Dhaka-based travel-tech platform GoZayaan announced that it has acquired Pakistani travel-tech company FindMyAdventure. GoZayaan has been looking to expand regionally after its stellar year in the local market. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. However, several media reports suggest that the deal valued FindMyAdventure at $3.5 million. FindMyAdventure will now operate as GoZayaan with offices in both Dhaka and Islamabad. Previously, FindMyAdventure was operating out of Karachi.
GoZayaan says one of the reasons for “acquiring a Pakistani travel-tech platform is the similarity in geography, internet penetration and user behavior in terms of travel booking.” The deal makes GoZayan the first Bangladeshi travel-tech platform to acquire a company beyond its borders. And it meaningfully expands the total addressable market for the company.
Founded in 2017, GoZayaan started its journey with an ambition to shift the tourism scene into the digital space. The company says its passion for solving problems through rapid technology adoption was proven when it saw near 10 times growth over the year 2021 - a time when tourism was at its lowest due to the pandemic.
For this acquisition, GoZayaan raised an undisclosed amount of seed extension round backed by existing investors, Nordstar Partners, Saurabh Gupta, Partner at DST Global, and Alexander Rittweger, Founder of PAYBACK. Last year, GoZayaan closed its $2.6M seed round which was led by Wavemaker Partners and joined by VCs such as Ratio Venture, 1982 VC, Iterative, Century Oak Capital along with current and former Airbnb Execs.
Previously, Go Zayaan had raised its pre-seed round from BRAC Osiris Impact Ventures. GoZayaan has been trying to find digital solutions to travel problems by building an end-to-end automated travel booking system. The core reason for acquiring a Pakistani travel-tech platform is the similarity in geography, internet penetration, and user behavior in terms of travel booking. This acquisition will play a key role in shaping the future of travel in the South Asian region as GoZayaan expands overseas, paving a path of tech-enabled innovative solutions.
GoZayaan CEO Ridwan Hafiz says, “Bangladesh has the potential to create not just local, but also regional and global companies. We are going to try exactly that. This unlocks a total addressable market for us which is massive because together, Bangladesh and Pakistan constitute 5% of the world's total population. We said we were going to create the future of travel; well the future starts now.”
GoZayaan says it plans to cater to more customers with better user experience, technological support and offer further digital solutions to make travel more convenient. The company currently offers a host of travel services including domestic and international flight and hotel booking, tours, buses, travel loans, premium visa processing services, local and international tour packages, and round-the-clock customer support.
