American Express Global Business Travel has secured undisclosed investment from Carlyle Global Partners.
Carlyle joins the Certares-led investment group, which holds 50% of the business, with credit card and loyalty brand American Express holding the remaining half.
GIC, an institutional investor, is also now part of the group, alongside the University of California Office of the Chief Investment Officer of the Regents and Kaiser Permanente.
The joint venture for Amex GBT was announced in 2013 between American Express and Certares and has been led since by Greg O’Hara, founder and senior managing director of the finance house.
O’Hara says: “This investment validates the success of the joint venture and underscores the strength of our long-term growth strategy.”
Paul Abbott, newly appointed chief executive of Amex GBT, adds that the company is “poised for its next phase of organic growth and M&A activity.”
Just under a year ago, Amex GBT announced the acquisition of U.K.-based HRG for approximately $400 million.
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During an interview at The Phocuswright Conference last month, O’Hara shared that Certares currently has about $9 billion in assets under management, mostly invested in travel, and that the figure will grow to the “$20, $30, $40 billion range.”
“As we keep executing our strategy we’ll get bigger, GBT is by no means done making acquisitions and investments.”
Watch the full interview below:
Executive Interview American Express Global Business Travel - The Phocuswright Conference