Airbnb has denied reports of it acquiring an Edinburgh-based property technology firm.
Insider reported yesterday on a press release that stated Letting Cloud had been bought by the US property rental giant.
It claimed that the proptech firm - set up in 2019 - has more than 5,000 agents advertising over 500,000 properties, with the deal being part of Airbnb's plan to abide by the Scottish Government’s legislative changes on short-term holiday lets.
However, an Airbnb spokesman responded: “We have no relationship with this company, we have had no discussions with this company, and we have not acquired - nor do we intend to acquire - this company.”
He added that the information and quotes in the press release are ”completely fabricated”.
Companies House filings state that Letting Cloud has no employees, bar chief executive Grant MacCusker. The company's website is currently also down.
Yesterday's statement included quotes claiming to be from Airbnb’s director of engineering, which said: “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.
“Whilst 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 are continuing to thrive on solving interesting problems which will help with the recent government legislation being rolled out in Scotland and the UK.”
The release also stated that a handover process was “currently under way”.
A spokesperson for Letting Cloud said: “In the wake of recent developments in various media outlets, the matter is now in the hands of our lawyers and we will not be making any further comment at this time.”
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