AltoVita bucks funding trends to secure $9.5 million Series A round

Female-founded corporate accommodation platform completes oversubscribed round despite slump in global VC funding

Female-founded corporate accommodation platform AltoVita has secured a $9.5 million Series A investment in the face of a slump in venture capitalist funding.

The completion of the round was announced last night as the London-based firm handed out its third annual Global Corporate Home Awards, The Altos, in a ceremony at the Tate Modern.

Co-founder and chief executive Vivi Cahyadi Himmel said the round was oversubscribed and the firm had to 'say no' to potential investors.

She added AltoVita’s ability to raise was all the more remarkable in an environment where VC investment globally is down over 50% and female-led businesses attract just 2% of funding.

The Series A was led by existing investor Novum Capital Partners and Fifth Wall and will help AltoVita hit its target of delivering 2.5 million properties to businesses and employees in 35,000 by the end of 2023.

Himmel said: “AltoVita is setting a new standard with a fresh, modern and agile approach when it comes to corporate accommodation technology. 

“Karolina [co-founder and chief operating officer] and I are thoroughly blessed to have incredibly supportive investors. 

“Existing investor, Novum Capital Partners, who has already seen firsthand our consistent four times year on year growth over the past few years and the quality of the work that we do at AltoVita, co-led the round. 

“The partnership with Fifth Wall will unlock immense real estate opportunities to provide unique inventories to meet our corporate demand globally.

“This fundraise will go a long way as we continue building a technology powerhouse that enables us to attract high calibre talent in tech and product as well as hospitality growth, business development and customer success.”

AltoVita was founded in 2018 and now works with blue chip corporates like Hewlett Packard Enterprises and Google as well as US government agencies to find housing for their staff.

It strives to address the lack of available options for corporate travellers and a need to standardise and provide quality assurance to the legacy corporate accommodation sector. 

Gabriele Gallotti, founding partner at Novum Capital Partners and board observer at AltoVita, said: 

“From the first meeting, we were completely bought into Vivi and Karolina’s vision. AltoVita is one of the most capital efficient operations that I’ve seen in many years and the growth AltoVita has achieved is rare, particularly within the current market challenges. 

“The company brings a truly unique offering to the corporate travel market and we couldn’t be happier to see the progress that the team has made over the past year. 

“Our recent investment will give AltoVita the firepower to scale its vision into new markets, and continue to develop its seamless solution for the fragmented corporate accommodation sector.”

The AltoVita platform has been developed to bring more choice and transparency to corporate accommodation as well as the ability to search for properties by safe and sustainable practices. 

Properties are fully vetted and verified to provide duty of care and compliance, backed by a four-tier quality control system and supported by a customer success team.  

Proprietary features include a data analytics and market intelligence tool, policy builder and end-to-end housing management with financial management. 

Miguel Nigorra, partner and head of the Europe team at Fifth Wall, said: "As the traditional office returns in 2023, with a significant rebound in business travel, Vivi, Karolina and their talented team at AltoVita are delivering an unmatched global travel solution that realigns employees lifestyles with corporate accommodation. 

"We're thrilled to support AltoVita through its next phase of growth and know that our extensive network of limited partners, representing the world's most notable real estate owners and operators, will undoubtedly benefit from their transformative approach."