ProperyGuru SPAC Deal Said to Be Imminent

Southeast Asian real estate portal giant PropertyGuru is said to be nearing a deal to merge with billionaire businessman Peter Thiel's Bridgetown 2 Holdings Ltd according to reports coming from the region.

Citing anonymous sources close to the matter Bloomberg reported earlier today that the Singapore headquartered portal operator could announce a deal to float on the public market via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) deal as early as this week, though they did mention that the deal could yet take longer or collapse entirely.

PropertyGuru's revenues for FY20 were adversely affected by the ongoing pandemic and the portal company's backers such as TPG Capital and KKR & Co will doubtless be anxious to get a return on their significant investment through a liquidity event.

According to Bloomberg's sources, discussions on a deal that would see ProperyGuru follow in the footsteps of fellow PropTech company Porch Group and iBuyers Opendoor and Offerpad in going public via a merger with a SPAC have been ongoing since June and could value the firm at $1.8 billion.

PropertyGuru was slated for a public debut back in 2019 but backed out of the move at the last minute citing issues around its valuation. The aborted 2019 IPO came during the same month that two of PropertyGuru's main regional rivals, 99.co and REA-backed iProperty, announced the formation of a joint venture.

With iProperty now merging with PropertyGuru's portals and REA secured as an investor thanks to a momentous May deal, it seems that the firm lead by CEO Hari V. Krishnan is once again looking to the support of the public market to bolster its growth. The Newscorp backed Australian portal operator is also said to be involved in a $100m - $150m private investment in a public entity (PIPE) around the proposed IPO according to Bloomberg.