US buyout giant Silver Lake Friday struck a £2.2bn deal to acquire one of Britain’s biggest internet property search companies, a bet on the increasing use of the web by consumers and real estate agents as a more efficient and cheaper way to buy and sell homes in the UK and beyond.

Founded in 2008, ZPG’s brands include Zoopla, a property portal with hundreds of thousands of home listings, and uSwitch, which allows consumers to compare prices for a range of home services including gas, electricity and broadband internet. The London-based company grew profit by 2% to £37.4m for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2017 from the prior period, while revenue jumped 24% to £244.5m.