Consolidation within proptech has taken a big leap forward after an Oz firm that owns several UK estate agency platforms was gobbled up by global software giant MRI which, in the UK, operates the popular Qube platform.

It has bought Simon Baker’s Proptech Group (PTG) which is a major force in the Oz property software market but also operates in the UK with its VaultEA platform.

Baker (main picture) is well-known here as founder of Oz property portal giant the REA Group, which together with Rupert Murdoch’s News International bought the UK’s first property portal PropertyFinder.com for £14.5 million in 2005, selling it in August 2009 to Zoopla after REA reversed its ambitious global expansion plans.

Payday

But Baker now has another payday after MRI, which is rapidly evolving into the world’s largest property software group, offered to pay £52 million for his company, an offer which has now been submitted to the Australian Stock Exchange for approval.

The offer includes MRI acquiring PTG’s brands including VaultRE, VaultEA, EagleCRM, Real Estate Investar, Website Blue, Designly, and RentFind Inspector.

David Bowie (pictured), Managing Director and Senior Vice President (Asia Pacific) for MRI Software says: “This acquisition brings immediate value to our real estate agency clients in the region and represents a significant investment in the future of the real estate sector more broadly.

“In the same way FinTech fuelled growth and efficiencies in banking and finance over the last decade, we believe proptech will propel the next generation of real estate to ensure its long-term value and contribution to our national economies.”