Our Investment in Uniplaces: reinventing student accommodation

The way we find a place to live or to stay on holiday has changed radically in recent years. Technology has transformed the way we search for a new house or find a room to sleep in while we’re on holiday — whether that’s a hotel, an empty house or a spare room. Yet outside the world of holiday rentals, regularly securing a new place to live remains a laborious and complicated process, particularly for students.

London and Lisbon-based startup Uniplaces is filling this void with a simple and convenient solution. The tech company, launched by co-founders Miguel Amaro, Ben Grech and Mariano Kostelec in 2012, focuses on finding and managing accommodation for university students in a fast, fuss-free and secure way. Thanks to their commitment to making students’ university experience easier and more enjoyable — wherever they are in the world — the site has seen rapid growth, having expanded into 38 cities in Europe from just six last year. With over 40,000 furnished rooms in its inventory, and having generated more than $25m in bookings from students from over 140 different countries, Uniplaces has the clear potential to become a global winner in this category.

We are excited to announce that we are leading the company’s $24 million Series A funding round, and we are looking forward to working with their team to expand their offer across the world. Miguel, Ben and Mariano’s enthusiasm and early success has proven once more that great companies can come from anywhere, and we expect to see many more global winners emerging from European hubs in the years ahead!