Member Article

James Caan invests in property fund Pi Labs

James Caan CBE invests in Property Tech Fund, Pi Labs

Property Innovation Labs (Pi Labs), is pleased to announce that James Caan CBE, the business entrepreneur and former Dragon, has invested in the Pi Labs fund through Seedrs.

Pi Labs, Europe’s first property tech accelerator, jointly created by Juliette Morgan of Cushman & Wakefield and Faisal Butt of venture capital firm Spire Ventures, is currently raising a £500,000 fund on Seedrs.

The sum will go towards funding the start-ups selected to be invested in by the Pi Labs fund. To date, just 5 businesses were selected out of over 250 applications. Faisal Butt, Pi Labs Founder and CEO said:

“We are honoured to have this investment from James, whom I have seen first hand support British small businesses over many years. He also has a great deal of knowledge about the property industry and so his backing means a lot.”

He continued: “The support of investors both big and small is crucial to Pi Labs’ success. Our aim is to empower prop-tech startups requiring space, access to capital and support and help spawn the next wave of tech company success stories in the UK.”

The investment from James Caan CBE follows a £250,000 investment into the Pi Labs fund earlier this month from Countrywide plc, the UK’s largest property services company.

The Pi Labs fund has already raised £400,000 on Seedrs. Five property technology start-ups are currently going through the programme: AirSorted, Land Technologies, OfficeR&D, Rialto, and Wilde Rooms. Faisal Butt previously founded Hamilton Bradshaw Real Estate in partnership with James Caan.

-ENDS-

About Pi Labs

Property Innovation Labs (Pi Labs) is a three-month intensive mentor-led programme that accelerates the growth of exciting property start-ups. The programme culminates in a series of investor events where a carefully selected group of angel investors, VCs and private equity groups will be present. The accelerator business model creates a culture of innovation and mutual support between talented groups of entrepreneurial founders within the same areas of interest. Pi Labs was founded by entrepreneur Faisal Butt and operates in partnership with global real estate adviser Cushman & Wakefield and property venture capitalists Spire Ventures. To learn more, click here.

About Cushman & Wakefield

Cushman & Wakefield advises and represents clients on all aspects of property occupancy and investment. Founded in 1917, it has 248 offices in 58 countries, employing more than 16,000 professionals. It offers a complete range of services to its occupier and investor clients for all property types, including leasing, sales and acquisitions, equity, debt and structured finance, corporate finance and investment banking, appraisal, consulting, corporate services, and property, facilities, project and risk management. To learn more, click here.

For further information and imagery about the Pi Labs programme, Faisal Butt or any of the start-ups, please contact:

Julie Thompson Dredge Frame PR julie@framepr.co.uk +44 (0) 7889 123 145

For further detail about Cushman & Wakefield or to arrange an interview with Juliette Morgan, please contact:

Michael Reilly
Cushman & Wakefield michael.reilly@eur.cushwake.com +44 (0) 7793 808 691

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Julie Thompson Dredge .