Spanish unicorn TravelPerk announced it has closed an additional €95 million investment led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 with significant participation from existing investors, including Kinnevik and Felix Capital. The round is an extension of the Series D-1 raised in January 2022, led by General Catalyst. Stephen Thorne, Investment Director for SoftBank Investment Advisers will join the TravelPerk Board of Directors.
With this funding infusion, TravelPerk will increase investment into its platform, enhancing the customer experience through new inventory capabilities and launching new business travel services, as well as expanding product automation through AI. In 2023, the company grew revenue by over 70% year-over-year, gross profit increased by more than 90% year-over-year, and annualised booking volumes approached $2 billion.
Avi Meir, CEO and Co-Founder of TravelPerk, commented: “We have a clear focus: building the number 1 SaaS business travel platform for SMB and Mid-Tier companies in Europe and the US. I’m delighted that SoftBank has backed that vision, and that our existing investors continue to support our responsible and thoughtful approach to long-term growth. This latest investment comes during a time when the winning tech companies are separating from the pack, and it further validates our investors’ commitment to our vision and strategy. We are also incredibly grateful to our team of more than 1200 employees who together enable us to achieve such rapid growth and success. We’ll continue to grow our workforce as we scale our presence across the US and Europe.”
Stephen Thorne, Investment Director for SoftBank Investment Advisers, said: “Within the enormous global business travel market, SMBs have remained a largely underserved segment. TravelPerk continues to innovate, integrating AI across the product stack to deliver a world-class experience for customers and travellers. We are excited to partner with TravelPerk and support the next stage of growth.”
Akhil Chainwala, Investment Director at Kinnevik, added: “The TravelPerk team has continued to deliver on their ambitious plans, irrespective of an ever-changing external environment. Compared to the pre-pandemic period, the company has achieved a ten-fold increase in volumes and rapidly innovated on product, resulting in improved customer experience and a doubling of monetisation. Most recently, we have been excited to see significant automation efficiencies set a scalable foundation for future growth. Throughout this journey, Avi’s leadership has set the tone for a strong and authentic company culture. We look forward to the next phase of responsible acceleration that this latest investment will unlock.”
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/01/barcelona-based-travelperk-snaps-an-additional-e95-million-to-hit-the-gas-and-speed-away-hyper-growth/
