CapitaLand to build ‘real estate of the future’ with C31 Ventures

SINGAPORE (June 15): Property group CapitaLand announced that it is setting up a venture fund, C31 Ventures, to tap global tech start-ups in its ongoing effort to “innovate and build real estate of the future”.

In a statement on Wednesday, the group said it is prepared to eventually invest up to S$100 million, starting with its S$15 million investment in the Early Stage Venture Fund III (ESVFIII) by Singapore’s National Research Foundation (NRF) in May this year for local tech start-ups.

C31 Ventures is set to be the largest real estate-focused tech venture fund in Asia to offer start-ups a “gateway to the region”, according to CapitaLand.

The venture fund was announced by CapitaLand’s president and group CEO, Lim Ming Yan, at the company's ‘Gateway to Asia’ networking event in San Francisco in US.

It aims to target Series A-C start-up companies around the world that fit into the group’s focus areas of innovation in energy, operations and maintenance; building and construction; design and building materials; real estate funding as well as customer engagement.

The start-ups will be assessed based on a combination of criteria ranging from speed to market, product and financial viability, to valuation and operating metrics, by an investment committee CapitaLand’s senior management and external advisors.

Lim adds that CapitaLand’s portfolio of real estate assets offers “a living lab to start-ups where they can validate their ideas and prototypes” and that the group will continue to assess opportunities that will allow them to “stay ahead of the curve and seize first-mover advantages”.

“Given our strong foothold in Asia, CapitaLand will also serve as a conduit for start-ups to enter the regional market, especially China,” he asserts.

“We are confident C31 Ventures will greatly sharpen our innovation focus on real estate and customer engagement, bolstering our efforts to develop integrated and interconnected smart buildings as well as create seamless online and offline customer experiences.”

CapitaLand joined the Microsoft Accelerator programme earlier this month, as an official global network partner to provide mentorship to start-ups, as well as to gain access to new ideas and technology. In May, the group was selected to co-invest in the ESVFIII by NRF, a department within the Prime Minister's Office of Singapore.

CapitaLand last traded at S$2.96 on Tuesday. — theedgemarkets.com

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