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ETC and OrangeTee Group, two prominent real estate firms, have announced their merger in a joint press release on Feb 24. The new holding company, which has not yet been named, will bring together the expertise and resources of both companies.
According to Desmond Sim, CEO of ETC, this is not an acquisition, but a union of minds. Under the new structure, Sim will serve as the group CEO while Justin Quek, current CEO of OrangeTee & Tie, will assume the role of deputy group CEO.
The merged entity will have a total of 520 employees and 2,803 salespersons registered with the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA). ETC will focus on consultancy and advisory services, while OrangeTee will concentrate on proptech and its real estate agency business.
This merger builds on the 2017 joint venture between the two companies, where they merged their associates’ business under a new entity, OrangeTee & Tie. This move propelled OrangeTee & Tie to the third spot among the top three agencies, with a sales force of over 4,000 agents. The former Edmund Tie had also acquired a 20% stake in the company.
The merger between ETC and OrangeTee was facilitated by Triplestar Holdings and TH Investments, both entities related to the family of Roland Ng, managing director and group CEO of Tat Hong Holdings. These two companies acquired a stake in ETC in 2016 and currently own the entire company.
This year marks a significant milestone for ETC as it celebrates its 30th anniversary. The company was recently rebranded as ETC, dropping its former name, Edmund Tie & Company.
OrangeTee Group has been in operation since 2000 and will celebrate its 25th anniversary this year. It is led by a board of directors and supported by the C-suites, including Justin Quek, CEO of OrangeTee & Tie; Marcus Oh, managing director of OrangeTee Advisory; Teo Yak Huat, CFO; and Christine Sun, chief researcher and strategist.
The stakeholders of OrangeTee Group include Tokyu Livable Inc., one of Japan’s largest real estate agencies, which acquired a 22.5% stake in the company in 2014. Vogue Capital Group, a private property fund, is also a shareholder of OrangeTee Group.
ETC also has a presence in Malaysia and Thailand through its joint venture company Nawawi Tie, and its associate company Edmund Tie & Co (Thailand). The merger with OrangeTee Group presents more opportunities for ETC in the ASEAN region and Japan, particularly through its relationship with Tokyu Livable. With this merger, ETC aims to deliver innovative and seamless solutions across all real estate sectors.