Prop-tech company Estater launches in Bahrain in country-first
Bahrain has welcomed the arrival of Estater – said to be the Kingdom’s first dedicated Prop-Tech company.
The Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) has celebrated the Kingdom’s selection as the regional hub for Indian-origin Prop-Tech company Estater, said to be the first such entry in the country. Noted in a recent KPMG report as having the most liberalised and competitive ICT sector in the GCC, the Kingdom continues to advance its growing reputation as a regional technology hub.
“Estater is delighted to select Bahrain as a hub for its regional operations,” said Estater’s Managing Director Sanjay Goyal. “A favourable business environment for international investors coupled with good regional connectivity makes Bahrain an ideal choice for us. Real estate value chain in the region is up for several exciting changes and we promise Estater will be one of the change agents.”
With further operations in India and Kuwait, the real estate advisory’s Geo Estater platform uses GIS (Geographic Information Systems) mapping technology to provide market intelligence for developers, investors and financiers across the commercial, industrial, residential, retail and hospitality segments, with the firm claiming to have carried out more than 250 research studies in its ten years to date.Slow to embrace technological innovation compared to other industries, the real estate PropTech segment (which together with geospatial data tools includes rapidly emerging technologies such as IoT-powered smart-building, drones, augmented reality, 3D printing and laser scanning) is now booming, with another KPMG survey finding that 86 percent of industry respondents accept that digital technology would have an least somewhat significant impact on the market.
“Digital innovation is progressing in Bahrain, and is cutting across sectors and domains like never before,” said EDB Director of Real Estate Investment Development at Bahrain Ali Murtaza. “We are pleased to welcome Estater, the first proptech company to set up in Bahrain, and look forward to the transformation it will bring to the real estate sector, which is one of the top performers in our economy.”
Citing the Kingdom’s business development support network via agencies such as the EDB, StartUp Bahrain and Tamkeen, and its vibrant startup ecosystem of over 90 companies – punctuated by the launch of fintech hub Bahrain Fintech Bay at the beginning of last year – Murtaza adds of Estater’s entry; “Their choice to expand into our growing ecosystem reinforces Bahrain’s position as a hub for startups and for proptech firms especially.”