The business travel industry’s merger and acquisition activity in 2021, while arguably less intense than some pandemic-era predictions had foretold, nevertheless was frisky, particularly in the travel management company sector. American Express Global Business Travel’s acquisitions of Egencia and Ovation Travel Group were some of the largest of the year, joining several other notable deals.
A few other trends illustrated the 2021 industry M&A story.
Rise of the SPAC. Several business travel industry companies, most notably Amex GBT and Cvent, announced their intentions to become publicly traded companies not through initial public offerings of stock but through mergers with special purpose acquisition companies. These SPACs are already public, having registered with regulatory bodies like the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and shares of the SPAC are available to buy. Companies like Sonder, Gett, Wheels Up, HotelPlanner.com and Rocketrip parent Mondee also announced SPAC…