Southeast Asian property listing platform PropertyGuru is venturing into the home services industry with the acquisition of Sendhelper, a home services technology company based in Singapore.
The acquisition, PropertyGuru said, is in line with its growth strategy of expanding into adjacencies of fintech and data. The announcement did not disclose the financial details of the acquisition.
Sendhelper is a startup that allows homeowners and tenants in Singapore to easily search for and book home services for their daily needs. Its services include cleaning, air conditioner maintenance, and handyman and repair services, among other necessities.
PropertyGuru, on the other hand, is a platform that helps find, finance and buy property.
The acquisition allows PropertyGuru’s partners to offer home services to their clients, especially in home maintenance.
“Our entry into home services is an important step as we create solutions that provide guidance and make each step of the property journey more efficient, transparent, and trusted for everyone in the ecosystem,” Shyn Yee Ho-Strangas, managing director, data and software solutions, at PropertyGuru Group, said.
Sendhelper co-founder Rupam Biswas said the firm’s goal is to become a one-stop platform for consumers seeking help with property maintenance and home care.
“We look forward to co-creating tech solutions that will further ease the home services booking experience and increase users’ access to organised help as opposed to informal or ad-hoc sources,” Biswas added.
PropertyGuru was founded by Steve Melhuish and Jani Rautiainen in 2007, who were each driven by their frustrations in finding a home in Singapore.
Today, the online listing site serves five Southeast Asian markets — Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam.
According to PropertyGuru, it serves over 52 million property seekers and hosts more than 3.3 million property listings every month. It also has a network of over 57 million property agents on its platform.
The company made its public market debut in March on the New York Stock Exchange through a successful SPAC merger with Bridgetown 2 Holdings.
The TPG and KKR-backed firm is the third tech unicorn from Southeast Asia to go for an IPO after Grab and Bukalapak conducted their public listings last year.
PropertyGuru said it is expecting to generate $11.4 million adjusted EBITDA with 8% positive margins in 2022. Earlier in March, the company had disclosed that it is on track to hit revenue targets of S$145.1 million for this year, representing a year-on-year growth of 44%.