Real estate technology company Blueground has closed a USD50 million (GBP40 million) Series B round and expanded of its global footprint by launching in London.
The round was co-led by two prominent investment firms: Prime Ventures and WestCap Investment Partners. WestCap’s founding partner, Laurence Tosi, is an experienced investor and operator, who served as the long-time CFO of private equity firm Blackstone, and subsequently, as the CFO of Airbnb, the leading home-sharing marketplace.
Blueground envisions a world in which people feel at home wherever they choose to live, through their offering of beautifully designed, tech-powered flats for stays starting from one month. The company leases carefully selected, ideally located properties and upgrades them to fully furnished and thoughtfully equipped apartments. With this new round, Blueground will increase resources to further develop its proprietary technology, product design, guest experience, and further expand its presence in both the United States and Europe.
Blueground has announced today that it will launch its London portfolio by the end of 2019 as it takes another step towards its expansion into 50 cities by 2023. As a business and technology hub, Blueground views London as a prime location pegged for continued inbound global investment. The company plans to lease 250 premium flats in Central London by the end of 2020 in the West End, Shoreditch, the City and other areas, allowing it to better serve its growing customer base. Alongside Blueground’s launch in London, the company also plans to launch in Paris and Seattle by the end of 2019.
Blueground co-founder and CEO Alex Chatzieleftheriou, says: “We are very pleased to be launching in London and to begin operating in a recognised business hub for so many. London is an excellent addition to our existing locations and we are really confident that it will become our largest European market soon.”
“In preparation for our launch in London, we looked closely at the city’s current rental market and the demand for our services, assessing the potential to provide top quality ready-to-move-in apartments with the ultimate goal of transforming our guests’ London living experience. As with all of our cities in operation, we are building a dedicated team in London. We are excited to see how our operation in London will shape the future of our company and prepare us for further expansion.” He added: “For property owners, partnering with Blueground is an ideal solution. We offer a steady yield, 100% guaranteed occupancy and manage all the work to enable a seamless guest experience. We are excited to expand our relationships with leading developers and property managers across the world.”
To date, the company has built a portfolio of more than 2,800 flats in nine cities around the world, including New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Washington DC, Chicago, Athens, Istanbul and Dubai. With this Series B round, Blueground has now raised a total of USD78 million (GBP62 million) in funding. Previous financing included investments from well-established funds such as VentureFriends, Endeavor Catalyst, Jabbar Internet Group, and AlleyCorp. In January of this year, Blueground named the prominent New York City-based entrepreneur Kevin Ryan – CEO of AlleyCorp – to its Board of Directors. 2019 has marked a banner year for Blueground, as the business has achieved 3X YoY revenue growth and surpassed one million nights spent by guests.
“Through leveraging the power of technology, Blueground has developed a unique value proposition and approach to this emerging space in the market,” says Nick Kalliagkopoulos of Prime Ventures. “We are impressed by what the team has achieved to date, and look forward to helping lead this new chapter of the real estate industry”. As part of the round, Nick Kalliagkopoulos will join Blueground’s Board of Directors.
“WestCap is pleased to partner with Blueground as it continues to execute on its proven strategy of disciplined growth,” says Charlie Young, Partner at WestCap. “Blueground’s ability to pair an outstanding guest experience with best-in-class capital efficiency will serve to increasingly distinguish the disruptive business in this fast-paced ecosystem.” As part of the round, Charlie Young will join Blueground’s Board of Directors.
