Tag Archives: Yatra

A day after Yatra Online announced to terminate the merger agreement,  Ebix Inc, who was supposed to acquire the online travel company has issued a statement where it has expressed its strong disagreement with the allegations set forth by Yatra. Ebix intends to enforce all of its rights under the Merger agreement and is currently considering all options, including a countersuit against Yatra, on account of multiple breaches of the merger agreement. In the statement, Ebix said, “On May 14, 2020, Yatra Online, Inc., a Cayman Islands exempted company limited by shares (“Yatra”), entered into an agreement (the “Fourth Extension Agreement”) with Ebix, Inc. (“Ebix”) extending the outside date of the Merger Agreement (the “Merger Agreement”), dated July 16, 2019, by and between Yatra, Ebix and EbixCash Travels Inc., a direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of Ebix (“Merger Sub”) to June 4, 2020 (the “Outside Date”). The Merger Agreement contained certain termination rights for Ebix and Yatra, including, among others, the right of either party to terminate the Merger Agreement if the Merger has not been consummated on or prior to the Outside Date. The Outside Date was extended to June 4, 2020, in order to provide the parties with time to determine whether they could reach mutual agreement on an amendment of certain terms of the Merger Agreement. After the expiration of the Outside Date and the failure of the two parties to agree on the terms of an amended Merger Agreement by the Outside Date, Yatra terminated the Merger Agreement on June 5, 2020, and filed suit against Ebix in the Delaware Court of Chancery for breach of contract. Ebix worked diligently to fulfil its obligations under the Merger Agreement …

Online travel company Yatra has announced that it has provided notice of termination of its pending merger agreement with Ebix, Inc. and sought substantial damages from the latter over “breaches of representations, warranties and covenants in the merger agreement and an ancillary extension agreement”. Separately, starting April 2020, Yatra had already implemented cost reduction initiatives, resulting in 58% fixed cost savings in May 2020 vs March 2020, and 70% savings as compared to March 2019.

Yatra.com has contributed 56,000 face masks to the Haryana Government, for use by healthcare workers, as a gesture of gratitude for their dedication and efforts in fighting COVID-19. The masks were received by Hari Om Attri, Joint Commissioner, Municipal Corporation Gurugram. As coronavirus threatens the livelihood of daily wagers and underprivileged kids, Yatra.com contributed between two NGOs Arpana Trust and Naya Sawera. Arpana Trust which is into multi-disciplinary services is providing ration in slums of New Delhi to daily wage earners and underprivileged kids, while Naya Sawera is dedicatedly working for HIV infected kids to protect them against infections such as COVID-19. Talking about this initiative, Dhruv Shringi, Co-founder & CEO, Yatra.com, said, “In the time of this pandemic, it is very crucial for us to stand together and contribute in our own way towards the well-being of our citizens. At Yatra.com, we would like to show our solidarity towards the government initiatives through our contribution and support the people in this unprecedented situation. This is a small gesture of gratitude on our part, for the people who are working tirelessly at the forefront looking after individuals in need.” Through these contributions, Yatra.com stands with the government and local communities in their fight against COVID-19.

Ebix will be acquiring Yatra Online via merger, as part of a definitive agreement signed between the two travel giants. Following the completion of the transaction, Yatra will become part of Ebix’s EbixCash travel portfolio alongside Via and Mercury and will continue to serve customers under the Yatra brand. The transaction will create India’s largest and most profitable travel services company, and a leading online travel platform poised to capture significant international growth opportunities. Ebix Chairman, President and CEO Robin Raina, commented, “The acquisition of Yatra would lend itself to significant synergies and the emergence of EbixCash as India’s largest and most profitable travel services company, besides being the largest enterprise financial exchange in the country. Over the last few months, we have evolved a detailed synergistic plan, that once fully executed can provide between 40 to 75 cents of accretion to the Ebix non-GAAP EPS. We are excited by the cross-selling opportunities that this combination provides us, while further strengthening our future EbixCash IPO offering.” Dhruv Shringi, Co-founder and CEO of Yatra Online. “We are pleased to announce this agreement with Ebix, which provides our shareholders with 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. Over the last several years, we have built Yatra into one of India’s most well- recognized e-commerce brands, growing into the leading corporate travel services provider and one of the largest consumer travel companies. Becoming a part of Ebix’s EbixCash travel portfolio will enable us to continue on that path. As part of a larger diversified organization with the necessary scale and resources to be a leader …

