BlackRock backs Australia hotel booking platform SiteMinder

The investment was supported by AustralianSuper, Pendal Group, and Ellerston Capital, which participated via its pre-IPO focused JAADE Private Assets Fund. The size of the deal has not been confirmed, but TechCrunch has reported it at $70 million.

It follows a $30 million investment in 2014 from US-based Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV) and a $6 million round in 2012 that delivered a 14.3% stake to Bailador Technology Investments. Previous investors also include Les Szekely, chairman of local GP Equity Venture Partners, who provided initial seed funding and led three subsequent angel rounds.

Founded in 2006, SiteMinder positions itself as the leading guest acquisition platform for hoteliers globally and the main technology partner for AirBnb and Trip.com. It claims to have processed 105 million bookings for more than 35,000 hotels through a platform that is operable in eleven languages. This activity equates to some $35 billion in transactions.

Annual recurring revenue is now said to be in excess of A$100 million, 80% of which is generated from international markets. The Sydney-based company operates six offices globally, including locations in Thailand and the Philippines. It plans to use the fresh capital for further international expansion, including buildouts for the 900-strong staff and Australia-led R&D effort.

“The shift in consumer engagement is changing the structure of online travel,” David Yuan, a general partner at TCV and SiteMinder board member, said in a statement. “We wanted to find a technology provider that could power a better consumer experience and empower hoteliers to benefit from this shift. We searched globally and found the best - SiteMinder in Australia.”

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• Topics
• Australasia
• Consumer
• Expansion
• Australia
• BlackRock
• AustralianSuper
• TMT
• Growth capital