India-based real estate transaction platform Square Yards received a Rs 800m ($12m) investment on Wednesday from telecommunications company Reliance through a newly created, unnamed private equity division.
Founded in 2013, Square Yards operates an online-to-offline marketplace aimed at the real estate sector that aggregates deals and offers services such as mortgage advice. It claims to be the largest distributor of primary residential real estate in the country.
The cash will be used to expand Square Yard’s network both in India and internationally. The company hopes to expand to 25 countries, beginning with the opening of offices in Toronto and Vancouver last week.
Square Yard had raised $11m from private investors in 2015, according to its latest press release, an increase from the $6m figure reported at the time.
Kanika Gupta Shori, founder and chief operating officer of Square Yards, said: “With this collaboration, the company will be able to draw on Reliance’s extensive experience, particularly in scaling up the business to a higher growth trajectory and creating significant shareholder value in the process.
“Besides capital, we will also get access to best practices in running large consumer businesses at scale, with the participation of Reliance.”