TripActions has reached an agreement to acquire Berlin-based travel management company Comtravo, further boosting its technology offerings and footprint in Europe.
The acquisition will double the number of agents TripActions has in Europe while adding "a wealth of regional expertise and inventory, including domestic rail, low-cost carriers and ancillary air travel supply," according to TripActions. Comtravo, which serves business travel customers in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Scandinavia, also has "specialized invoicing and VAT technology" that TripActions plans to tap.
TripActions did not disclose the financial terms of the acquisition but said its total investment across the U.K. and Europe over the past year has been more than $400 million. No timeline for closing the acquisition has been announced, but a TripActions spokesperson said it would happen "as quickly as possible."
It would be TripActions' second major TMC acquisition in Europe in less than a year, following last May's acquisition of U.K. TMC Reed & Mackay. The Comtravo acquisition will bring TripActions' total portfolio to 7,500 customers across 94 countries, accounting for about $6 billion in travel spending. Europe and the U.K. will make up more than half of TripActions' business following the acquisition.
Comtravo CEO Michael Riegel, who founded the TMC in 2015 with Jannik Wässa, in a statement said it was "clear that the TripActions Group is the best positioned to take the European market" and that his focus would be "ensuring that the combined group has the best product offering in the region."
TripActions in December also launched its Liquid payment and expense management solution in Europe, the Middle East and Africa as well as a co-branded booking and management platform targeting small and medium-sized customers with the Lufthansa Group. After the acquisition, it will have offices in London, Amsterdam, Paris, Dublin, Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich, Tel Aviv and Lisbon.