General Atlantic Set to Take 24% Stake in Dutch Portal funda

The U.S. private equity firm General Atlantic is set to take a 24% stake in the market-leading Dutch real estate portal funda.

General Atlantic had been bidding to buy out individual agent shareholders representing a maximum of 29.41% of funda and was offering €64.43 per share (shareholders opting to receive payment in 12 months were offered €69.43 per share).

In the end, around 80% of those shareholders registered for the buyout meaning that individual agents still retain a 5% interest via a holding company (STAK), GA controls around 24% with the majority controlled by the NVM (the Dutch Cooperative Association of Brokers and Valuers).

The news was confirmed in a press release this morning and comes eight months after the portal publicly confirmed that it was seeking a new minority shareholder.

Founded in 2001, funda is the clear market leader in the Dutch real estate market with a healthy traffic and brand lead over its competitors.

The move to bring in General Atlantic is a long-awaited payday for many agents in The Netherlands who had been keen to cash in on their funda shares but were prevented by NVM's reluctance to allow individual members to sell their shares to outsiders.

The tension behind the scenes at funda was revealed in 2021 when the portal's CEO, Quintin Schevernels resigned citing "discussions at the shareholder level" which he said were "slow[ing] down the execution of our strategy."

NVM's move to invite private investment into a dominant portal is similar to the rumoured move being considered by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) who are reportedly considering allowing outside investment in leading Canadian portal Realtor.ca.