South Africa‘s first prop-tech venture capital, and private equity organization Castle One has reportedly secured a notable investment from HL Hall and Sons Holdings (‘Halls’). The undisclosed investment will be used to help the prop-tech venture builder assist the real estate industry in optimising technology to benefit this sector.
In addition, the investment will assist Castle One in accelerating its existing objectives and help extend its offering and presence to foreign markets.
Pete Backwell, CEO of Halls comments on the investment made into Castle One.
“Our investment into Castle One is tremendously exciting as our companies have strong shared values and a common vision for how technology can benefit the real estate sector.”
Castle One
Founded in 2018 by entrepreneurial tech duo Jonothan Rawson and Mark Forrester, Castle One is a strong player in the emergent prop-tech space. The organisation has reportedly invested in various real estate tech companies including Prop Data. Castle One focuses on investing in concepts that have a mix of both tech and people in its approach and solution.
“I’m a huge admirer of Prop Data’s philosophy of empowering agents and agencies to build their brands and to truly own their customer relationships. This is an essential part of democratising commerce in our digital age,” explains Forrester.
In addition, Castle One’s secondary venture includes reOS, bank-integrated rental payments, and portfolio automation that uses blockchain technology to develop and transform the sector of rental professionals and decrease overall costs. According to the founders, prop-tech startups face several challenges in securing funding and growing their enterprise but Castle One aims to change this dynamic and make it easier for real estate-related tech startups.
“Castle One’s venture-building model, which involves investing in and building new products and ventures, while creating synergies and network effects, looks to address this challenge. The uniqueness of its model has attracted investment from various role-players in recent years, culminating in the recent transaction with Halls,” explains Castle One.
“We’re excited about the myriad ways in which technology can amplify the value provided by real estate professionals to consumers while ensuring that the business of real estate remains compelling and sustainable for everyone involved,” concludes Rawson.
