Private equity deals drive global travel and tourism up 3.5%

• Private equity deals witnessed a staggering growth of 300% during September compared to the previous month.
• A total of 59 deals were announced in the global travel and tourism industry during September 2021.
• Deal activity improved in key markets such as the US, Australia and South Korea during September 2021.

Deal activity (mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity (PE), and venture capital (VC) financing) in the global travel and tourism industry, which has been facing the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic since the beginning of 2021, has reported 3.5% growth in September, driven by a massive growth in the announcement of private equity deals.

A total of 59 deals were announced in the global travel and tourism industry during September compared to the 57 deals announced during the previous month.

Deal activity is yet to recover completely from the impact of the pandemic and has been witnessing inconsistent trend. However, after witnessing decline for two consecutive months, deal activity rebounded in September.

The announcement of VC financing and M&A deals decreased by 40.9% and 3.2%, respectively, while PE deals witnessed a staggering growth of 300% during September compared to the previous month.

Deal activity improved in key markets such as the USA, Australia and South Korea during September compared to the previous month, whereas the UK and China witnessed decline.

Although the rebound in deal activity will bring some cheer, returning to the pre-COVID-19 levels will depend on how effectively governments restrict the new cases and how soon the global economy returns to normalcy.