Cove, a flexible living platform based in Singapore, has recently announced the appointment of Ashish Manchharam as a board director. Manchharam brings with him a wealth of experience in real estate and hospitality, having founded and built 8M Real Estate over the course of 10 years to a portfolio worth $1.5 billion. He then went on to set up Elevate Capital in early 2024, which focuses on lifestyle-driven real estate investments.
In his new role, Manchharam will be advising Cove on acquiring flexible living assets in partnership with third-party investors, such as real estate funds, institutional investors, and family offices. This decision aligns with Cove’s strategy to accelerate its growth through an asset acquisition model, in addition to its existing asset-light model as a branded flexible living operator and online listing platform. Cove’s target market includes professionals and students.
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Established in 2018, Cove now has over 6,000 rooms in Singapore and Indonesia. The company plans to expand its reach to the wider Asia Pacific region, with recent ventures into South Korea and Japan. These new markets will see the launch of 800 and 400 rooms respectively, in partnership with local joint venture partners.
To support its regional expansion and strengthen its position in existing markets, Cove has closed an additional funding round of US$4.5 million. Manchharam was among the investors, along with existing investors Eurazeo and Keppel, who acquired a strategic minority stake in Cove in December 2020.
According to CEO and co-founder Guillaume Catagne, Cove has experienced significant portfolio growth in 2024 and achieved EBITDA positivity. The company has ambitious plans to more than double its portfolio to 15,000 units by the end of 2025.