Propzy \Vietnam

Propzy was Vietnam's ambitious attempt to modernize real estate transactions through a full-stack brokerage model. The company promised to eliminate the opacity, inefficiency, and distrust endemic to Southeast Asian property markets by controlling the entire transaction lifecycle—from listing and matching to financing and closing. The psychological hook was powerful: in a market where buyers feared fraud, sellers distrusted agents, and everyone expected to pay informal 'fees,' Propzy offered institutional credibility backed by SoftBank's billions. They weren't just digitizing listings; they were attempting to replace the entire informal broker network with salaried agents, proprietary valuation algorithms, and integrated mortgage products. For Vietnamese middle-class families making the largest purchase of their lives, Propzy represented safety, transparency, and modernity—a way to participate in Vietnam's real estate boom without navigating its notorious corruption and information asymmetry.

SECTOR Real Estate
PRODUCT TYPE Marketplace
TOTAL CASH BURNED $35.0M
FOUNDING YEAR 2016
END YEAR 2022

Discover the reason behind the shutdown and the market before & today

Failure Analysis

Failure Analysis

Propzy died from a lethal combination of negative unit economics and cultural misalignment disguised as growth. The fundamental flaw was attempting to import the...

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Market Analysis

Market Analysis

The global PropTech market has matured significantly since Propzy's failure, with clear winners emerging in specific niches rather than full-stack plays. Zillow's iBuying disaster...

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Startup Learnings

Startup Learnings

Full-stack models only work when gross margins exceed 40% and customer lifetime value supports the overhead of vertical integration. In low-margin, high-touch industries, attempting...

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Market Potential

Market Potential

Vietnam's real estate market represents $160B+ in annual transactions with a rapidly expanding middle class, 70% urbanization trajectory by 2030, and persistent pain points...

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Difficulty

Difficulty

Real estate transactions remain high-touch and relationship-driven in emerging markets, but modern CRM tools, WhatsApp Business API, and no-code workflow automation (Zapier, Make) now...

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Scalability

Scalability

Propzy's model had catastrophic scalability economics. Each transaction required salaried agents (fixed cost), physical office infrastructure in each city, legal teams for due diligence,...

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Rebuild & monetization strategy: Resurrect the company

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Pivot Concept

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A B2B SaaS platform that provides digital escrow, instant property verification, and transaction insurance specifically for Southeast Asian real estate brokers and small agencies. Instead of competing with informal broker networks, TrustLayer empowers them by solving their biggest pain point: transaction risk and client distrust. Brokers subscribe ($50-200/month based on transaction volume) to access a suite of tools including blockchain-verified property ownership checks, automated legal document generation, digital escrow accounts that release funds only when conditions are met, and transaction insurance that protects both buyer and seller from fraud. The platform integrates with local land registries, banks, and legal databases to provide instant verification that would normally take weeks and cost hundreds of dollars. For brokers, this transforms them from informal middlemen into trusted professionals who can offer institutional-grade security. For clients, it provides the safety of working with a modern platform while maintaining the personal relationship with their trusted broker. Revenue comes from SaaS subscriptions plus 0.1-0.3% transaction fees on escrow services, creating a capital-efficient model that scales with the existing market rather than fighting it.

Suggested Technologies

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Supabase for database and authNext.js for web platformReact Native for mobile appsStripe Connect for payment processingDocuSign API for e-signaturesPlaid equivalent for local bank integrationBlockchain integration via Polygon for property record verification
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Execution Plan

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Phase 1

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Month 1-2: Build core escrow functionality with manual verification. Partner with one law firm in Ho Chi Minh City to handle document review. Create simple web interface where brokers can initiate escrow accounts and invite clients. Manually verify 10 transactions to understand edge cases and build trust protocols.

Phase 2

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Month 3-4: Recruit 20 beta brokers through direct outreach to mid-sized agencies (5-15 agents). Offer free service in exchange for feedback. Focus on agencies that handle 10+ transactions monthly and are frustrated with current manual processes. Build automated property verification by integrating with Vietnam's public land registry database.

Phase 3

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Month 5-6: Launch broker dashboard with transaction pipeline management, automated document generation for standard contracts, and client communication tools. Add transaction insurance underwritten by local partner (take 30% of premium as revenue share). Price at $99/month + 0.2% of transaction value. Target is 50 paying brokers generating $5K MRR.

Phase 4

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Month 7-12: Expand to Thailand and Indonesia by replicating the model with local legal partners. Build API partnerships with regional property portals (PropertyGuru, 99.co) to offer TrustLayer as a white-label escrow solution. Reach 200 broker subscribers and $40K MRR. Validate that brokers using TrustLayer close 30% more deals due to increased client confidence.

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Monetization Strategy

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Three revenue streams: (1) SaaS subscriptions at $99-299/month based on transaction volume tiers, targeting $150 average; (2) Transaction fees of 0.2% on all escrow services, split 50/50 between TrustLayer and banking partner; (3) Revenue share on transaction insurance premiums (30% of premium paid by clients). A broker closing 5 transactions monthly at $100K average property value generates $150 subscription + $100 in transaction fees + $45 in insurance revenue share = $295/month. At 500 brokers (achievable in 18 months across 3 countries), this generates $147K MRR or $1.77M ARR with gross margins above 75% since the model is pure software plus API costs. The business becomes profitable at 200 subscribers ($60K MRR) with a team of 8, and scales efficiently because each new broker requires zero marginal cost beyond customer success. Exit potential to regional property portals, banks seeking real estate lending data, or international PropTech platforms expanding into Southeast Asia.

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