Serko

Serko Limited, generally known as Serko, is a New Zealand travel technology company that develops online corporate travel booking, travel management, expense, and travel-commerce software. Its products are designed to connect travelers, employers, travel management companies, airlines, accommodation providers, and other travel suppliers through digital storefronts and booking workflows. The company was founded in 2007 by Darrin Grafton and Robert Shaw, building on earlier work in automated corporate travel booking. Its roots are associated with the founders' earlier Corporate Automated Booking System, or CABS, which was developed in the 1990s and used in the travel-technology industry. Serko subsequently developed software for business travel and expanded from its New Zealand base into Australia, North America, and other international markets. A significant early development came in 2012, when Serko received a New Zealand government research and development grant through Callaghan Innovation. The company used the period to support product development and international expansion, including the establishment of a development office in Xi'an, China. Serko became publicly listed on the New Zealand Exchange in June 2014 and later obtained an Australian Securities Exchange listing in 2018, retaining the ticker SKO. Serko expanded through acquisitions and partnerships. In 2014 it acquired Incharge, an expense-management provider, and in 2015 it acquired Arnold Travel Technology from Expedia Group. The company entered the North American market in 2018 and acquired InterplX in 2019. Its technology has also been used in partner-branded products, including SAVI for Flight Centre Travel Group and Booking.com for Business through its relationship with Booking Holdings. Booking Holdings acquired a minority stake in Serko in 2019 as part of a capital raising and a broader partnership connected with corporate travel. Serko's technology proposition includes online booking tools, travel policy and approval workflows, expense management, content aggregation, reporting, and white-label travel storefronts. The company has also participated in newer travel-distribution initiatives, including technology supporting direct supplier content and the NDC Exchange ecosystem. This places Serko between conventional corporate travel management systems, online booking tools, and broader travel-commerce infrastructure. The COVID-19 pandemic created a severe disruption to Serko's travel-related activity. In February 2020, the company issued an early warning about the effects of the pandemic on its outlook. Travel restrictions subsequently reduced transaction volumes and revenue, and Serko raised additional capital to support its operations during the downturn. Domestic travel recovery in New Zealand and the Trans-Tasman travel arrangement helped transaction activity recover during 2021, although the pace and timing of broader corporate-travel recovery remained uncertain. In 2024 Serko announced an agreement to acquire GetThere, a corporate travel booking platform owned by Sabre. The transaction was completed in January 2025. Serko stated that it intended to invest substantially in platform technology and to develop a common technology foundation supporting GetThere, Zeno, and Booking.com for Business, with greater use of data and artificial intelligence. Serko therefore operates both as a branded software provider and as an infrastructure partner whose products can be embedded or presented under other travel brands.

Serko was established in 2007 by Darrin Grafton and Robert Shaw. The company emerged from earlier work in automated corporate travel booking, including the CABS system associated with the founders. Its business model centered on replacing manual and fragmented corporate travel processes with online booking, policy controls, travel-management workflows, and connected supplier content. In 2012, Serko received a research and development grant from Callaghan Innovation, the New Zealand government's innovation agency. The support coincided with a period of international development, including the opening of a software development office in Xi'an, China. Serko later broadened its product portfolio by acquiring Incharge, an expense-management company, in 2014. In 2015 it acquired Arnold Travel Technology from Expedia Group, adding further travel-technology capabilities. Serko entered the public markets in June 2014 through a listing on the New Zealand Exchange. It subsequently listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in 2018 under SKO. The company also expanded geographically, launching in North America in 2018 and acquiring InterplX in 2019. These moves supported its ambition to serve corporate travel managers and travel agencies beyond New Zealand and Australia. Partnerships became a central element of Serko's distribution strategy. The company supplied Flight Centre Travel Group with a corporate online booking tool marketed as SAVI. It also entered a strategic relationship with Booking Holdings, whose Booking.com for Business offering uses Serko technology. Booking Holdings acquired a minority stake in Serko in 2019 through a capital raising connected with the partnership. Serko has additionally worked with Carlson Wagonlit Travel and has participated in initiatives intended to improve access to airline content, including work involving Qantas, Southwest Airlines, and the NDC Exchange. The COVID-19 pandemic sharply affected the corporate travel sector. Serko warned investors early in 2020 that the outbreak could materially reduce travel activity. As international travel restrictions persisted, the company experienced a substantial deterioration in operating performance and raised capital to strengthen its balance sheet and maintain investment. New Zealand's domestic recovery and the later Trans-Tasman travel arrangement helped transaction volumes recover during 2021, but the global recovery remained dependent on the reopening of business travel markets. Serko's longer-term strategy has been to operate not only as a travel-management software brand but also as a platform provider. Its products include online booking, expenses, travel policy, reporting, supplier-content integration, and white-label storefronts. The company has emphasized direct connections between suppliers and storefronts and has developed intellectual property around travel booking and distribution. In 2024 Serko agreed to purchase GetThere from Sabre. The transaction closed in January 2025. Serko presented the acquisition as part of a broader technology strategy that would support GetThere, Zeno, and Booking.com for Business through a more unified platform. The company also described planned investment in data and artificial intelligence capabilities. This strategy reflects Serko's evolution from a New Zealand corporate-booking provider into an international business-travel technology and infrastructure company.

• 2025

  GetThere transaction completed

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Serko completes the GetThere acquisition and outlines a unified platform strategy for its travel products.

• 2024

  Agreement to acquire GetThere

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Serko agrees to purchase the GetThere corporate travel booking platform from Sabre.

• 2020

  COVID-19 disruption and technology-sector recognition

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  The pandemic causes a major contraction in corporate travel activity, while Serko receives New Zealand High-Tech Company of the Year recognition.

• 2019

  InterplX acquisition and Booking Holdings investment

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Serko acquires InterplX and enters a strategic relationship with Booking Holdings, which takes a minority stake.

• 2018

  Australian listing and North American launch

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Serko lists on the Australian Securities Exchange and expands its commercial presence into North America.

• 2015

  Arnold Travel Technology acquisition

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Serko acquires Arnold Travel Technology from Expedia Group.

• 2014

  New Zealand public listing and Incharge acquisition

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Serko lists on the New Zealand Exchange and acquires Incharge, expanding into travel expense technology.

• 2012

  Research and development support and China expansion

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Serko receives support from Callaghan Innovation and opens a development office in Xi'an as part of its international expansion.

• 2007

  Serko is founded

  [1]Serkoen.wikipedia.org

  Darrin Grafton and Robert Shaw establish Serko to develop technology for corporate travel booking and management.

Enterprise travel-management and travel-commerce technology provider combining online booking, expense, supplier-content connectivity, and white-label platform capabilities.

• