Former Talend and Concur Executive Christal Bemont Appointed CEO

DENVER, April 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Direct Travel, Inc., a market leader in corporate travel management, today announced its acquisition by Steve Singh, prominent venture capitalist and founder of the world’s largest travel and expense management company, Concur, joined by leading growth investors including Durable Capital Partners, Madrona Ventures, Top Tier Capital Partners, and Blackstone Credit & Insurance. Singh will serve as Executive Chairman of Direct Travel, and Christal Bemont will assume the role of CEO.

Consistently ranked on Travel Weekly’s annual Power List, Direct Travel is one of the world’s largest travel management companies, serving over 4,500 mid-market and enterprise clients. Direct Travel has built a reputation as a world class travel management company that delivers an unparalleled client experience. Integrating its own AI innovations around client experience with a modern integrated travel technology stack from Spotnana (Travel-as-a-Service platform), Center (card-first expense management platform) and Troop (group meetings and events platform), the company sees an opportunity to set a global standard for The Perfect Trip.

“Over the past few years, our investment group has sought out companies that are re-inventing key elements of the travel ecosystem with a goal of delivering a dramatically better value proposition to business travelers, the companies they work for, and the travel providers that serve them. Spotnana, Center and Troop are re-inventing and dramatically improving core elements of the travel technology stack. Direct Travel sets the bar for customer experience. We are delighted to invest in and partner deeply with what we believe will be the market leading travel management company,” said Steve Singh, Executive Chairman, Direct Travel. “We are honored to serve thousands of clients across North America and the EU, ranging in size from thriving middle market businesses to some of the largest companies in the world. We will invest to meet our customers’ current needs, grow our customer base in each of the markets we serve, methodically expand the number of markets we serve, and the breadth of products we deliver to our clients.”

As part of the acquisition, long-serving CEO Ed Adams, who founded the company in 2011 and helped establish it as a market leader, plans to retire. Ed was named one of the Top 25 Most Influential Business Travel Executives and was recently inducted into the Business Travel News Group Hall of Fame. Christal Bemont, the newly appointed CEO of Direct Travel, was formerly CEO of Talend, and before that she served as the CRO of SAP Concur. Christal has extensive travel industry experience, having spent over 15 years at SAP Concur, a multi-billion-dollar company operating in 90 countries.

“I want to take this opportunity to recognize and thank Ed. He is an amazing person and accomplished leader who has developed a world-class organization with an unwavering commitment to customer success,” said Christal Bemont, CEO, Direct Travel. “I look forward to building on this tremendous foundation supporting our existing customers, and, alongside the talented leaders at Direct Travel and several former Concur executives, our goal is to build the most admired and innovative travel management company in the industry.”

Bemont continued, “Years ago, Steve laid out a vision for The Perfect Trip. Our announcement is a huge step toward making that vision a reality. Today the innovation begins as we embark on a new era of growth for the benefit of our customers. Together with our technology partners and extensive supplier network, we will continue to invest in proprietary technology around user experience and dynamic client services, all of which we plan to make available as a service to other travel management companies.”

About Direct Travel, Inc.
Direct Travel is a leading provider of corporate travel management services. The company has been providing travel management since 2011, working with clients to develop highly customized travel programs. By leveraging both the expertise of its people and innovative solutions, Direct Travel enables clients to derive the greatest value from their travel program in terms of superior service, progressive technologies and significant cost savings. Direct Travel has offices in over 80 locations across North America and the UK. For more information, visit www.dt.com.

SOURCE Direct Travel / Finn Partners