Is Real Matters Headed for One of Canada’s Biggest IPOs?

Fewer tech companies have been declaring IPOs lately, disappointing investors hoping for signs that the likes of Airbnb, Uber Technologies and Hootsuite Media are planning to go public. 
Indeed, according to Bloomberg, a NASDAQ Private Market survey of South by Southwest Interactive Festival attendants shows that 42 percent of entrepreneurs believe that their companies will not go public in the future. That’s a startling 62-percent increase from the previous year.
With more and more companies intending to stay private indefinitely, companies that do plan to go public are becoming more exciting than ever for investors. One such company is Real Matters, an online platform for property appraisers and insurance inspectors. The company is expected to go public later this year, and with a valuation of C$600 million, it’s certainly one for tech investors to keep an eye on.

Real Matters is an exciting private company…

Put simply, Real Matters provide its customers with expertise from more than 30,000 property appraisers and insurance inspectors. These individuals report their findings through Real Matters’ cloud-based online platform, which measures and ranks each appraiser and inspector. This system helps buyers and mortgage companies see which appraisers and inspectors are the best, similar to the way Airbnb customers and Uber riders rate their hosts and drivers.
The company currently serves more than half of the top 100 lenders in the US. Notably, Real Matters has won contracts with most of the country’s top banks, including Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and Citigroup (NYSE:C), in the past six months. Also significant are the two major acquisitions that the company has pulled off since 2013, as well as news that the company is looking to close a deal to buy a property-titled business in the US.
Real Matters’ success can largely be attributed to its data-driven model. The company has unearthed a whole trove of available data in the real estate market that could potentially offer insight into pricing trends and demand for renovations and contractors, as well as important information for homeowners. By adopting this data-centric model of business, Real Matters is positioning itself as a major future player in the real estate market.

…expected to IPO in 2016

As mentioned, Real Matters is expected to go public this year — Bloomberg has said that the company’s last round of funding came with the clause that it has to list in the public markets before the end of the calendar year. If not, Real Matters will have to issue more shares to investors.