The sixth edition of the three-day India International Travel & Tourism Exhibition (IITT) kicks off in Mumbai’s MMRDA Grounds in BKC today. The exhibition has over 500 exhibitors from more than 25 countries showcasing their products and services. IITT 2019 will be driven by its content which includes workshops, training academy, speed networking lounge, panel discussions, and much more. IITT has also associated with Cox & Kings which has created specially-designed experiential zones for visitors. Day one will have an expert panel discussion on developing new destinations through film tourism with travel specialists such as Karan Anand, Head – Relationships & Supplier Management, Cox & Kings sharing their perspective. Day two will see many more business sessions focusing on diverse topics such as cruise tourism, outbound MiCE and data privacy. The key sponsors of the exhibition includes Powered by Partner – Cox & Kings, Partner Country – Indonesia Tourism, MICE & Wedding Destination Partner – Sri Lanka Tourism, Host State – Maharashtra, Partner State – Kerala, Platinum Sponsors – Ark Travels, Akquasun Group and Club7. Some of the featured countries include Bhutan Tourism, Malaysia Tourism & Fiji Tourism. Apart from them, the other key partners on the board are Guideline, dnata, Yatra, Urvi travels, Ottila and many more.  

Travelport has announced that it had won a competitive tender process undertaken by Air India for the sole provision of distribution of its domestic flight content. The contract awarded to Travelport will begin to come into effect from November 2018 and be fully implemented by the end of 2019. The agreement confirms Air India’s continued deployment of Travelport Rich Content and Branding, now used by over 270 airlines. This displays airlines’ graphical content, their fares families and a full range of ancillary products. Travelport has seen a rapid expansion in India in recent years following the acquisition of business from the largest online travel agencies like MakeMyTrip, Ibibo, Yatra, EaseMyTrip and ClearTrip as well as working with the major corporate travel agencies and new entrants to the travel sector such as Paytm. Pradeep Singh Kharola, Chairman and Managing Director, Air India, said, “Air India is pleased to award this important contract to Travelport. In written submissions and in discussion with their team, the company demonstrated a clear understanding of our needs and displayed impressive technological and financial capability. As we make the switch to Travelport, we hope to be able to deliver even better value for money and a superior distribution to our customers in India and abroad.” Gordon Wilson, President and CEO, Travelport, commented, “Travelport is delighted to have been selected by Air India to provide these services. It is another welcome endorsement of our technology and our services in India. We look forward to implementing the agreement and delivering a world-class service to the airline.”

Yatra Online, Inc and Chrome River Technologies, Inc a global provider of expense management and supplier invoice processing software, have announced an agreement to deliver streamlined, integrated expense automation solutions for companies based out of India. Yatra will resell Chrome River EXPENSE as part of an integrated travel booking and expense management solution with Yatra’s Self Book platform. Chrome River EXPENSE will empower Yatra’s corporate customers to better enforce expense policies, provide an optimal traveler experience, and reduce wasteful spend. Commenting on the partnership, Dhruv Shringi, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Yatra Online, Inc said, “As we continue to grow in the corporate travel segment, we are teaming up with Chrome River, to further drive efficiencies in travel bookings by automating the expense management process. The depth and reach of its network and solutions is unparalleled in the industry. Our technology platforms complement each other, and together we will offer services best suited to the needs of Indian travellers to ultimately enhance their travel booking experience. We look forward to growing with Chrome River.” “India is one of the fastest-growing business travel markets, and corporate travel spending is increasing at 12 per cent per year, which is more than double that of the U.S. and almost five times the growth seen across Europe. This growth, combined with a need for many Indian companies to improve business processes in areas such as travel booking and expense management, offers an excellent opportunity for Chrome River and Yatra,” said Alan Rich, CEO, Chrome River.

