The UK is the European leader in proptech funding with US$821 million raised so far and is home to the region’s largest proptech sector with 771 companies, according to a new report by German proptech investment fund Proptech1 Ventures.
The DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland) is in second place with US$340 million raised so far and 515 proptech companies. DACH is followed by France (US$225 million, 494 companies), Spain (US$126 million, 334 companies) and the Nordics (US$76 million, 313 companies).
According to the European Proptech Trends 2020 report, which explores the state of proptech and construction technology (contech) in the region, European companies raised just under US$500 million through 87 deals in 2019, a new record in funding volume for the region.
The research found that proptech financing rounds are reaching remarkable sizes with three out of the five largest funding rounds so far taking place in 2019. Among the five largest proptech deals in Europe, three went to UK companies, and two to German companies.
Among the key trends to look out for in Europe’s proptech industry for 2020, the report cites sustainability, a trend that’s been witnessed with the first major investors and private equity companies publicly positioning themselves for more climate protection.
Another major trend is prefabricated buildings (prefabs) as new technologies and materials are emerging to improve design capabilities and variability, increase precision and productivity in manufacturing, and simplify logistics.
Finally, Proptech1 Ventures foresees increased adoption of modern IT infrastructure as well as cutting-edge technologies including artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), and predicts the first signs of consolidation of the proptech landscape.
Europe’s most well-funded proptech companies
The report features a map of the region’s most well-funded proptech companies. In Switzerland, it cites Allthings, a digital tenant management platform, and Archilyse, which offers holistic numeric architecture analysis.
Allthings has raised CHF 18.6 million in disclosed funding so far, according to Crunchbase. Last year, the company began expanding across Europe, beginning with the Netherlands and the UK.
Archilyse, a company based in Zurich, raised CHF 3 million last month, which it said will be used to extend its product offering, launch a web application, and intensify the expansion of its market presence with a focus on the DACH region, the Nordics, the UK and selected countries within Asia-Pacific (APAC).
In Germany, it cites Nestpick, an aggregator website for furnished apartments, operating worldwide. Nestpick has raised US$13 million in funding so far, according to Crunchbase. Lamudi, based in Berlin, is an online real estate classified website focusing exclusively on the emerging markets that has raised US$56.4 million. Klarx, an online platform for construction equipment and heavy machinery rental from Munich, has raised EUR 16.5 million.
Most active proptech investors
According to the report, Germany is leading among the most active venture capital (VC) investors in Europe’s proptech industry. Among the top 15 most active VC investors, eight are based in Germany.
Vito ONE, Viessmann’s proptech investment arm from Germany, is the region’s top proptech investor with 15 portfolio companies. Vito ONE is followed by three other venture capital investors from the DACH region: BitStone Capital (10), Proptech1 Ventures (8), and Sigma Innovations (8).
