Bloomberg Línea — Brazilian proptech unicorn Loft, which is backed by a16z and is one of the most valuable startups in Latin America, cut 12% of its then staff of 2,600 employees this Wednesday, in a decision that it attributed to the integration with acquired companies and that resulted in the restructuring of the operation.
The company laid off 312 people, leaving it with around 2,288, and which was the third wave of cuts this year by the property-selling and buying company, which started 2022 with around 3,150 employees.
The company had already laid off 543 people from the team since April and now the cuts total 855. At the time of the first 159 cuts, the company had already justified to Bloomberg Línea that there were redundancies due to acquisitions.
In 2021, Loft bought CredPago, a company which operates with leases without the need for a guarantor. Also last year, it acquired CrediHome, a home-loan origination startup. It also acquired Foxter, TrueHome in Mexico, 123i, a condominium portal, and Vista.
In a statement, Loft said that the impacted employees will receive a benefits package that includes an extension of the health plan for the holder and dependents for two months, support for the professional relocation process, and facilitation of participation in the stock option plan for eligible persons.
“It is important to highlight that the supply of products and services by the Loft Group continues without any changes”, Loft said.
“The service-to-partner brokers, real estate agencies, and direct customers – buyers and sellers – become more direct, with the reduction of contact points in the purchase, sale, and financing of real estate and hiring of rent without a guarantor,” it added.
Bloomberg Línea reported in late November that Loft received a new contribution from the American venture capital fund Andreessen Horowitz, in negotiation that would have reduced its market valuation to $ 1 billion. The amount would be 65% less than the $2.9 billion it raised earlier in mid-2021, according to two people familiar with the matter. The startup denied the down round.
Approached by Bloomberg Línea, Loft said in a note at the time that “there is nothing new in relation to new investment rounds”. “Any information conveyed to the contrary does not match the reality of the facts. It is pure speculation,” the company said.
Loft said it has not raised any equity funding since the middle of last year when it reached a valuation of $2.9 billion after a Series D round.