NAB joins Westpac with stake in property investment platform

Founded in 2014, the platform allows Australians to invest in residential property by buying “Bricks” in a BRICKX property.

NAB Ventures, which supports businesses and entrepreneurs in their quest to build leading technology companie, saw the investment potential in democratising property ownership in the Australian market.

Todd Forest, managing director of NAB Ventures, said that he was excited to invest in BRICKX and help support a new way of approaching property ownership.

“The aspiration for property ownership has long been the Australian dream. However buying a property often has challenges for many consumers such as the rise in house prices in some areas and trying to save for a deposit,” the MD said.

“BRICKX is disrupting this journey in how it provides consumers with access to the property market and engages with them in creating a pathway to property ownership.”

BRICKX CEO Anthony Millet highlighted that housing affordability continues to be a priority for Australia’s banks, so the alignment between BRICKX and NAB Ventures has a “strong and unified purpose”.

“BRICKX is expanding rapidly and this high-profile and experienced group of investors will help us in our goal to assist millions of Australians to get their foot onto the property ladder,” Mr Millet said.

“The prohibitive costs and high deposits needed to gain access to the property market has left many out in the cold. However, BRICKX has opened up the residential property asset class as an alternative investment to any of the traditional investment options.

“Considering the recent volatility in the cryptocurrency and stock markets, Australians are recognising the longer-term stability of property prices.”

BRICKX launched to retail investors in September 2016 and has grown to offer 14 properties across Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. It also has more than 9,000 members.

The NAB Ventures investment in the Series A funding round for BRICKX follows Westpac’s Reinventure investment in late 2017. Since the Reinventure investment, the number of BRICKX members has grown by nearly 25 per cent.

[Related: Westpac’s venture capital fund invests in BRICKX]