On Wednesday, Palo Alto-based travel platform Navan announced it raised $275 million in funding. The latest Series F round, led by venture capital firm Greenoaks, values Navan at $7.25 billion — a significant jump from the company’s $5 billion valuation last January.
The unicorn’s corporate travel and expense management platform acts as an end-to-end solution for finance teams and travel managers.
“Navan is experiencing massive growth as companies recognize the imperative for consumer-grade tech tools and efficiency that comes from real-time, contextual data,” Ariel Cohen, Navan co-founder and CEO, said in a statement.
Navan more than doubled its travel budget under management between February 2020 and July 2021, and bookings through the platform have exceeded pre-Covid levels, according to the company. Navan Liquid, the company’s management system, has also experienced rapid growth. The management system recorded nearly 400 percent growth in active users and more than 500 percent growth in transaction volume.
“Just as Navan continues to disrupt the corporate travel market, Navan Liquid is set to replace traditional spend management solutions. No other company is able to provide a single, unified T&E solution for enterprise companies on a global scale,” Cohen added.
The recent Series F will be used to expand Navan’ presence in Europe. It plans to hire more than 150 new employees across Europe, Israel and the U.K. during this fiscal year.
“A sea change is underway in the corporate travel and spend industries as companies look for powerful and streamlined travel solutions in the post-pandemic economy,” Neil Mehta, founder and managing partner of Greenoaks, said in a statement. “Navan is rapidly gaining traction among some of the world’s largest enterprises, and no company is better positioned to lead the way as global travel recovers. We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with Navan as they become a category-defining company.”
Navan has raised nearly $1.3 billion in funding to date. The company currently has dozens of opening positions in engineering, people and sales. Some roles are remote and others are based at Navan’ San Francisco and Palo Alto offices.
