China’s Ctrip has signed a definitive agreement with Skyscanner for the acquisition of all of its shares at an estimated value of 1.4 billion pounds (US$1.74 billion).
The boards of directors of both Ctrip and Skyscanner have approved the transaction, subject to customary closing conditions, and is expected to close by the end of 2016.
Skyscanner’s current management team will to continue to carry out their own operations independently as part of the Ctrip group.
“This acquisition will strengthen long-term growth drivers for both companies,” said James Jianzhang Liang, co-founder and executive chairman of Ctrip.
“Skyscanner will complement our positioning at a global scale, and we will leverage our experience, technology and booking capabilities to help Skyscanner.”
