Stockholm-listed investor Vostok New Ventures Ltd has bought 10 percent of Dubai-based Propertyfinder Group for $20 million, valuing the online property portal at $200 million in one of the largest investments of its kind in the Gulf.
Propertyfinder will use the money to expand its sales and marketing operations in the Middle East and North Africa and invest in proprietary technology, the company said in a statement on Monday.
Bermuda-based investment firm Vostok has numerous investments in web-based companies, including stakes in Russian online classified platform Avito, Pakistani property portal zameen.com and Egyptian recruitment website wuzzuf.net, according to Vostok's website.
Propertyfinder Group was founded 10 years ago by Michael Lahyani and operates real estate classifieds platforms in 7 countries across the MENA region. Propertyfinder is headquartered in Dubai, employs more than 150 people and is profitable in its core markets as well as on a group level. For more information on Propertyfinder, please visit www.propertyfinder.ae. Vostok New Ventures’ Managing Director Per Brilioth said, "We are excited to announce our investment into Propertyfinder. We have spent a lot of time mapping out our preferred niche of online marketplaces and classifieds operators in the region and are happy to partner up with Michael and his team at Propertyfinder, which is the clear market leader in UAE and a leader in the MENA-region as a whole. We look forward to support the company and the team in the years to come."The website had secured investment from BECO Capital back in 2014.
New Source: Reuters
