One giant fades, another awakens... While CWT should soon be merged into a single entity Amex GBT As the market continues to expand, another player could well rise to the forefront of the business travel scene. It's 2 AprilSteve Singh has announced the acquisition of Direct Travel. And Concur's founder has made no secret of his ambitions for TMC. Direct Travel adds the missing brick to an increasingly complementary ecosystem, with synergies already evident in terms of technology and content. "By integrating its own AI innovations around customer experience with a modern set of integrated travel technologies from Spotnana (Travel-as-a-Service platform), Center (card spending management platform) and Troop (a platform for group meetings and events), the company sees an opportunity to set a global standard for the Perfect Journey."warn Steve Singh and his partners. These include Durable Capital Partners, Madrona Ventures, Top Tier Capital Partners and Blackstone Credit & Insurance.
Founded in 2011, Direct Travel today boasts a portfolio of some 4,500 customers. With the support of these new technological partners, TMC could well take on a new dimension. " Over the past few years, our investment group has sought out companies that are reinventing key elements of the travel ecosystem with the aim of delivering a significantly better value proposition to business travellers, the companies they work for and the travel suppliers that serve them."says Steve Singh. "Spotnana, Center and Troop are reinventing and significantly improving key elements of travel technology. Direct Travel sets the bar for customer experience. We are delighted to invest in and partner with what we believe is the leading travel management company in the market, continues the man who is now Executive Chairman of Direct Travel. He is already promising: "We will invest to meet the current needs of our customers, grow our customer base in each of the markets we serve, methodically increase the number of markets we serve and the range of products we offer our customers." .
Steve Singh is therefore particularly ambitious when it comes to the future of TMC, to the point of warning: " I look forward to building on this great foundation to support our existing clients and, together with the talented leaders of Direct Travel and several former Concur executives, our goal is to build the most admired and innovative travel management company in the industry." . These former Concur, Christal Bemont formerly CRO, has been appointed CEO of Direct Travel. As he says: " Years ago, Steve [Singh] set out a vision for 'The Perfect Trip'. Our announcement is a major step towards realising that vision. Today, innovation begins as we embark on a new era of growth for the benefit of our customers. Working with our technology partners and extensive supplier network, we will continue to invest in proprietary technology focused on user experience and dynamic customer services, which we plan to make available to other travel management companies as a service.".
