Ebix continues Indian acquisition spree

Nasdaq-listed software firm Ebix Inc. has struck two more acquisitions in India, buying Business Travels Pvt. Ltd to expand its Via travel business and picking up a 67 per cent stake in Delhi-based Routier, a marketplace for trucking logistics. Both have been purchased through India-based subsidiary EbixCash, a digital payment unit which claims to be the largest remittance exchange in the country. Cloud-based Routier is the first start-up where Ebix has made a strategic investment. Founded by Ankur Dahiya and Adwait Vikram Singh from the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) and Harvard Law School, respectively, Routier uses data analytics and artificial intelligence for its cloud-based logistics marketplace and counts Coca-Cola, Asian Paints, and Samsung among its clients. Separately, with the acquisition of Business Travels, Ebix has appointed the target's owner Praveen Chugh as the chief operating officer of Via's agency sales. Via, acquired by Ebix in September last year, is a distributor of transport ticketing, accommodation reservation, packaged tours, corporate travel management, travel ancillaries, retail and financial services. In Via, Chugh would recruit domain-specific travel sales executives, besides opening up new travel locations across the country, the company statement said.