In a merger valued at roughly $5.3 billion, American Express Global Business Travel announced on Friday that it would merge with a blank-check firm funded by Apollo Global Management Inc to go public.
The combination with Apollo Strategic Growth Capital is expected to net up to $1.2 billion in total proceeds, including a $335 million private investment in public equity, or PIPE.
Investment manager Ares Management Corp, travel technology business Sabre Corp, and Zoom Video Communications Inc were among the PIPE’s investors.
The agreement comes at a time when business travel is recovering from a pandemic-related dip, providing a boost to organizations like AmEx GBT that assist with corporate travel planning.
AmEx GBT was a wholly-owned subsidiary of American Express Co until 2014 when it was sold to a consortium led by investment firm Certares LP for half of its value.
GIC, the Singapore sovereign wealth fund, and the Carlyle Group were planning to buy a 20% share in the company in late 2019, but the deal fell through in May of last year as the COVID-19 issue wreaked havoc on the travel industry.
Over the last year, AmEx GBT has bolstered its company by acquiring Ovation Travel Group, Expedia Group’s corporate travel unit Egencia, and 30SecondsToFly, a travel software startup that employs artificial intelligence.
After the merger, the combined company will be known as Global Business Travel Group, but it will continue to operate under the AmEx GBT brand name.
After the merger closes in the first half of 2022, the business will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “GBTG.”
