Fresh from last week’s acquisition of Southern European online property platform idealista for €1.3 bn, Swedish investment group EQT has inked the purchase of Casa.it, a major online property platform in Italy, from funds advised by Oakley Capital.
The purchase was made on behalf of the EQT IX fund for an undisclosed amount.
Casa’s management team will continue to lead the company following the transaction.
Founded in 1996 and headquartered in Milan, Italy, Casa is the longest running online real estate classifieds platform in Italy. Under Oakley’s ownership, since 2017, the firm has significantly expanded its customer base, now servicing over 14,000 real estate agents with over one million property listings on its website.
EQT will support Casa’s growth by investing in the company’s online platform and further developing its portfolio of value-add services for real estate agents. Together with management, EQT will support Casa’s plans to further penetrate the Italian market and strengthen its position as one of the leading online real estate classifieds platforms in the region.
Bert Janssens, partner and global co-head TMT at EQT Partners and investment advisor to EQT IX, said: ‘We are impressed with Casa’s growth journey over the past few years. Luca Rossetto and his management team, together with Oakley, have done a great job developing the company and positioning it as one of the leading online real estate classifieds platforms in Italy. EQT is looking forward to joining forces and continuing on this journey together with Casa.’
Luca Rossetto, CEO at Casa.it, said: ‘This step comes after a three-year period of radical change at Casa.it. Our technology platform, brand equity, skills and organization are now positioning Casa.it to be a much stronger player in the Italian market. We are very much looking forward to working with EQT on the next phase of Casa’s development. Their experience in Italy and in the online digital sector will be valuable to us as we look to continue to expand both our real estate agent customer base and service offering to property seekers in the Italian market.’
The transaction is expected to close subject to customary approvals in December 2020.
With this transaction, EQT IX is expected to be 10-15% invested, based on its target fund size.
