Fifth Wall SPAC makes smart buy
Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp I – the first of three blank cheque companies launched by the proptech VC – has bought SmartRent, a smart home operating system, in a deal that will value the business at $2.2bn (£1.6bn).
The combined company is expected to have up to $513m in cash at closing, and is further supported by $155m of investment from a range of investors including Starwood Capital Group, Lennar, Invitation Homes, Koch Real Estate Investments, Baron Capital Group, D1 Capital Partners, Long Pond Capital and Conversant Capital.
Through the merger, SmartRent plans an “ambitious global growth strategy with new customers and geographic markets”. The firm, which expects to turn its first profit next year, believes it has the potential to generate as much as $1.5bn in annual revenues.
Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp I – the first of three blank cheque companies launched by the proptech VC – has bought SmartRent, a smart home operating system, in a deal that will value the business at $2.2bn (£1.6bn).
The combined company is expected to have up to $513m in cash at closing, and is further supported by $155m of investment from a range of investors including Starwood Capital Group, Lennar, Invitation Homes, Koch Real Estate Investments, Baron Capital Group, D1 Capital Partners, Long Pond Capital and Conversant Capital.
Through the merger, SmartRent plans an “ambitious global growth strategy with new customers and geographic markets”. The firm, which expects to turn its first profit next year, believes it has the potential to generate as much as $1.5bn in annual revenues.
Lucas Haldeman, founder and chief executive of SmartRent, said: “We started this business as frustrated real estate operators looking for a comprehensive smart home solution. We understood the deficiencies of the enterprise smart home industry, and knew that if we could build a fully integrated platform that met the needs of operators and their communities, we would have an impact not just on their business but on society at large. Today we offer the most robust and deeply integrated platform on the market, validated by its rapid adoption and 100 percent customer retention.”
Brendan Wallace, chief executive of Fifth Wall Acquisition Corp I, added: “Fifth Wall evaluated every company in the smart home ecosystem. It was clear to Fifth Wall that SmartRent has emerged as the category leader in smart home tech, with customers that include 15 of the 20 largest residential owners in the US, with a larger install base than all of its competitors combined.
“Through a consistent stream of early investments in category-leading real estate technology companies, Fifth Wall has identified a pattern of technology adoption in the real estate industry that is playing out to SmartRent’s benefit. As an early winner in the eyes of some of the largest national real estate owners, SmartRent has rapidly become the industry standard solution.”
SmartRent provides an IoT solution to property owners, operators, and developers enabling them to better manage assets, lower operating costs and increase revenue. The firm says that if all rental properties across the US utilised its system, it would be able to reduce US energy consumption by 4%.
Earlier this week, Fifth Wall launched its third special purpose acquisition company, seeking to raise a further $250m to invest in proptech, particularly in the residential sector.
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