Real Estate

Softbank invests $450 million in real estate tech company Compass

Key Points
  • Real estate technology firm Compass says it's getting an investment of $450 million from the SoftBank Vision Fund.
  • The infusion from the $93 billion venture vehicle brings Compass' total capital raise to $775 million.
Softbank invests $450 million in real estate tech company Compass
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Softbank invests $450 million in real estate tech company Compass

Real estate technology firm Compass announced on Thursday it's getting an investment of $450 million from the SoftBank Vision Fund.

The infusion from the $93 billion venture vehicle — whose backers include the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank and Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund — brings Compass' total capital raise to $775 million.

Other Compass investors include Goldman Sachs, outgoing American Express CEO Ken Chenault, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, and major property developer The LeFrak Organization, run by billionaire Richard LeFrak.

Robert Reffkin, co-founder and CEO at Compass, told CNBC shortly after the announcement that the company is much more than a real estate company because it's "powering the best of technology."

"Compass is on the path to be the largest owner of real estate data, globally, and the No. 1 real estate technology company in the world," Reffkin said on "Squawk Box."

"We have our own in-house technology team that's building an end-to-end platform for agents to run and manage every part of their business," he said. "Is Amazon a store? Is Tesla a car? I think that distinction is getting a little fuzzier."

Reffkin was chief of staff to Gary Cohn when Cohn was the No. 2 executive at Goldman. Cohn is currently a top economic advisor to President Donald Trump as director of the National Economic Council.