PROPEX BAGS SHOP PROPERTY

Propex, the company that runs the eponymous online investment trading platform, has bought dot.com ShopProperty from Churston Heard.

Churston Heard has taken shares in Propex in return for ShopProperty, increasing its Propex stake to more than 15%.

ShopProperty, launched in 2001, is an online listing service with a catalogue of over 1,200 shops.

Propex MD Paul Marples said ShopProperty would be developed further. "We are in the middle of a rebranding, and later in the year we will introduce a platform like Propex's for retailers and agents to interact securely online and distribute information efficiently."

Propex is owned by 15 agencies including Churston, with 30%; institutions and property companies, including Prudential, Land Securities and British Land, own 15%; directors own 20%; and venture capitalists Summit Group and the VC division at Anglo Irish Bank.