Proptech VC Pi Labs has appointed Ivan Ramirez as Venture Partner, as it expands its ecosystem internationally.
Ramirez will be Pi Labs’ first US venture partner, strengthening Pi Labs as a gateway between global real estate firms and the rapidly evolving proptech universe. His appointment follows Pi Labs recent investment into two North American start-ups, as the pioneering business continues its programme of growth and scale.
Ramirez has a breadth of experience both as a startup founder and working for multinational corporations. Ramirez was the founder and CEO at CommerceInterface which he sold to Groupon in 2012. He has also held positions as VP of Business Development & Wholesale at Overstock, and was co-founder, Chief Product Officer and Chief Technology Officer at EMOOV. More recently, he held the position of Chief Product Officer at EMAAR, the multinational real estate development company based in the United Arab Emirates.
Faisal Butt, Founder and CEO, Pi Labs, says: “As we continue to build out our word-class multi-disciplinary team to serve both our portfolio companies and our LPs on a global scale, Ivan will become a valuable part of our network. We are investing into our team and bringing on the expertise to best support both the start-ups we invest in and those real estate companies which have invested into Pi Labs.
“Ivan is both a commercial and a technical leader. Ivan not only worked with large real estate owners to help drive digital transformation but having sold his own tech start-up to Groupon, he has invaluable experience in starting, scaling, and exiting a business. As Pi Labs’ proptech ecosystem continues to grow, we welcome learning from Ivan and the unique perspective he will bring to our already strong bench.”
Ivan Ramirez, Venture Partner at Pi Labs, says: “Pi Labs is a true leader in the proptech space. Having engaged with the company informally since its inception, and mentored some of the companies the firm has invested in, I am honoured to be joining as a Venture Partner. The lessons I have learned as a founder, through my successes and my failures, and working with larger real estate and tech corporations in driving digital transformation there will help Pi Labs strengthen its position as a gateway between traditional real estate and proptech. I will be working closely with the various founders to help grow and shape their products and make them ready for deployment into large corporates.
“Proptech is still in its infancy, meaning there is real room for growth, and Europe is well positioned to emerge as a global leader in this space. The real estate industry has started slowly understanding, accepting, and adopting proptech, and I believe that Pi Labs are in a position to accelerate this pace by bridging start-ups and real estate corporations on this journey.”
The appointment of Ramirez is the latest strategic step Pi Labs has taken as part of a broader expansion strategy led by CEO Faisal Butt and the firm’s management team. Pi Labs recently saw the appointment of five venture partners, who joined over 75 mentors, 60 portfolio companies, and over 100 co-investors in what has evolved into the largest proptech ecosystem in Europe.
