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Ebix snaps up Yatra for $338million,creating largest travel platform

Ebix already has two travel portfolios--Via and Mercury--which operate globally.

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The US-based NRI-run Ebix group Wednesday announced the acquisition of the Nasdaq-listed domestic travel portal Yatra for an enterprise valuation of USD 337.8 million(over Rs 2,300 crore) through a merger, creating the country's largest travel services platform.

Both the companies have signed a definitive agreement for the merger, they said in a joint statement, which said the merger will create the country's largest and the most profitable travel services platform, and the merger follows a growing list of acquisitions by Ebix to emerge as a leader in various segments through buyouts.

Ebix already has two travel portfolios--Via and Mercury--which operate globally.

The deal, which is the largest by the company in the country, marks a string of buyouts that the Robin Raina group has carried out in the past two years.

Ebix had in April 2018 bought out the forex card business of the Centrum group--Centrum Direct--for around Rs 1,200 crore and was merged with EbixCash, an end-to-end financial exchange of the acquirer.

Centrum Direct is into forex, overseas remittances, prepaid travel cards and travellers' cheques and has a network of 165 outlets spanning 55 cities and is the largest airport forex player with presence in 24 airports.

Ebix, a global supplier of on-demand software and e- commerce services, had also acquired two financial services firms early this year--Essel Forex for USD 8 million in an all cash deal; and Weizmann Forex for USD 49 million for a 75 % controlling stake. These deals were carried out through

Ebix's domestic subsidiary EbixCash World Money. Weizmann Forex is the second-largest inward remittance provider in cash and is also one of the four largest forex and outward remittance providers in the country.

Recently Ebix had also signed agreements to acquire the Delhi-based Pearl International Tour & Travels and the Mumbai-based Lawson Travels & Tours for an undisclosed sum.

Announcing the deal to buy our Yatra Wednesday, Ebix chairman Robin Raina said, "the acquisition of Yatra would lend itself to significant synergies and the emergence of EbixCash as the country's largest and most profitable travel services company, besides being the largest enterprise financial exchange".

The agreement offers Yatra shareholders the opportunity to participate in the significant upside potential of one of the fastest growing multinational on-demand software and e-commerce services companies in the world, Dhruv Shringi, co-founder and chief executive of Yatra Online said.

Each ordinary share of Yatra will be entitled to receive 0.005 shares of a new class of preferred stock of Ebix, the statement said, adding each share of these preferred stock of Ebix will be convertible into 20 shares of common stock of the US firm.

Ebix said considering the share prices of both the companies in the last 15 days, it is paying a 32 % premium compared to Yatra's closing price as on March 8, when Ebix had offered to acquire Yatra.

Ebix will be issuing 2,43,747 convertible preferred shares, which in turn will be convertible into 48,74,931 shares of Ebix's common stock, the statement said.

Raina said a detailed plan on the possible synergies has been drawn which will push up the company's earnings per share by 40-75 cents.

"We are excited by the cross-selling opportunities that this combination provides us, while further strengthening our future EbixCash IPO offering," he said. 

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