CEO’s fortune soars $20m in 15 mins as GemLife shares hit ASX
The CEO of over 50s lifestyle resort giant GemLife is having a good day, his personal fortune soared $20m in just 15 minutes after the Queensland company debuted on the ASX – marking an incredible tale from origins in a caravan park.
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Over 50s lifestyle resort giant GemLife’s value soared to more than $1.68bn when its initial share price jumped by 5.8 per cent moments after debuting on the Australian Securities Exchange in what was the biggest listing this year.
Just 15 minutes after its noon launch on Thursday, shares in the Gold Coast company were $4.42 – up from its initial offering of $4.16 – after chief executive Adrian Puljich rang the bell for the start of trading.
The value of the 180.3 million shares snapped up in the public offer shot up from $750m to $797m in the first minutes of trade.
Mr Puljich’s own personal fortune soared $20m in those 15 minutes with the Puljich family’s holdings of 100.2 million shares, held under company PVAP, worth around $442.9m.
On a day when the ASX closed flat, GemLife’s shares finished 4.2 per cent higher at $4.33 and the value of the Puljich’s family’s shares was $433.9m, up $17.1m at the end of the day.
Overall, GemLife’s total 380 million shares on issue took the total value of the company at the end of trading to $1.65bn.
The oversubscribed initial public offering was the biggest in 2025, closing at $780.7m, after GemLife initially tapped investors for $750m. Virgin raised $685m.
The listing marks an incredible journey for the land lease giant which started in a Gold Coast caravan park in 1982 when Mr Piljich’s father Peter – who was a plasterer – noticed a gap in the over-50s housing market which became Living Gems.
Mr Puljich said he was confident he had outlined the case strongly to investors with GemLife’s vertically integrated model making it unique when compared to other ASX-listed land lease over 50s lifestyle communities companies.
“That gives us a commercial advantage. We are the largest operator with a guaranteed pipeline of new homes which we will responsibly deliver in coming years,” he said.
“Today marks a major milestone for GemLife as we begin life as a publicly traded company.
“It reflects the hard work and dedication of the entire GemLife team over the past eight years and pays tribute to the decades of entrepreneurial groundwork laid by my father – a legacy that helped inspire my own path with GemLife, building something new that redefines what over-50s living could look like.
“While today we take a moment to celebrate, our focus remains firmly on our residents and delivering on the future growth of our business.”
The IPO will give GemLife the funds it needed to clear around $400m in debt and $270m to buy Mr Puljich’s Aliria Resorts – adding 3325 home sites – including 921 DA-approved, 329 under construction and a number of sites in Queensland and NSW to its expanding national footprint.
Post IPO and with the Aliria acquisition GemLife will have 32 communities and projects in its pipeline and 9836 sites across Queensland, NSW, Victoria and South Australia.
Mr Puljich founded GemLife in 2015 as a joint venture with Singapore-listed investment giant Thakral Corporation which secured a 49.9 per cent stake.
Last year, he reduced Thakral’s stake to 31.7 per cent and after floating on the ASX it will be reduced to about 16.8 per cent.
The Puljich family will own about 26 per cent of the business on listing.
Mr Puljich said that more than ever before, older Australians are healthier, more active, and looking for places that support the way they want to live.
“As GemLife continues to grow, we remain committed to setting the bar high – evolving, innovating, and reshaping what lifestyle resorts can be to suit today’s retirees and downsizers’ expectations and desires,” he said.
“Above all, we’re here to create communities that enrich lives, spark connection and provide an environment where people can live well – with a renewed sense of possibility.
“This mission is at the heart of our business and will guide our strategic thinking as we look to grow.”
Originally published as CEO’s fortune soars $20m in 15 mins as GemLife shares hit ASX
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