CDS lbo with IDI

The main hotel reservation platform dedicated to business travel welcomes IDI to its capital

LBO 2020, January

E-travel & hospitality

“CDS Group continued its strong growth in 2019, allowing it to consolidate its position as the independent French leader in business hotel distribution. To support us in our new strategy, we have chosen IDI as our partner. Together we aim to position CDS Group as the benchmark actor for global B to B hotel solutions by building on our shared values: entrepreneurial spirit, long-term vision as well as on IDI's 50 years of continuous experience in supporting growing companies. "

CDS Group’s Chief Executive, Ziad Minkara

IDI, a listed group specializing in capital investment, announces the signing of an exclusive protocol for its entry into the capital of CDS Group, one of the main hotel reservation platforms dedicated to business travel.

This operation, the first for CDS Group, will be carried out alongside the founders and current directors Ziad Minkara and François Machenaud. IDI will invest around € 15m for a significant minority stake alongside management, who will remain the majority stakeholders. Access Capital Partners will contribute to the operation’s funding through a unitranche debt.

Created in 2001 by its current chief executive, Ziad Minkara, CDS Group is an HBT (hotel booking tool) editor of a platform dedicated to the reservation of overnight stays for a clientele consisting of large accounts and travel agencies specializing in business travel. The company offers an integrated solution for booking hotels, with access to more than one and a half million accommodations worldwide, while offering customized solutions when it comes to payment, billing and reporting. Intended to facilitate the monitoring of hotel expenses by travel managers while respecting the accommodation policy set by its customers, the CDS solution helps to simplify the management of all flows linked to hotel reservations.

CDS Groupe, based in the Paris region and comprising around thirty employees, achieved a business volume of around € 90m in 2019. The group has experienced sustained organic growth for several years following the conclusion of strategic partnerships with major players in the hotel world and the signing of new major accounts.

With the support and accompaniment of its new partner IDI, CDS Groupe aims to accelerate its development with large groups and travel agencies and support its European growth.