Global investment company General Atlantic has acquired a minority stake in travel distribution platform TBO Tek (TBO) from Affirma Capital.
A statement from General Atlantic said TBO, which was founded in 2006, had gross transaction value of $2.7 billion in 2023.
The company’s platform simplifies travel for suppliers across the hotel, airline, car rental and other segments by connecting them with buyers via its platform.
Gaurav Bhatnagar and Ankush Nijhawan, co-founders of TBO, said, “TBO’s strategy is underpinned by our focus on amplifying platform value by growing our user base and lines of business, and through leveraging our deep technology and data capabilities to enhance the buyer experience and supplier engagement. We are grateful to Affirma Capital, who have supported us immensely during the last five years, including during the COVID pandemic, and have been true value-add partners in our scale-up journey so far. We believe that General Atlantic, with their long-standing history of helping technology companies build enduring models, is an ideal partner for this stage of our growth journey. We are thrilled to have their backing and look forward to leveraging their expertise.”
“Gaurav, Ankush and the entire TBO team have pursued a clear mission to simplify travel sales in a growing and increasingly diverse traveler environment," said Shantanu Rastogi, managing director and head of India at General Atlantic. "They have been focused on building a unique technology platform that is able to deliver discovery, trust, payments and services to its suppliers and buyers. We see immense potential in the path ahead for TBO, including global expansion opportunities, and are excited to partner with the company to help enable the next generation of travel globally.”
General Atlantic is an investor in a number of travel companies, including Kiwi.com, FlixMobility and VNLife.
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Affirma Capital will continue to hold an investment in TBO.
Udai Dhawan, founding partner and India head of Affirm Capital, said, “Since our investment in 2018, we have witnessed TBO’s transformational journey to becoming one of the leading travel technology platforms globally, creating meaningful value for its shareholders along the way, as has been crystallized in Affirma Capital’s multi-fold return on investment as part of this transaction. TBO is on the cusp of consolidating the travel technology landscape, and we continue to believe in its potential to aggregate and digitize travel for travel partners across the globe and are excited to continue to retain a significant minority stake in the business.”
The investment from General Atlantic is the third time TBO has brought in new investor shareholders, according to a post from Bhatnagar on LinkedIn.
In addition to Affirma’s investment, Naspers acquired a significant stake in TBO in 2012, which it later sold to Standard Chartered.
Earlier this year TBO acquired a remaining stake in B2B accommodation provider Bookabed via its subsidiary Tek Travels, having acquired 51% of the company in 2022.