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Five years of consecutive growth have been recorded for travel technology investment deals, with a record $5.3 billion invested in the sector. The total, published by CBInsights, beats the $5 billion invested in the sector in 2015 - the year when Airbnb secured a $1.5 billion Series E deal. Some might argue that the record year in 2017 was secured only by way of an investment in "space travel" company Virgin Galactic to the tune of $1 billion from fund in Saudi Arabia. Nevertheless, Airbnb was active again in the capital markets with the $447 million it brought in at the turn of the year - bringing the company's total investment to date up to $4.4 billion. The overall level of deals in travel technology in 2017 marks a massive increase on the previous year, when around half ($2.5 billion) was invested. The figure for 2014 was just short of $1.9 billion.
Companies in the U.S. brought in for 31% of the investment rounds being made, with India accounting for 10% and China not far being with 8%. China and India are experiencing a perfect storm of factors taking place at the same - rising domestic travel and growing middle classes, with India experiencing the growth in budget hotel brands and China seeing a soaring vacation rental sector. Elsewhere in Asia Pacific, new businesses are attracting the attention of existing players that are keen to dabble in the startup landscape. In particular, online travel agency Traveloka caught the eye of Expedia Inc with a $350 million investment, and rental brand Tujia raised $300 million from Ctrip. Amadeus's Ventures arm carried out five deals during 2017, with Hyatt and AccorHotels also active with three investments apiece. Read original article |
