UPDATE: Since this article was published, Airbnb has denied acquiring Letting Cloud - more details here.
Letting Cloud has been acquired by Airbnb.
The Edinburgh-based property portal has been trading for four years, since being set up by Grant MacCusker in 2019 to provide an advertising platform for agents and landlords.
Providing a turnkey operation that enhances the rental experience for all parties, Letting Cloud has more than 5,000 agents advertising over 500,000 properties in the holiday, short and long-term rental sectors throughout the UK each year.
The technology behind Letting Cloud should help Airbnb with the Scottish Government’s legislative changes surrounding short-term holiday lets, as well as Westminster’s imminent clampdown on ‘party houses’.
A billion-pound US unicorn formed in 2008, Airbnb stated that the deal will bring benefits to agents and landlords, improving the rental experience for the short-term and holiday rental sector.
Airbnb's director of engineering Jordanna Kwok 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.”
A handover process is currently underway, although the details of the transaction have not been disclosed.
MacCusker, 38, said: “Our software behind the main website which conducts all the verification checks required to complete a successful let is what attracted Airbnb.
“There was a £6m seed round on the table from investors in US and London, and another offer from a US company looking to acquire us and move into this space in the UK, but I went with the Airbnb offer as it fitted in with the technology we had built.
“It’s a good fit, we share similar values and know our best work done to date will continue.”
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