Airbnb acquires UK PropTech platform – London Wallet

Airbnb has completed the purchase of Scottish PropTech firm Letting Cloud for an undisclosed fee.

The holiday rental platform has acquired the firm with a view to addressing increasing concerns regarding the use of short-let property north of the border.

Airbnb says Letting Cloud offers verification technology, which addresses the Scottish legislative changes relating to short-term holiday lets, as well as Westminster’s imminent clampdown on so-called ‘party houses’.

The Edinburgh-based company, which has been trading for four years, was set-up by tech entrepreneur Grant MacCusker as an advertising platform for letting agents and landlords.

MacCusker said: “Our software behind the main website that conducts all the verification checks required to complete a successful let is what attracted Airbnb.

“It’s a good fit; we share similar values and know our best work done to date will continue.”

Letting Cloud claims to have 5,000 agents advertising more than 500,000 properties in the holiday, short- and long-term rental sectors throughout the UK each year.

Jordanna Kwok, director of engineering at Airbnb, commented: “We were attracted by the array of interesting problems being tackled by Letting Cloud, and how they were addressing them using modern and emerging technology.

“While both companies shared similar values and market share, the technical acquisition will bring more clarity to the UK short-term and holiday rental market.

“Airbnb is continuing to thrive on solving interesting problems, which will help with the recent government legislation being rolled out in Scotland and the UK.”