Property Finder has secured a commitment of $250 million in debt financing from Ares Management (via its credit funds) to turbocharge its next chapter of expansion. The deal reflects not only the confidence that global investors have in the company’s business model, but also the enormous potential of the MENA real-estate & PropTech market.
The influx of capital comes at a pivotal time: the real-estate landscape in the Middle East and North Africa is evolving rapidly, driven by digital innovation, new buyer-behaviours, property-market momentum and strategic national visions. Property Finder’s move signals that it intends to play a leading role in shaping how property is found, marketed and transacted in the region.
This isn’t just about raising money. The deal holds significance on multiple fronts:
Firstly, it is a major endorsement of Property Finder’s performance: the company has delivered strong growth (over 40 % compound annual growth from 2020-2024) and expanding margins—proof of scalable operations and solid market position.
Secondly, the funds are earmarked for strategic uses: the company plans to invest significantly in AI-driven solutions, marketing, branding, product innovation and regional expansion. In a region where tech-led disruption is still accelerating, having the financial firepower to invest gives Property Finder an edge.
Thirdly, the backing from Ares speaks to broader investor appetite for credit-driven deals in MENA real estate and PropTech. With global capital flowing into the region, platforms like Property Finder have a window to scale fast and capture market share.
Founded in Dubai, Property Finder has grown to become one of the largest property-portals in the MENA region. The company’s model is built around a unified tech-stack, one brand across markets, and efficient monetisation of listings, leads and value-added services.
According to recent disclosures, in the UAE alone the company’s real-estate core revenues rose from roughly $30 million in 2021 to about $117 million in 2024, and reached about $73 million in just the first half of 2025. At the same time, the UAE EBITDA margin is reported to have climbed above 60 % in 1H 2025. These figures validate the scalability and profitability of the business and underpin the confidence behind the new financing.
The deal also follows major equity investments from other global players—highlighting how Property Finder sits at the intersection of PropTech, real-estate and tech innovation in the region.
With $250 million in new debt financing, the company is poised to leverage several strategic priorities:
A core focus is on harnessing artificial intelligence to deliver smarter search, better user-experience, predictive analytics, automated valuations and improved matching of buyers/sellers to listings. In a region often described as under-served by tech, this is a major differentiator.
While the UAE remains a stronghold, Property Finder is also eyeing growth across the broader MENA region — including Gulf countries, North Africa and emerging markets. The capital gives it the flexibility to invest in market entry, localisation, partnerships and marketing effort at scale.
Creating and re-enforcing brand leadership is also on the agenda. The company aims to become the default “go-to” platform for property search and real-estate services in the region. Strategic partnerships — with developers, brokers, fintech platforms and perhaps even government initiatives — will help accelerate network effects and deepen market penetration.
Beyond visible front-end innovations, the funds will allow investments in backend systems: data infrastructure, machine learning, cloud operations, global best-practices and integration of new modules (for example, for rentals, commercial property, property-services marketplace). Efficiency gains at scale help improve margins and drive competitive advantage.
The timing of this deal could not be better for several reasons:
• The MENA real-estate market is seeing renewed momentum: increasing investment, larger residential developments, higher transaction volumes, rising interest from foreign buyers and institutional capital.
• Digitalisation of property search and services is accelerating. Consumers increasingly expect seamless platforms, mobile apps, virtual tours, algorithmic matchmaking — this is no longer optional.
• PropTech is gaining traction globally, but localised players with regional experience (like Property Finder) have a head-start in the MENA context.
• Interest from global credit managers and alternative lenders into regional real-estate platforms is increasing, meaning favourable financing conditions for growth-oriented firms.
With a stronger, smarter platform, brokers and agents aligned with Property Finder may benefit from deeper leads, better lead-quality, improved data-insights and automation of routine tasks. The platform’s growth means more exposure, more listings, and potentially more business for agents plugged in.
End-users (home-buyers, renters, sellers) stand to gain from improved search experience, richer data, better property discovery tools, streamlined processes and more transparency. The investment into AI and UX means the “finding property” process becomes simpler and more intelligent.
Property Finder’s expanding reach and brand strength make it a more powerful channel for developers to market projects. The deeper the ecosystem, the more attractive a listing partner it becomes. For property owners, the stronger ecosystem means access to more buyers, more insights and better monetisation of assets.
For investors (both financial and strategic) the deal underscores that MENA real-estate platforms can scale, generate returns and attract global credit. More broadly, it signals that the region is maturing in its tech-enabled real-estate ecosystem — which is positive for the broader property market, for job creation, for innovation and for the digital economy in the region.
Of course, with high ambition comes risks and challenges:
• Execution matters: Having funds is one thing; deploying them effectively across markets, ensuring ROI, managing complexity of regional expansion will be critical.
• Competition: While Property Finder is a market-leader, other platforms, local players and global entrants might ramp up. Staying ahead through technology, service and partnerships will matter.
• Macroeconomic risks: Real-estate markets can be cyclical, and regions like the Gulf are subject to global oil/commodity/interest-rate dynamics, as well as regulatory shifts.
• Regulatory and market adaptation: Each MENA market has its own real-estate regulations, consumer behaviours and property-ownership structures. Expansion will demand localised strategies rather than a one-size-fits-all.
The deal by Property Finder reflects a broader shift: digital real-estate platforms are no longer niche; they are becoming major players in the property-finance ecosystem. In many developed markets, property portals have evolved into hubs for services, financing, valuations, marketplace features and data-analytics. In the MENA region, this next frontier is accelerating.
For Property Finder, the journey from a listings portal to a full-fledged “intelligent property ecosystem” is underway. The $250 million commitment from Ares is both a validation and an enabler of that transformation.
With the financing secured, eyes will now be on how Property Finder executes: how quickly it rolls out new AI-features, how aggressively it expands into new markets, how it deepens its user-base, and how it monetises this growth.
Key areas to watch:
This is a major milestone for Property Finder — not just in financial terms, but strategically. The $250 million financing from Ares places the company in a strong position to lead the next wave of real-estate innovation in the MENA region: combining tech, market reach and scale. For the region’s property ecosystem, this signals that digital incumbents are ready to up-the-game, and that growth, investment and transformation are very much in motion.
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