Yatra raises $44M, India becoming hotbed of action for investors

April 20, 2011 By 1 Comment

Indian online travel agency Yatra has attracted a new round of investment worth $44 million from a string of US venture capital firms.

yatra

The deal sees a new investor in the business in the shape of Valiant Capital, joining existing and major backers in Yatra, Norwest Venture Partners and Intel Capital.

Yatra is one of the leading Indian OTAs alongside home-grown businesses MakeMyTrip and Cleartrip, with Expedia and Travelocity also operating in the country (see latest Hitwise India data for latest positions).

The company was launched in 2006 and has since grown to attract an average of $30 million revenue a month with a volume of 10,000 tickets and 350 hotel rooms sold every day.

Yatra claimed a gross turnover of $250 million in 2010. Its last investment round came it at around $32 million.

The company says the investment is likely to fund expansion of its hotels and holidays divisions, marketing in the next wave of Indian cities experiencing signs of growth in ecommerce and some acquisitions.

The investment round comes just days after US-based travel and expense management technology provider Concur took a $40 million stake in Cleartrip.

Rival agency MakeMyTrip hit the US public financial markets in the summer of 2010.

As well as this wave of interest from outside India, some believe there is certainly a lot more money beginnning to float around the industry.

Aaron Gowell, CEO of SilverRail Technologies but a founder of General Catalyst Partners in the US in 1998, says the wider investment market has “started to heat up” in recent months.

Venture capital companies are beginning to invest in strong brands with obvious areas of growth, including online travel agencies, he says.

Related posts:

  1. eBay India tries the travel booking route, signs deal with Yatra
  2. Cleartrip hits back after Travelocity action triggers arrest of CEO
  3. Online travel booms in India as web visits soar, Expedia-Travelocity enjoying the ride
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Kevin May About Kevin May

Kevin May is editor of Tnooz. He joined as a co-founder in August 2009 after spending nearly four years as editor of UK-based business publication Travolution.

Passionate about the business of travel and the internet, Kevin played a major role in establishing Travolution in print, online, events and with an annual awards programme, as well as becoming a regular speaker and moderator at industry events.

Prior to Travolution, Kevin was web editor at Media Week (UK) and also worked in regional newspapers for two years at the Essex Enquirer. He started his career in journalism at the Police Gazette at New Scotland Yard in London.

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  1. Tnooz Nuggets - Tues 26 April 2011 | Tnooz says:
    April 26, 2011 at 6:01 pm

    [...] More Indian online travel investment news, with car rental and cab aggregator OlaCabs winning a Series A funding round. Undisclosed but believed to be in the region of $1 million, high profile Indian investors Rehan yar Khan, Anupam Mittal and others are spearhearding the round. The company says funds will be used to build operations and marketing teams as well as product development. [...]

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