Vice President of the Libra Group, co-founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Concordia, is also reflected in the company as a whole, which was founded 50 years ago by the Logothetis Family.

The Libra Group (“Libra Group”) is a diverse international business group of 30 operating entities, 20 subsidiaries and 10 independent social programs, currently housed under the umbrella of “Libra Philanthropies”. The Group operates in 60 countries on six continents. It focuses primarily on six business sectors: aviation, energy, hospitality, real estate, shipping and diversified investments. The Group is wholly owned by the Logothetis family.

Because the Libra Group is a family business, family values are valued, but diversity and initiative are also encouraged. Each Libra Group company exercises a significant degree of autonomy as local experience and insight helps to make sound investment decisions and ensures operational efficiency.

The patriarch of the family, Logothetis, is Michael Logothetis, who founded the London-based shipping company Lomar Shipping in 1976.