Australian investment firm EG reveals plan for $100 million in new funding for early-stage proptech ventures

Investment management firm EG has announced plans to deploy a further $100 million in funding towards its EGX startup incubator, as the real estate giant seeks to back the next Australian or Kiwi proptech innovators.

EG, which boasts $5.1 billion in assets under management, on Thursday revealed its EGX fund plans to inject Seed and Series A funding into startups with the potential to disrupt the global real estate industry.

EGX has already deployed $100 million to back Australian-based startups: Willow, which gives property managers unique insights through 3D “digital twins” of built environments, and FLNT, a commercial real estate data analytics platform.

A portion of that funding has also backed New Zealand’s Reveal, which provides digital models of underground environments.

EGX says its goal is to help scale startups like Willow, FLNT, and Reveal into world-beating businesses and IPO success stories.

Access to EG’s property network means innovators will be able to test their concepts and quickly implement feedback, the firm says.

“The real estate and property industry is ripe for disruption,” EG CEO Adam Geha said.

$100 million in new funding for EGX is “here to fuel the future of Proptech, and help solve tomorrow’s challenges for the entire industry,” he added.

Focus on the “mothership”, but new opportunities welcomed

Sangeeta Venkatesan, executive director of EGX, told SmartCompany the incubator is focused on investments which could benefit the “mothership” — that is, EG’s existing property interests.

However, EGX is hopeful its company portfolio will grow to have an even greater impact.

“The current investments we are looking at rely on our strengths, and that is both regional and sectional,” she said. “However, having said that, we do have global ambitions for all the investments we have made.”

EGX is focused on firms promising AI and analytical solutions to data problems in the real estate sector, but Venkatesan noted the industry’s growing focus on ESG intelligence.

“So if something comes up in that space, we would be delighted to get into it,” she said.

When questioned on whether EGX intends to explore startups involved in next-generation lending and mortgage opportunities, Venkatesan says EGX remains “open minded” to fintech investment.

Founders who believe their startup may be a good fit for EGX are invited to contact the firm.