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IndiaHomes to Invest $10 Million, Plans to Acquire IT Firm
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Bangalore: Real estate brokerage firm IndiaHomes said it will invest $10 million over the next one year to foray into new areas and is scouting for an acquisition in the IT space to boost online transactions.
The company, formerly known as Agni Property, announced that it has re-branded itself as IndiaHomes. It said it is also planning to ramp up its headcount by over 65 per cent to 500 people in the next financial year.
"Seeing the demand from the consumers, we are expanding very aggressively in India as our company is the first professionally managed realty brokerage firm. We are now investing an additional $10 million to foray into new areas," IndiaHomes Managing Director Samarjit Singh told reporters.
Two private equity firms -- Helion Venture Capital and Foundation Capital -- which are the promoters along with Singh, have already put in $4 million and the rest will come in during the next one year, he added.
This $10 million investment will be in addition to the $ 12 million that the firm has put in since starting its operations in 2009, he said.
Elaborating on its expansion plans, Singh said: "We are present in the NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore and Kolkata. Besides further strengthening in these locations, we will start our operations in Pune, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Hyderabad soon."
The company will hike its staff strength to about 500 people next fiscal from the current 300 employees, he said.
When asked if the company would acquire local brokerage firms to further expand its reach, Singh said: "The small brokerage houses lack in professionalism and value. However, we are looking at acquiring a technology firm to offer a better online experience to our customers."
Without sharing details, he said IndiaHomes was exploring possibilities to acquire a Mumbai-based IT firm and "within the next 6-9 months, it will be clear whether we will develop our softwares in-house or acquire some company".
IndiaHomes launched a new property pricing software -- Goldmine -- which will take into account factors like luxury, market demand, availability and positioning of the flat.
Talking about revenues, Singh said: "This fiscal, we are expecting to generate 
25 crore from fees from dealing properties worth 1000 crore. For next fiscal, our target is to transact 3500 crore worth of properties and earn a net transaction fee of 100 crore."
Meanwhile, the company announced the appointment of Bhaskar Bagchi as Chief Operating Officer, Ashwinder Raj Singh as Vice-President (Sales) and Deepak Goel as Chief Product Officer.
25 crore from fees from dealing properties worth 1000 crore. For next fiscal, our target is to transact 3500 crore worth of properties and earn a net transaction fee of 100 crore."
Meanwhile, the company announced the appointment of Bhaskar Bagchi as Chief Operating Officer, Ashwinder Raj Singh as Vice-President (Sales) and Deepak Goel as Chief Product Officer.
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