A global equity firm SAIF Partners, headquartered in China and India, has invested about Rs 10.45 crore ($1.5 million) in social travel commerce startup Airblack.
Started in February 2019 by Pulkit Pujara and Videt Jaiswal, the Gurugram-based company leverages WhatsApp and Instagram ecosystem to connect people with verified network of power travellers and travel influencers.
The platform has already helped more than 1,000 travellers with their travel plans, cited Mint.
The company saw a strong social need for people to talk with other travellers before taking purchase decisions, Videt Jaiswal, co-founder at Airblack said.
While, SAIF Partners, which manages over $4 billion in assets across India and China, has earlier backed Paytm, MakeMyTrip, Meesho, ShareChat, Swiggy and Urbanclap at an early-stage.
Moreover, it was started as Softbank Asia Infrastructure Fund in 2001 with a $400 million fund where Cisco Systems and Softbank Group were the sole limited partner, and general partner, respectively.
“Over $600 billion is spent on international travel in Asia, and we see India’s international travel market at an inflection point already. We were impressed by the (Airblack) team’s unique insights and community-driven approach to cater to this traveller,” SAIF Partners Principal Mayank Khanduja said.
The company has also invested in other travel startups such as Treebo and Travel Triangle.