PropTiger, Housing.com to merge

In a major consolidation, PropTiger.com and Housing.com will merge to create India’s largest online real estate services company that will raise Rs 55 million for business expansion.

In an all-stock deal, Housing.com has been valued at around $75 million, taking the total valuation of combined entity at $280 million, according to sources. News Corp-backed PropTiger.com and SoftBank-backed Housing.com said they will ‘come together to become India's largest online real estate services company’.

As part of the deal, Australia's REA Group Ltd will invest Rs 50 million in the joint entity, while an affiliate of SoftBank Group Corp will invest Rs 5 million. Co-founder and CEO of PropTiger Dhruv Agarwala will serve as CEO of the new entity, while Jason Kothari, CEO of Housing.com, will quit to pursue other opportunities in the Indian Internet space, a joint statement said. “It’s a merger deal. Shareholders of PropTiger.com and Housing.com will be the shareholders in the new entity", Agarwala said.

“We will be using all the three brands -- Propetiger.com, Housing.com and Makaan.com to offer full range of online and offline real estate solutions for the home buyers,” he added.

Online real estate space has seen major consolidations in recent times. In January 2015, CommonFloor.com merged with Quikr's realty vertical QuikrHomes. PropTiger had also acquired Makaan.com in 2015. 

PropTiger is a leading online residential real estate brokerage firm, while Housing.com is a popular online platform for buying and selling homes, receiving over four million visits every month. — PTI