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PROPERTY

PHOTO: VIET TUAN

A move away

Online real estate transactions are becoming increasingly common and have laid
a foundation for the presence of property technology (proptech) companies.

NGOC LAN Reports

ocial distancing measures don’t Some 80 per cent of actual exchanges that The Cen Group, meanwhile, has launched
appear to have overly affected prop- act solely as brokers have had to cease CenHomes.vn, listing a wide range of projects
S erty technology (proptech) compa- operations. Only those belonging to large online so that connected agencies, authorized
nies in Vietnam. Many real estate businesses companies with financial sources and a agents, and customers can learn about proj-
have recognized their popularity and worked role as project investors have continued to ects, and then launched Revex, a tech plat-
hard to put real estate transactions online. do business. Most of these operate according form for real estate management and trans-
Mr. Matthew Powell, Director of Savills to forms for selling online, applying 4.0 actions using smart contracts with
Hanoi, said Covid-19 has dramatically technology to manage information, trans- Blockchain technology.
increased awareness about the digital econ- actions, payments, and advertising. The move by real estate companies in
omy and a change in user behavior towards Vingroup’s Vinhomes officially launched Vietnam towards online transactions was
more digital activities. “It also highlights Vinhomes Online in the second quarter already taking place, but is now being
the need for digitalization within the real of this year, an online real estate platform driven in large part by the arrival of Covid-
estate sector, as it is still lagging behind with the message “Stay home - Buy homes”. 19. Startups are being launched and have
many other sectors,” he added. “Things are It applies high technology that directly attracted investment from major players,
changing, though. We are investing heavily connects investors and customers online and many services are being developed to
in our online sales platforms and other or on the phone, allowing the sales process meet market demand.
sector-specific proptech initiatives.” to be fully conducted remotely. Rever, a Vietnam-based proptech startup,
The Hung Thinh Corporation has also announced in August that it received $10.2
TRANSACTIONS ONLINE invested in TopenLand, a real estate tech million from private equity firm Mekong
The ongoing fourth outbreak of Covid- company applying 4.0 technology platforms Capital in a recent funding round. It aims
19 has affected real estate exchanges, accord- in real estate brokerage and which is now to use the capital to become a one-stop-
ing to the Ministry of Construction (MoC). its online real estate distribution application. shop for all property-related needs. The

42 | VIETNAM ECONOMIC TIMES | SEPTEMBER 2021