Brisbane property tech company PEXA to be acquired for $1.6 billion

A consortium including the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA), Link Administration Holdings and Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners is set to acquire a major Aussie tech group for around $1.6 billion.

The bidders have announced they will acquire Property Exchange Australia Limited (PEXA) after shareholders at PEXA agreed to the deal.

With their collective shareholding now exceeding 50 per cent, PEXA's planned IPO has been cancelled.

PEXA is an online property exchange network that assists members (such as lawyers, conveyancers and financial institutions) to lodge documents with Land Registries and complete financial settlements electronically.

As part of the transaction CBA will invest a further $50 million, totalling approximately $100 million invested in PEXA since 2011.

CBA chief executive officer Matt Comyn says the bank has been a major backer of PEXA since its inception.

"Having been a key stakeholder in PEXA since its inception in 2011, today's announcement represents our continued commitment to support the property industry as it transitions towards an innovative, fully digital, settlements process that aims to provide improved experiences for customers," says Comyn.

PEXA CEO Marcus Price says the work done over the last eight years at the company has paid off with the acquisition. Read more

David Simmons - Business News Australia - 6 November 2018