UAE-Based Dubizzle Group Invests In Dubai-Headquartered Proptech Startup Tern

Tern, a Dubai-headquartered proptech startup, has secured a strategic investment from Dubizzle Group, the UAE-born operator of online property and automotive classifieds platforms across the Middle East, in a deal that will also see the former integrated into the latter's marketplaces, Bayut and dubizzle. 

Founded by Said Al Sayyed and Mohamad Shaitou in 2024, Tern allows tenants to pay rent by credit card while earning reward points that can be redeemed at no additional cost across a network of retail, travel, and lifestyle merchants. The platform thus gives tenants a more flexible and rewarding way to pay rent, while also supporting faster, fully digital rent collection for landlords, property managers, and agents. 

Having launched in 2025 as part of the Dubai Land Department's Real Estate Evolution Space (REES) initiative to support proptech startups in the emirate, Tern has since gone on to process more than AED150 million (US$41 million) in annualized rent payment volume through its platform. In an interview with Inc. Arabia, Shaitou said that Tern’s growth has been driven by building the platform alongside the stakeholders it was designed to serve. “Rather than guessing at what people wanted, we built Tern hand in hand with those who'd use it: landlords, property managers, and tenants,” Shaitou said. “And that's how the model came together: the tenant relationship turned out to be worth more than just the rent transaction; so, we brought in merchants who want access to a captive, recurring spender. This keeps the entire platform fee-free for tenants and landlords alike. Today, Tern lets tenants pay rent by credit card and earn rewards on it, with landlords and property managers paid the exact same amount, on the exact same timing—no change on their end.” 

Tern's offering can be likened to that of New York-based Bilt, which secured a valuation of US$10.75 billion in July last year, highlighting the potential of the rental rewards model that Dubizzle Group is now betting on in the UAE. “Our investment in Tern is driven by our commitment to solving real, recurring challenges for our users,” Surya Raviganesh, Vice President of Corporate Development at Dubizzle Group, told Inc. Arabia. “While our platforms have long held the top of the funnel for property search and discovery, we are increasingly focused on building a broader, more integrated property ecosystem that supports users beyond search. By integrating Tern, effectively the Bilt of the Middle East, we will soon be enabling tenants to pay rent using credit cards without additional fees, while also earning rewards points on their largest monthly expense. This partnership creates synergies by leveraging our highly engaged audience, which encompasses half the population of the UAE every month, and is central to our vision of building a more seamless, rewarding, and connected property ecosystem that provides genuine, tangible value at every stage of the property seeker journey.” 

Surya Raviganesh, Vice President of Corporate Development at Dubizzle Group.

Shaitou, for his part, noted that Tern's tie-up with Dubizzle Group represents more than expanded reach; it also brings together two previously disconnected stages of the rental journey. "We believe Dubizzle Group saw the same gap we did, just from the other side of it,” he said. “Bayut and dubizzle own the moment someone finds a home. Nobody owns the moment right after—when that same person has to actually pay for it, throughout the year, with nothing to show for it. We'd built the answer to that. They had the audience standing ready for it. That's why they were comfortable investing—they weren't just considering the premise; they were looking at whether the platform and the engineering behind it could handle payments at the volume they operate at—and it already could. It made perfect sense for us too. Bayut and dubizzle reach close to half the population of the UAE every month, already searching, already deciding, already a few weeks from signing a lease. Getting in front of that exact audience, at that exact moment, by ourselves would've been a long, resource-intensive road. There's a broader product upside too, beyond the reach. Right now, finding a home and paying for it are two completely separate experiences for a tenant — different platforms, different moments, no connection between them. Folding Tern into Bayut and dubizzle starts to close that gap; so, the same journey that gets someone into a home also covers how they pay for it, instead of handing them off to figure that part out on their own.” 

Dubizzle Group’s backing of Tern also reflects the broader strategy underpinning its venture activities. “When evaluating potential investments or partnerships, we look for three key attributes,” Raviganesh shared. “First, we seek scalable business models that fit around our existing ecosystem, specifically businesses that sit along the value chain of buying and selling a property or a car. Second, we prioritize solutions that allow us to better serve our existing client base—agencies and developers in real estate, and dealerships in automotive. Third, we look for clear synergies where businesses can benefit from our top-of-funnel reach; there are material synergies by partnering with businesses that can benefit from our highly engaged audience. Partners like Tern tap into our audience to offer a rewarding solution for a high-friction pain point like rental payments. Our recent acquisition of [UAE-based] Property Monitor follows this same thesis, extending our depth of service for the agencies and developers who are our key customers in real estate. And, it goes without saying, it always comes down to the people; one of the key things we look for is high-caliber, driven founders who are focused on solving real-world problems within our markets.” 

For startups now hoping to follow a path similar to Tern's, Shaitou offered them one piece of advice. "Earn the right to be talked about before you talk,” he declared. “That's it, really. We [at Tern] spent most of our time with landlords and property managers, building trust one building at a time, long before there was anything to put in a press release. That work doesn't make for good headlines, but it's what built Tern—the product, the trust, the traction that made this deal possible in the first place. So, the advice is simple: don't go looking for the spotlight. Get the product right, get people using it. If you build something useful, the people that matter will know—and find it."