San-Francisco and Amsterdam-headquartered WeTravel, a booking and payment platform for multi-day and group travel companies, announced Tuesday that it has secured $27M (approximately €27M) in a Series B funding round led by Left Lane Capital.
Existing investors Base10 Partners, Swift Ventures and several high-profile angel investors also participated in the round. The Series B round brings WeTravel’s total capital up to $34M (approximately €34M).
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WeTravel says it will use the funds to expand its travel-specific fintech solutions.
How was WeTravel born?
WeTravel was founded in 2016 by Johannes Koeppel (CEO), Garib Mehdiyev (CTO) and Zaky Prabowo (CMO).
The idea for the platform came to Koeppel while working for the Red Cross and meeting small communities that were only accessible to visitors through locally based travel businesses.
He experienced how disjointed and archaic the ordering and payment processes were, causing lost and delayed payments, often sent by check, to suppliers.
In addition, the communication methods used by these businesses have often failed to make itineraries and other logistics clear to customers.
Koeppal believed technology could improve the system and help local businesses and communities increase revenue and drive traffic to their tours.
Thus, WeTravel was born!
WeTravel: What you need to know
The company is headquartered in Amsterdam and aims to support travel businesses by digitizing and simplifying the travel booking process, from itinerary development to travel administration.
The company merges SaaS and fintech solutions to handle the booking and payments needs of multi-day travel companies in one platform.
“Over the past six years, we have developed an intuitive and accessible booking management software designed for multi-day travel businesses,” says Koeppel.
He adds: “From creating stand-alone or integrated travel sites – with travel features and functionality – to collecting and managing travel information to transacting with travelers and suppliers worldwide, in an instant, WeTravel’s platform has enabled any travel business to not just running a business, but being a successful travel business owner.”
WeTravel also offers a subscription product in the form of a Pro account that offers enhanced features and benefits for a monthly fee. Additional features include “guarded account management, API access and WeTravel payment processing as low as 1 percent per transaction.”
Currently, the platform is used by more than 3,000 travel companies to transact with nearly 500,000 travelers and thousands of suppliers annually.
“To expand the platform’s capabilities for users, we will invest in multi-day travel businesses to engage, transact and retain their stakeholders and increase revenue,” says Koeppel. “What this platform expansion means is an opportunity for travel businesses to access the necessary booking and payment options to help grow their travel business.”
Investor
Left Lane Capital, based in New York, is a global venture capital firm that invests in high-growth Internet and consumer technology companies. The VC’s past investments include GoStudent, Masterworks, M1 Finance, Tovala, FightCamp, Wayflyer, Blank Street and more.
“Despite unprecedented headwinds at the height of Covid, WeTravel’s team has focused for years on solving extremely complex problems for multi-day travel operators. The result is best-in-class booking and payment technology for this underserved group. We couldn’t be more honored to partner with such humble and dedicated founders,” says Vinny Pujji, Left Lane Capital’s managing partner.
Base10 is a San Francisco-based venture capital fund that invests in founders who believe purpose is key and companies that automate real-economy sectors including transportation, healthcare, retail, logistics and construction. Portfolio companies include Notion, Figma, FTX, Nubank, Nowports, Motive, Chili Piper and Popmenu.
“Since leading the Series A, we have been so impressed with WeTravel’s continued growth and resilience in a difficult travel market environment. The future is bright for this team and we are excited to double down and support their vision to revolutionize the daily workflow of a multi-day tour operator,” says Rexhi Dollaku, Base10’s partner.
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