CNBC reports that PropertyGuru, an online property company in Southeast Asia, plans to make use of the proceeds from next year’s public debut for acquisitions.

The start-up — which operates in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia — announced plans in JulyTo go public via a SPAC merger avec Bridgetown 2 Holdings. This blank-check company was backed billionaires Richard Li & Peter Thiel.

SPACs — or special purpose acquisition companies — raise capital from public markets and use that cash to merge with a private company, with the goal of taking the company public within a two-year period.

PropertyGuru, Bridgetown 2, and Bridgetown 2 will merge to form a combined company with a total market value of approximately $1.78 billion. according to the company. The deal includes $100 million of private placement from investment management firms like the UK’s Baillie Gifford and Naya Capital, Australia’s REA Group, New York-based Akaris Global Partners as well as one of Malaysia’s largest asset managers.

“That money that will be on the balance sheet at the end of this business combination agreement will be very much towards M&A,” Krishnan told CNBC in an interview last week. “And I’d say that largely concentrated on data and software home services as well fintech.”

PropertyGuru was acquired in August REA Group’sMalaysian and Thai property portal businesses.

Krishnan said that there are no immediate plans to enter other markets.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is still awaiting regulatory approvals for the Bridgetown 2 deal. Krishnan predicts that PropertyGuru will trade on New York Stock Exchange in the fourth quarter of January-March, once the deal with Bridgetown 2 is complete.

Bridgetown 2 HoldingsShares have dropped more than 23% from January’s initial public offering.

2019: Singapore’s head-quartered business scrapped plans for an initial public offering“Market conditions weren’t ideal” and the Australian securities market was closed. Krishnan said that Bridgetown 2 was about finding the right partner.

“We weren’t certain that we would visit the U.S. We didn’t want to be tied down to SPAC, so it was about how do we maximise the opportunities and where can we share our stories with investors who are worthy. He stated.

These SPACs were created. steadily been attracting interestAsia

Private companies may view them as an alternative way of accessing the capital markets, but a rising number of Asia-based sponsors support these blank-check entities.

GrabOne of Southeast Asia’s top start-ups is. started trading as a publicly listed company on the NasdaqAfter merging with Altimeter Growth Corp., a blank-check company on Dec. 2, shares plunged and have fallen 45% each day since.

In a regulatory filing,Last year, the net loss for the company was 14.4 million Singapore dollar (roughly $10.56 million), and 38.5 million Singaporedollars in 2019.

PropertyGuru recorded a net loss in Singapore of 150.6 Million Singapore Dollars for the six-month ended June. This loss was mainly due to fair value losses on preferred share conversion options. PropertyGuru stated that since the preference shares were converted into ordinary shares, fair value loss is not likely in future periods.

Also, it reported that near 18% jump in revenueFor the same period, 42.9 Million Singapore Dollars.

Krishnan stated that the coronavirus pandemic was a significant headwind to the company, and 2020 has been a difficult year. It was despite sky-high property prices in SingaporePropertyGuru has a major market in.

But the company is betting on a few key, long-term macroeconomic trends in Southeast Asia — such as urbanization, digitization, and the emergence of the middle class. These trends are unchanging. Krishnan explained that these trends can be paused but not stopped.

PropertyGuru’s reach has expanded beyond the property market to include fintech and software services. The total market is estimated at $8 billion.