Property portal 99 Group is hiring around 100 additional technology staff over the next 12 months to boost its tech workforce.

These include positions such as front-and back-end engineers, app developers, product managers, user experience and user interface designers and data analysts, said the Singapore-based firm yesterday.

Some of the job openings for positions in Singapore and Indonesia are listed on its 99.co website.

The firm also announced that it has appointed Mr Shivkumar Krishnan as its chief technology officer.

Prior to the appointment, Mr Krishnan was director of engineering at Circles.Life and engineering leader at Grab.

The CTO appointment and hiring plans are meant to "accelerate the property portal's tech innovation for an evolving real estate industry", as property hunting increasingly shifts online, said the firm.

It added that the push to expand its pool of tech professionals is "all the more important" as the Covid-19 pandemic has hastened digital transformation in the property buying and selling process.

Property portal brands under the start-up include 99.co, iproperty.com.sg and rumah123.com

Calling Covid-19 a "game changer", 99 Group's chief executive Darius Cheung said the firm is leveraging technology to deliver a better experience for property seekers.

"As an increasing portion of the entire home search and purchase process shifts online, our platform has facilitated many transactions through tools such as live video viewings," he said.

The firm said it received five times the number of video listings on its platforms in the first half of this year. Even after physical home viewings resumed, home seekers continued to show high interest in such video listings on its platforms, it added.