Expedia and CarTrawler May Be Close to a Deal Following a Meeting in Dublin: Scoop

The CarTrawler enactment squad and its proprietor TowerBrook Capital Partners met astatine Dublin office past week with Expedia Group and Evercore, 1 of the banks progressive successful discussions betwixt the 2 companies, according to an manufacture root alert of the meeting.

Expedia has an “important” announcement scheduled for Monday morning, though it’s imaginable it is unrelated to CarTrawler. Privately held and beardown successful hose concern relationships, CarTrawler is B2B supplier of car rentals, different crushed transportation, and insurtech to much than 300 question brands successful 150+ countries.

A woody with CarTrawler, whether it would beryllium a an outright acquisition, an concern oregon partnership, would assistance code the weakness successful Expedia’s car rental concern for partners. Expedia B2B is beardown successful its edifice business, but car rentals are a highly consolidated business, determination is stiff contention from car rental websites, and car rentals are a analyzable booking and business.

Expedia and CarTrawler person been partners for years. A woody would assistance Expedia’s B2B concern limb bundle lodging, airdrome transfers, rides, and security offers successful a one-stop store for Expedia’s airline, question agency, fiscal institution, and loyalty programme partners.

A full acquisition of CarTrawler could spot the institution valued successful the $450-$550 cardinal range, based connected comments that CEO Peter O’Donovan made successful August astir its 9 months of fiscal results done June 2025. Adjusted EBITDA was tracking astatine $31-$33 cardinal for the afloat twelvemonth based connected his figures.

If a woody isn’t a 100% acquisition, it could perchance travel Expedia’s signifier with edifice metasearch institution Trivago, wherever Expedia took and held a bulk involvement opening successful 2012 and kept it. Expedia mightiness take alternatively to beryllium a number capitalist successful CarTrawler.

It’s improbable bankers were progressive successful past week’s gathering to simply sermon expanding the 2 companies’ existing partnership, however. And immoderate woody could inactive autumn through.

An Expedia spokesperson told Skift Sunday nighttime that it doesn’t remark connected “rumors and speculation.” CarTrawler didn’t instantly respond to a petition for comment.

Expedia B2B Is connected a Roll

Expedia has been focused connected the maturation of its B2B spouse concern since Ariane Gorin, who antecedently headed the unit, became CEO successful 2024. A lawsuit successful constituent is its caller acquisition of attractions level Tiqets, which volition beryllium utilized initially successful Expedia’s B2B business.

Alfonso Paredes runs Expedia’s B2B concern today, which is considered the starring B2B level successful travel. While Booking Holdings is the world’s largest question business, Expedia’s user businesses person been struggling until recently, B2B seems to beryllium Expedia’s concealed sauce.