REA Group Leads Investment Round in Property Management FinTech Managed App

The Australian real estate portal operator REA Group has led the latest investment round in the end-to-end payment specialist Managed App.

Specialising in facilitating end-to-end payments in the property management space, Managed was founded in 2017 to remove the need for trust accounting between landlords, tenants and tradespeople.

The round was worth some A$5.3 million which the Sydney-based company will use to grow its marketing and sales team as it looks to double in size over the next 12 months according to incoming CEO Nick Bouris:

“Property managers spend hours every day punching in payments between landlords, tenants, creditors and trades. Managed App removes this process entirely. This automation also removes any risk of theft and fraud from trust accounts.”

“We’re building an ecosystem of agencies, tenants, owners and trades. We’ve steadily grown our presence among trades, as our marketplace jobs sees them paid immediately due to our integration with Australia’s New Payments Platform (NPP). With interest rates on the rise, we suspect that the immediacy of payments through the platform will also be very appealing for owners’ cash flow."

REA Group's participation was framed by the portal operating company as a move that shows it is not looking to disrupt the sector and alienate or disenfranchise Australian agents.

“Managed App’s strategy to enhance the work of agencies rather than completely disrupt the sector is an approach we’re very aligned with. Partnering with the industry is a key part of the company’s success to date, and the growth is a testament to this. We are excited to be a part of the Managed App journey, and eager to support the company’s initiatives,” commented REA Group Chief Customer Officer, Kul Singh.

Whether the investment turns into a buyout down the line remains to be seen. REA Group has been focussing on mortgages with its M&A strategy recently paying A$244 for mortgage brokerage Mortgage Choice in May 2021 and investing A$34 million for a 34% stake in mortgage software firm Simpology.