UK Challenger Boomin Goes Bust

UK challenger portal Boomin "reluctantly" called in liquidators to handle its insolvency yesterday, with CEO Michael Bruce saying "we are sorry that we have not been able to deliver for you" in a message to staff.

Boomin goes bust less than three years from launch after the firm failed to secure a £6m funding round, and just a few months after it entered a consultation process with more than 20 staff in July.

A spokesperson said each of the firm's 65 employees had been notified of the decision.

Michael Bruce's full statement is below:

"It is with deep sadness and huge regret that we have reluctantly decided to place Boomin into a formal process of liquidation.

"Timing has not been our friend. Our move to a fee paying, revenue generating model from April 2022 coincided with the start of the economic slowdown and the drying up of funding. In-line with most tech company scale-ups we overhauled our business model to reflect the new market conditions, sharpening our focus on our key differentiated products and improving efficiencies to bring forward the point where we reach breakeven and generate positive cashflow.

"Notwithstanding a successful partial raise in the spring and my own continued financial backing of Boomin there was always a need for a follow-on external funding round to secure our pathway to profitability. Whilst we had a plan, support from a number of existing shareholders and a solution with a new investor the progressively worsening economic situation in the UK, combined with increasing uncertainty in the housing market, has resulted in us being unable to get the necessary funding round over the line in time to enable us to continue at this time.

"We believe more than ever that agents and consumers need a next generation portal that works harder for them and delivers tangible results. Your support, dedication and belief in Boomin has been inspiring and we have been enormously grateful for it. We are sorry that we have not been able to deliver for you at this time."

It's been a tough week for the UK real estate industry and Bruce in particular, after his former company Purplebricks announced its own round of redundancies last week. Meanwhile, job losses in the US continued last week when Zillow announced 300 layoffs.