NEW YORK: Fifth Wall, a venture capital firm focused on real estate technology, raised US$503 million from a group of 50 large U.S., European and Asian property owners who will provide a market for the start-ups and their products it invests in.
Fifth Wall invests in companies that will benefit its group of property owners, which include Gecina SA in France, Spain's Merlin Properties and British Land Co Plc in Europe, and Mitsubishi Estate in Japan, said Brendan Wallace, a managing partner at the VC fund. The consortium's size increases access, insight, collaboration and the sharing of ideas among the investors and portfolio companies, Wallace said, calling it a network effect.Fifth Wall noticed the nine investors in its first proptech fund sought not only a financial return but also synergies and cost savings with the technologies they adopted, he said.
Stuart Miller, executive chairman at Lennar Corp, told analysts in June that the use of Fifth Wall portfolio companies Opendoor, a direct home buyer, title insurer States Title, and digital mortgage platform Blend has cut expenses and increased operating margins.