DORA is Vital for High-Growth Real Estate and CRE Tech Firms

In real estate, whether you’re an investor, consultant, fund manager, advisor or in CRE tech, you’re handling a lot of client data and sensitive information. As your business grows, as does your tech stack. Alongside optimal functionality of your digital platforms and interconnected technologies, you need to manage risk across multiple systems, making sure they interact security with one another.

In the European Union (EU), the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) has been introduced to strengthen cybersecurity within the financial sector. DORA requires financial institutions to build resilience against cyberattacks and operational disruptions. 

What’s this got to do with those working in real estate and associated businesses? DORA is not just for banks, insurers, and major financial institutions – it applies to a wide range of financial entities, including real estate investment funds, REITs, and any firms managing client funds. If your business falls under these categories, compliance with DORA is a regulatory requirement. 

Real estate firms, property developers, and CRE tech companies that work closely with financial institutions will find themselves affected by DORA’s stringent requirements for cybersecurity, risk management, and third-party oversight.

DORA requires organisations to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities in their tech stack, by mandating regular resilience testing, risk assessments, and incident response plans, helping professionals spot weaknesses in data flows and dependencies. 

When you’re aligned with DORA, your use of interconnected systems, whether for CRM, property management, or financial processes, becomes more secure and resilient. The standardisation of incident reporting also allows for faster resolution of issues, helping businesses maintain continuity and build confidence with clients.

What is DORA?

Financial services organisations are 300 times more likely than other companies to be targeted by a cyberattack and the number of cyber-attacks rising by over 200%. Robust cybersecurity and operational resilience are business-critical functionalities. Coming into place in January 2023, DORA established comprehensive requirements for risk management, incident reporting, and recovery plans, ensuring that financial entities are resilient to both cyber and non-cyber disruptions. 

It also focuses on the role of third-party providers, such as cloud services and IT vendors, holding them to high standards to protect against system failures and breaches that could affect the financial ecosystem.

For property developers or firms dealing with high-value investments or financial transactions, their systems and data must comply with the enhanced resilience expectations set for the financial sector.

For property firms operating in or with the EU, DORA presents both a compliance challenge and an opportunity to strengthen their own cybersecurity measures, risk management frameworks, and vendor oversight. By meeting DORA’s rigorous standards, property companies can not only stay ahead of regulatory requirements but also enhance their resilience in an increasingly digital and interconnected business environment.

Why DORA matters in the property industry

1. Building trust and confidence

Just like SOC 2 compliance boosts client confidence in your data security, aligning with DORA shows your commitment to keeping systems resilient against cyber threats and disruptions. It proves to financial partners that you meet their high standards, protecting sensitive information while positioning your business as a reliable, credible collaborator. If you work with financial data or support financial institutions, DORA’s principles help minimise risk and strengthen those partnerships.

2. Ensuring regulatory alignment

DORA sets a gold standard for resilience and cybersecurity, offering property firms in the EU or working with financial entities a clear way to minimise risk. Aligning with DORA helps you avoid fines, protect your reputation, and stay ahead of tightening compliance regulations while boosting operational strength.

3. Gaining a competitive advantage

As financial institutions adopt DORA, they'll expect their partners, including real estate and associated firms, to meet the same resilience standards. Aligning with DORA shows you're a forward-thinking leader in data protection and operational continuity. In a competitive market, this commitment sets you apart, making your business more appealing to clients, investors, and stakeholders who value security and reliability.

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How Hicomply can help you align with DORA

Hicomply’s platform is designed to simplify and automate the complex requirements of compliance frameworks like DORA. Hicomply ensures that every step - risk assessments, evidence collection, policy management, and incident reporting - is streamlined. This reduces the burden of manual processes, allowing you to focus your time growing your business.

Key Features to support DORA compliance

• Third-party vendor management: Monitor and assess risks from PropTech vendors, cloud providers, and other third parties to ensure their resilience meets DORA standards.

• Automated risk assessments: Identify and mitigate vulnerabilities across ICT systems with real-time assessments and instant alerts.

• Policy management: Centralise and automate policy updates to ensure your organisation aligns with DORA’s requirements for ICT and cybersecurity policies.

• Incident reporting templates: Use pre-built workflows to quickly and accurately report incidents to financial institution partners, demonstrating accountability and regulatory alignment.

• Compliance dashboard: Gain a comprehensive, real-time view of your firm’s DORA compliance status, ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.

Hicomply isn’t just about DORA - it’s a versatile tool that supports alignment with other international standards like ISO 27001, enabling property firms to adopt a holistic approach to compliance. This comprehensive capability ensures that your business is well-prepared for current and future regulatory demands while demonstrating operational resilience to clients and partners. Most importantly, using Hicomply for DORA compliance will mean that you are already 80% of the way to gaining ISO 27001 compliance as we have cross-mapped the two standards.

While DORA is primarily aimed at financial institutions, its principles of operational resilience and ICT risk management have a direct impact on property firms collaborating with the financial sector. Hicomply helps firms align with these stringent requirements, safeguarding sensitive data, building trust with financial partners, and avoiding potential penalties.

With Hicomply’s all-in-one platform, property firms can automate compliance processes, reduce risks, and demonstrate resilience with confidence. Whether it’s risk mapping, resilience testing, or vendor oversight, Hicomply equips property firms with the tools needed to meet financial institutions' expectations and regulatory demands.

For property firms that rely on partnerships with financial institutions, staying ahead in compliance isn’t just about meeting regulations - it’s about building trust, strengthening relationships, and gaining a competitive edge.