Under the ‘Adopt a Heritage Scheme’ of Ministry of Tourism, seven shortlisted companies or Monument Mitras have been given the Letter of Intent for the adoption of 14 monuments, which were presented at the closing ceremony of the three-week-long ‘Paryatan Parv’ at Rajpath Lawns, New Delhi. K.J. Alphons, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism, Government of India, said, “We had over 1200 events across numerous sites in the country, across schools, monuments etc. In the past 20 days, we have turned India into a land of celebrations with the help of our 18 sister ministries and thanks to the overwhelming participation of our own people.” SBI Foundation was shortlisted for the adoption of Jantar Mantar, Delhi, while TK International Limited would be adopting Sun Temple, Konark; Raja Rani Temple, Bhubaneshwar, and Ratnagiri Monuments, Jajpur, Odisha. On the other hand, Yatra Online Pvt. Limited would adopt Hampi, Karnataka; Leh Palace, Jammu & Kashmir; Qutub Minar, Delhi and Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra. Travel Corporation of India Ltd. was shortlisted for the adoption of Mattancherry Palace Museum, Kochi, and Safdarjung Tomb, Delhi. Adventure Tour Operator Association of India (ATOAI) will be adopting Gangotri Temple Area and Trail to Gaumukh, as well as Mt. StokKangri, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir. Special Holidays Travel Pvt. Ltd., along with Rotary Club of Delhi was shortlisted for the adoption of Agrasen ki Baoli, Delhi, and NBCC would adopt Purana Quila, Delhi. Arun Jaitley, Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister, Government of India, also the Chief Guest presented certificates to the ‘Best Participating Central Government Ministry and Best Participating State Government’ at the closing ceremony. The grand spectacle included cultural performances by different state troops, craft mela showing diverse handicrafts …

The second edition of Phocuswright India 2017 held from Feb 28-Mar 2 saw leaders from travel technology and travel-related segments gather in Gurugram where the latest trends in the industry were discussed, new talents nurtured and networking opportunities forged. Simon Lehmann, President, Phocuswright informed that over 400 participants were welcomed and added, “We saw a great turnout that could have been better, but it was a good response nonetheless. The sessions on Centre Stage that featured the likes of Google, Yatra and Paytm were effective crowd pullers and saw a lot of valuable exchange of ideas and information on the new travel technology trends.” Some of the highlights of the event include discussions on the future of business travel, alternate stays and the growth of budget accommodation, along with interviews with Expedia, Uber, Makemytrip & Ibibo, Booking.com, to name a few.

Yatra.com has forged a strategic alliance with the Government of Andhra Pradesh to promote homestays and enhance tourism in the state through their holiday packages. As a part of this partnership, Yatra will list over 200 properties on its website and encourage the growth of homestays in Andhra Pradesh. The MoU was signed during the Partnership Summit at Vishakhapatnam in presence of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu. Through the partnership, Yatra will promote all the state tourism approved homestays, wherein guests can rent a room in the home of a local family (host) or the entire house. This partnership will give the tourists a chance to experience the hospitality of various families throughout Andhra Pradesh and enjoy wonderful home cooked food. Speaking on the partnership, Sharat Dhall, COO (B2C), Yatra.com said, “Homestays as a trend is rapidly gaining popularity in India. As new age travellers seek out unique experiences in the course of their travels, we believe that this kind of non-hotel accommodation has tremendous growth potential in the country. Also, the partnership with Andhra Pradesh Government will provide an alternate source of income for the local population and enhance their livelihoods without straining their existing resources, thereby creating sustainable livelihood and creating large scale employment.”