Global private equity giants TPG and KKR have invested S$300 million ($220 million) in Southeast Asia’s property technology company PropertyGuru Group, the company said in a press statement on Wednesday.
The transaction involved a combination of primary and secondary funding, according to PropertyGuru. No “Employee Stock Ownership Plans” (ESOP) holdings were involved in this transaction as well.
The fresh funding is expected to accelerate Singapore-based PropertyGuru’s growth strategy in all its key markets, mainly Malaysia and Vietnam. The company operates as Batdongsan.com.vn in Vietnam, DDproperty.com in Thailand, Rumah.com and RumahDijual.com in Indonesia, and PropertyGuru in Singapore.
In 2019, PropertyGuru had clocked 24% year-on-year revenue growth and had a market share of 57% in Southeast Asia.
“Our strong financial performance over the last few years has enabled us to invest aggressively and smartly, to build what is today an integrated and differentiated technology platform that caters to the unique opportunities in Southeast Asian markets,” said Hari V Krishnan, CEO and managing director, PropertyGuru Group.
Currently, the company is trying to tap the rapidly evolving needs of the property ecosystem in Southeast Asia via PropertyGuru Finance, a mortgage marketplace that launched this year; PropertyGuru FastKey, an end-to-end sales enablement solution for property developers; and data capabilities to empower property seekers across Southeast Asia to “find, finance, and own” homes.
“This year, amidst changing business realities, the demonstrable strength of our platforms has solidified our relative market leadership and provides new opportunities to accelerate both organic and inorganic growth with new investments,” said Olivier Lim, chairman, PropertyGuru Group.
According to a recent report by Bain & Company and Facebook, nearly 70 per cent of Southeast Asians are expected to be digital consumers by the end-2020. The dynamic landscape is thus opening new growth opportunities in PropertyGuru’s existing markets to enhance and expand offerings to consumers, property agents, and developers.
KKR has made the latest investment from its KKR Asian Fund III, launched in 2017. The US PE firm had previously invested about S$200 million in PropertyGuru in a Series D round of funding in 2018.
In 2015, California-based TPG along with Emtek Group and Square Peg Capital, invested $175 million in the company.
In October last year PropertyGuru pulled its proposed A$1.2 billion initial public offering on the Australian stock exchange, citing market uncertainty. The company said at the time that TPG and KKR, which together held 58% of shares in the company, were not seeking to sell any shares in the IPO.
