Mark Trowell, a former senior project manager and innovation lead in banking and financial services at Macquarie Group, departed the company in 2017 to co-found Yabonza with his colleague Simon Kinsey. Their startup aimed to revolutionize property management through a technology platform that streamlined repairs, maintenance, payments, and relationships, resulting in reduced administrative costs and time for landlords. Yabonza differentiated itself by charging a lower commission fee of 3.9% compared to the industry average of approximately 7%.
Over the course of five years, Yabonza successfully raised over $15 million in funding, and the company appointed Mirvac COO Gary Flowers as its chairman. However, following the termination of a service agreement by the company’s financier, the business was placed under the administration of Sydney-based advisors, Wexted Advisors.
It is believed that Mark Trowell departed from the company in late 2021. On July 26, Andrew McCabe and Joseph Hayes of Wexted Advisors were appointed as administrators. McCabe stated that they were conducting an urgent assessment of the company’s financial situation and working with management to ensure continued operations while pursuing an urgent sale of the business and its assets. The company owes creditors more than $2.5 million, and investigations are ongoing to determine the reasons for the company’s failure and explore possible recovery actions for stakeholders.
Earlier this year, Yabonza raised $1.3 million through a convertible note and subsequently underwent a restructuring process, resulting in only three members of the original team of 20, including Simon Kinsey, remaining with the company when it was handed over to administrators.
In 2020, Yabonza expanded into the UK market and acquired Easyshare, a sharehouse payments startup founded by John Bush, through an undisclosed cash and equity deal. This acquisition made Bush a co-founder of Yabonza.
Yabonza achieved a significant milestone in September of the previous year by acquiring a rent roll of 1,500 properties. The company aimed to expand its portfolio to 5,000 properties by early 2022 and launched a new investor fund that raised $9.5 million for property acquisitions. Yabonza offered a monthly yield of 12% to its investors at the time. The company projected having 20,000 properties under management by the end of 2022, positioning itself as one of the largest property management businesses in the country.
As the administrators search for potential buyers, Yabonza will continue to operate, with the rent roll being considered its most valuable asset.
