MakeMyTrip to acquire Happay from CRED

Online travel company MakeMyTrip has signed a business transfer agreement to acquire Happay Expense Management Platform from CRED.

Happay was acquired by CRED in late 2021 in a deal worth $180 million. Entrackr exclusively reported the acquisition at that time.

Happay provides expense management for corporates to manage travel and tax benefits for their employees. The company offers specialized solutions for large businesses with multiple branches and surface logistics companies.

Under the new agreement, the Happay brand, its expense management business, and its dedicated team will transition to MakeMyTrip.

The transaction is expected to close within the next 90 days, subject to closing conditions. According to the press release, Happay’s team will continue to support the existing client base while working in close partnership with MakeMyTrip’s corporate travel services team.

“The acquisition of Happay’s brand and expense management platform is a natural next step in our strategy to lead this space. By integrating Happay’s expertise, which spans over 900 corporate clients, MakeMyTrip is set to redefine the benchmarks once again in corporate travel and expense management in India,” said Rajesh Magow, co-founder and Group CEO, MakeMyTrip.

Happay’s payments business and team, which has focused on developing an innovative technology stack and business payments products, will remain with CRED. Most recently, this vertical launched B2B payment solutions on Bharat Connect in partnership with NPCI.

“Our focus at CRED is on developing products that enable financial progress. By enabling each vertical to play to its strengths, we’re positioning both teams - who’ve built market-leading products and capabilities - to scale in their domains. I’m excited about the payments team’s opportunity to transform the B2B payments experience into one that’s frictionless, reliable, and one that’s set for rapid growth,” said Kunal Shah, founder, CRED.

MakeMyTrip claims to serve more than 59,000 corporate clients via MyBiz (a platform for small and medium-sized corporates) and more than 450 large corporates through Quest2Travel (a platform suited for large enterprises).

MakeMyTrip, listed on the Nasdaq, reported a revenue of $211 million for the second quarter of this fiscal year, a 24.3% increase compared to the same quarter in the previous fiscal year. For the quarter ending September 30, 2024, the company posted a profit of $17.9 million, up from $2 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2024.

While details on the value of the deal are not available yet, the fact that CRED has retained the payments business indicates the strategic nature of the hive off.  But it seems safe to say that CRED will be taking a write off on the deal, with only the quantum to be figured out.  Nothing wrong in a change of plans, and with the frenetic pace CRED had set until recently, perhaps an expected outcome for some of its moves.