Pakistan property listings portal raises $9M in series B financing

Zamzama Property Group, the parent company of real estate sites Zameen and Bayut, announced today that it has secured US$9 million in a series B funding round. The startup said a total of three investors participated in the round, but only publicly disclosed Vostok New Ventures as one of them, declining to reveal details about the other two. Per Brilioth, managing director of Vostok New Ventures, will also be taking a seat on the board.

“We had a lot of offers [for the round] and had to cherry pick the investors [that participated],” Imran Ali Khan, co-founder Zameen, told Tech in Asia. “The money will be used to expand our operations and continue investing in our key markets.”

Zameen, the startup’s flagship venture, is a real estate and property listings portal focused exclusively on the Pakistani market. Founded in 2006, the portal first raised funding in 2012 when French angel investor Gilles Blanchard participated in a seed round and joined the company as its chairman. In 2014, the startup announced an undisclosed amount in series A funding from Kuala Lumpur-headquartered Frontier Digital Ventures.

Bayut, the smaller venture in the group, is a similar property listings site but focused on the United Arab Emirates market. It was founded in 2007.

According to an emailed statement, Zameen attracts two million monthly visitors and has expanded its team from 90 people at the start of 2014 to over 300 employed today. Co-founders Imran Ali Khan and Zeeshan Ali Khan have retained controlling interest in the company.

“We have been at the helm of a digital revolution in the country that has seen millions of Pakistanis come online for the first time. This is a company run by Pakistanis for Pakistanis, and it will always be,” said Zeeshan.

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