DRSingapore / Mumbai: Standard Chartered Private Equity (SCPE) Standard Chartered Bank’s private equity arm, has agreed to acquire Naspers’ stake in TBO Group (TBO), a leading online B2B travel distribution company in India. Naspers first invested in TBO in 2012. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
TBO (also known as Travel Boutique Online, headquartered in India) was founded in 2006 and has since expanded its operations to more than 90 countries. TBO leverages its proprietary online technology platform to distribute airline and hotel inventory to its customer travel agents. SCPE is committed to backing best-in-class management teams, and continues to actively seek opportunities in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Udai Dhawan, Managing Director at SCPE India, stated: “We are extremely excited to partner with Ankush and Gaurav, both first class entrepreneurs, who have built a profitable and scalable business with a strong market position. We look forward to supporting TBO by leveraging our experience and network to drive the company’s growth strategy.”
Ankush Nijhawan, Co-founder of TBO Group, said: “We are very happy to have SCPE as our partner as we embark on the next stage of TBO’s growth. Through leveraging SCPE’s extensive network and business planning expertise, we would be able to strengthen our position as a leading B2B travel distribution player in the global landscape.”
“The overall B2B travel distribution landscape is ripe for consolidation and we believe that in partnership with SCPE, we can leverage our strengths in technology and scale to drive this consolidation,” said Gaurav Bhatnagar, also a Co-founder of TBO Group.
“Naspers first invested in TBO Group six years ago and it’s rewarding to see how the business has grown and advanced in that time,” said Oliver Rippel, CEO B2C ecommerce, Naspers. “We wish Ankush, Gaurav and the team at TBO Group continued success.”
SCPE provides companies with expansion capital and acquisition finance, and also finances management buy-outs. SCPE focusses on companies whose principal operations and management are located in Asia, Africa or the Middle East. Since inception, SCPE has invested approximately USD 6 billion in over 100 companies across the Standard Chartered Bank footprint.
TBO Group provides a wide range of travel services to travel agents and tour operators across the world, enabling them to serve their customers efficiently, with the right pricing and inventory. With a turnover of over USD 1 Billion, TBO Group today services more than 45,000 travel partners. Headquartered in India, TBO Group has fully owned subsidiaries in UAE, Brazil, Hong Kong and Netherlands. It employs 26 nationalities and the portal is available in eight languages.
For more information, please visit www.tbo-group.com
