Latest news with #expensemanagement
Finextra
a day ago
- Business
- Finextra
Rydoo buys accounts payable automation specialist Semine
Expense management provider Rydoo has acquired AI-powered accounts payable automation technology provider Semine. Financial terms were not disclosed. 0 Rydoo supports over a million users worldwide in automating expense management, helping finance teams gain real-time control over employees' spend. By adding Semine's fully automated AP workflows, the firm says it is building an end-to-end offering that delivers maximum efficiency, control, and strategic insight to its clients. The deal comes in the wake of Belguim-based Rydoo getting a new majority shareholder in the form of French PE firm Eurazeo and a push to expand its footprint in the US. Sebastien Marchon, CEO, Rydoo, says: 'This is a true convergence of visions, talents, and cultures, bringing us closer to our ambition of building a world-class platform for finance teams.'
Skift
24-06-2025
- Business
- Skift
Travel Management Companies Are Starting to Tackle the Blended Travel Expense Issue
Blended travel is booming, but most expense systems haven't caught up. Until finance does so, even the smoothest trips could end in expense heavy lifting. The growth of blended travel is undeniable, and accounting for which part was for business and which for leisure has been a pain point for both employers and employees. 'One of the main frustrations with bleisure travel has always been keeping business and personal expenses clearly separated,' said Yuval Refua, Navan's chief product officer, payments & expense.'Traditionally, employees might have to pay out-of-pocket or with a company credit card and later submit reimbursement requests, leaving finance and accounting teams to untangle what's work and what's leisure after the fact.' In a November 2024 GBTA U.S. poll, 46% of travel buyers reported an increase in blended trips compared to the previous year. Only 9% reported a decrease. On average, travelers stayed 4.4 days per trip, and 79% remained at the same accommodation throughout their work and leisure portions. Despite this clear behavioral shift, only 36% of travel managers said their company policy expressly allowed blended trips. Some 49% said their policy did not permit blended trips, although many employees were allowed to take these trips anyway. What Companies Are Doing Now Some companies are trying to bring order to this chaos. Many companies now allow employees to combine business and leisure travel, but only if the personal portion is fully disclosed at the time of booking," said Penny Watermeier, Executive Vice President of Customer Success at CTM North America. Any additional costs associated with the personal leg of the trip must be covered by the employee. These costs are typically documented during the expense reporting process and reimbursed to the employer through the company's internal expense system. In industries like healthcare, where compliance rules like the U.S. Sunshine Act apply, some companies even assign a separate travel advisor to manage personal arrangements entirely offline, Watermeier said. 'There is interest in bleisure travel, though the appetite and allowance for it in travel policies can vary significantly by region, company, and industry.' There are signals that hotels are tempting travelers to extend their stays beyond the business portion of the trip. 'We have noted that the use of weekend promotional hotel rates has doubled year on year, indicating travelers are extending their stays beyond their work trip with deeply discounted inventory,' Watermeier said. However, 'any additional costs from the personal travel are the responsibility of the employee and must be documented and repaid through the expense system, ' said Watermeier. Miscellaneous Charges One workaround some U.S. firms use is a Miscellaneous Charges Order (MCO), which lets employees pay the personal portion of their flight separately at the time of booking. The MCO is used for a split payment so the personal portion of the trip can be paid for with personal funds — this is all done via the travel consultant at point of sale, and then documented on the invoice/itinerary. While this process is helpful, it requires coordination across travel booking platforms, finance teams, and employees, so not exactly a user-friendly trifecta. New Tools, Same Adoption Problems Platforms like Navan are attempting to solve the messiness of blended travel expense management with features like virtual and physical cards that come with real-time controls over spending categories and merchant types. The Navan app uses AI to automatically categorize expenses and it can tag the merchant, said Navan's Refua. "Employees can simply pay for any bleisure portion of a trip with their personal card right at booking. This eliminates the need for reimbursements altogether and removes manual work for finance teams, meaning they don't have to separate out personal versus business expenses after the fact or manage reimbursement requests, ' Refua said. CTM says interest in tools like virtual cards is growing, though unevenly. Vitual cards can specify spend categories and threshholds, as well as merchant types. 'We've seen a steady increase in the adoption of virtual credit cards solutions, particularly among customers looking to reduce fraud risk and eliminate the need for physical cards,' said CTM's Watermeier. But regional gaps remain. 'Adoption can be slow in some regions like China, where physical cards are still preferred, although it has improved in the last five years,' Watermeier said.
