Compass, a US-based real estate portal operator backed by media company Advance Publications, completed a $75m funding round yesterday led by investment manager Wellington Management Company.
Venture and growth capital firm Institutional Venture Partners (IVP) also took part in the round, as did VC firms Thrive Capital, Founders Fund and .406 Ventures. The money was raised at a valuation of more than $1bn, a person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
Compass has developed an online platform used to buy, sell and rent upscale property. It is responsible for about $7bn in annual sales, and in recent months has introduced a housing market data app called Compass Markets and launched a division dedicated to celebrities and sportspeople.
The company is present in New York City, Washington DC, Boston, Miami, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, the Hamptons and Aspen, and intends to open an office in San Francisco later this year.
Ori Allon, founder and executive chairman of Compass, said: “This funding will provide us with additional resources to accelerate our growth into new markets and inject transformative technology to improve the experience for consumers and agents.
“When it comes to technology, the real estate industry is fragmented and regional systems don’t talk to each other. There is no reason the real estate process shouldn’t be transparent, convenient, expedient and intuitive. Compass is aiming to change that.”
Compass has now raised $210m since it was founded in 2012 as Urban Compass. It secured $60m in a September 2015 series D round led by IVP that included Advance Publications, Thrive Capital, Founders Fund, .406 Ventures, Kenneth Chenault and Marc Benioff.
Advance Publications, Founders Fund, Thrive Capital, .406 and Benioff had all backed a $20m series A round in 2013 which was raised at a $150m valuation and later increased to $28m, before Advanced and Benioff funded a $40m round in 2014 that valued Compass at $360m.