With the acquisition of Yatra Online Inc, US-based software firm Ebix Inc on Tuesday said investment in India would be closer to $1 billion. Yesterday, Ebix had offered to acquire Yatra for $ 336 million (over Rs 2,345 crore).

In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Robin Raina, chairman and chief executive officer, said, "We are trying to build an ecosystem in India, a complete end-to-end financial exchange and the bid to acquire Yatra is a step in that direction. We already are the largest financial exchange in India and we consider travel a very integral part of building this financial ecosystem."

"As of now, the company conducts in excess of $2.5 billion of growth merchandise value (GMV) on their platforms. The possible acquisition of Yatra would add another $1.5 billion of GMV and increasing their GMV to $4 billion," Raina said.

According to Raina, "It was a win-win situation for our shareholders. We thought if we offer 85 percent premium, it provides a substantial premium to the existing Yatra shareholders."

First Published:Mar 12, 2019 10:52 PM IST