Travel Weekly
23-06-2025
- Business
- Travel Weekly
Travelperk
2024 sales: $2.22 billion Previous ranking: Not ranked Employees: 1,500 full-time Carrer dels Almogavers, 160 Sant Marti, 08018 Barcelona, Spain Phone: + 34 931 227 629 Website $2.22 billionNot ranked1,500 full-timeCarrer dels Almogavers, 160 Sant Marti, 08018Barcelona, SpainPhone: + 34 931 227 629 Executives CEO: Avi Meir CFO: Roy Hefer PRESIDENT/COO: Jean-Christophe Taunay-Bucalo CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER: Yasmine Bratt SVP, ENGINEERING: Robin Smith SVP, PRODUCT: Jon Hoar CEO, AMTRAV, A TRAVELPERK COMPANY: Jeff Klee CEO, YOKOY, A TRAVELPERK COMPANY: Philippe Sahli COMPANY FACTS * Privately held. * Backed by a range of investors, none of whom individually owns a majority of shares. * A business travel and expense management platform. * Sales: 100% business. DEVELOPMENTS * Acquired travel management company Amtrav (No. 24 on the 2024 Power List) and partnered with SilverRail to enable Amtrak content on its platform. * Achieved growth and profitability at scale with annualized booking volumes of more than $2.5 billion, annualized revenue of more than $200 million and growth of more than 50% per annum in the last two years. It reached Ebitda break-even at the end of the year. * Closed its Series E round, raising $200 million in funding, led by Atomico and EQT Growth with Noteus Partners and existing investors, including Kinnevik and General Catalyst, increasing the company's valuation to $2.7 billion. * Launched its 20th NDC integration in August with Emirates. * Better served its customers through automation and AI. Embedded AI in its customer care operations has enabled it to serve twice the volume of queries with the same number of agents. LOOKING AHEAD * Acquiring Yokoy, an AI-powered expense, invoice and card-payment-processing tool, and integrating other expense management partners. * Anticipating accelerated growth with continued expansion into the U.S. market and significant investments into product, technology and AI. * Celebrating its 10th anniversary, rebranding to "break away from the current sea of blue within the industry" and matching the evolving needs of today's diverse workforce.
Travel Weekly
23-06-2025
- Business
- Travel Weekly
Travelstore
2024 sales: $601.6 million Previous ranking: 33 Employees: 115 full-time 11538 San Vicente Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90049 Phone: (310) 575-5540 Website $601.6 million33115 full-time11538 San Vicente Angeles, CA 90049Phone: (310) 575-5540 Executives CHAIR/FOUNDER: Wido L. Schaefer PRESIDENT/CEO: Brian W. Crawford COO: Trudy Flores SVP, LEISURE OPERATIONS: Doris Reiss SVP, CORPORATE SALES: Jim Wright VP, FINANCE: Jeane Burgos VP, MARKETING: Lynette Dominguez COMPANY FACTS * Privately held. * 100% employee owned. * Provides business travel, meetings and expense management; program management consulting. * Works with 204 independent contractors. * 16% of sales completed by hosted advisors. * Sales: 60% business, 30% leisure, 10% meetings and incentives. * A member of BCD, Signature Travel Network and CBTG. DEVELOPMENTS * Acquired Carroll Travel in the Washington, D.C., area to expand its corporate and government business. * Acquired Travel Shoppe in Fresno, Calif., to expand its leisure business. LOOKING AHEAD * Enhancing its global account servicing, implementing new online booking tools and focusing on NDC solutions. * Demand for travel is still growing; expecting it to remain consistent for the rest of the year.
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Navan Announces Confidential Submission of Draft Registration Statement
PALO ALTO, Calif., June 20, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Navan, Inc. has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the SEC relating to a proposed initial public offering. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have not yet been determined. The proposed initial public offering remains subject to the completion of the SEC review process as well as market and other conditions. This announcement is being issued pursuant to, and in accordance with, Rule 135 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended ("Securities Act"). This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities. Any offers, solicitations of offers to buy, or any sales of securities will be made in accordance with the registration requirements of the Securities Act. About Navan Navan, the leading all-in-one business travel and expense management solution that makes travel easy for frequent travelers. From finding flights and hotels, to automating expense reconciliation, with 24/7 support along the way, Navan delivers an intuitive experience travelers love and finance teams rely on. See how Navan customers benefit and learn more at View source version on Contacts Eric Smithesmith@
