UAE property startup pulls in $20m investment round

UAE-based property portal Bayut has announced the completion of a US$20-million Series C funding round, building on the US$9-million Series B round it secured towards the end of 2015.

According to a press release sent to Ventureburn, the funding comes from the company’s existing investors, a fund which focuses on frontier and emerging markets with over US$ 1 billion in assets under management. The investment has gone into Bayut’s parent company Emerging Markets Property Group (EMPG), formerly Zamzama Property Group, which also controls Pakistani property play Zameen.com.

According to Bayut CEO Haider Ali Khan, the funding round will be used to consolidate the company’s position in the UAE as well as to aid its expansion into the Middle East.

“Bayut has been a strong player in the Emirates from the get-go, and with this new funding we’re perfectly poised to further propel the portal and establish an equally strong presence in the rest of the region,” he said.

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“We have the top minds of the global property portal industry on board, some of the world’s most advanced proprietary scalable technology, and ample resources, all of which will contribute to the achievement of our goals,” he added.

According to the release, Bayut has seen significant growth over the past year, something that’s been accompanied by staff increases.

Bayut’s team includes the likes of SeLoger.com Co-Founder Gilles Blanchard, current SeLoger CEO Roland Tripard, and Mitula Group Chairman Simon Baker, who has previously headed the REA Group as well as iProperty Group.