Two of the world’s heavyweight private equity players, Permira and Blackstone, are taking a $525 million minority stake in Property Finder, Dubai’s homegrown real estate classifieds giant.
The deal reshuffles the investor line-up: longtime backer General Atlantic is trimming its position but staying on board as a key shareholder. For Property Finder, the move opens doors to the combined muscle of three global investment houses, fueling its ambition to dominate the real estate tech space across the Middle East and North Africa.
No valuation figures were made public, and the agreement still awaits regulatory clearance. Still, the announcement is already a milestone—this marks Permira’s debut investment in the Middle East, just months after setting up shop in Dubai’s financial hub.
The Gulf region has become a magnet for international buyout firms, eager to plug into sovereign wealth funds and snap up opportunities born from a surge of deal-making.
Founded almost twenty years ago, Property Finder has become a household name, locking horns with rivals Dubizzle and Bayut. In 2023, Francisco Partners injected $90 million in debt financing to help the company consolidate ownership. Since then, its gaze has shifted outward, eyeing Saudi Arabia and Turkey as expansion markets.
The backdrop: Dubai’s property market has been on a tear since the pandemic, supercharged by foreign investors and residency-friendly reforms. Residential prices soared nearly 70% in the four years to December 2024, according to Knight Frank.
But the fever may be breaking. Fitch Ratings, in a May outlook, warned of double-digit price declines stretching into 2026. For Property Finder and its new powerhouse investors, the bet is that long-term demand for real estate technology in the region will outlast the market’s cyclical swings.
