Summary:
American Express to acquire Center, an expense management startup, to enhance its offerings.
Center raised $30 million in Series C funding, bringing total funding to $140 million.
The acquisition aims to provide real-time visibility into employee spending and automate accounting tasks.
Deal expected to close in the second quarter of 2025.
TravelPerk raises $200 million to strengthen its all-in-one travel management platform.
Skift Take
There’s been a fair amount of activity in the corporate travel and expense management world as companies look to capitalize on a largely untapped market.
American Express announced plans to acquire Center, a startup platform for expense management, founded in 2017 by CEO Naveen Singh. With a recent $30 million series C funding round in 2023, Center has raised a total of $140 million to date.
American Express primarily offers corporate management through issuing corporate cards, while its expense management services come from third-party platforms like Concur and Emburse. Center aims to provide businesses with real-time visibility into employee spending, automate accounting tasks, and streamline expense submission processes.
The integration of Center’s talent and technology is set to enhance American Express’ offerings. The company stated, “Center’s software, together with American Express’ corporate and small business cards, will aim to create a seamless expense management platform that delivers more value across the commercial card payments process.”
The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025, pending customary closing conditions.
Center has been collaborating with Steve Singh’s corporate travel companies, including Direct Travel, Troop, and Spotnana, to enhance business travel experiences. In 2024, Singh and investors acquired Direct Travel as part of this initiative.
Recent trends show significant activity in the corporate travel and expense management sector, with Amex GBT planning to acquire CWT for $570 million, despite facing some challenges. TravelPerk has also raised $200 million this year, adding to its previous $104 million, and has acquired another startup to bolster its position as an all-in-one corporate travel and expense management platform. Competing startups like Engine and Ramp have also secured substantial funding recently.
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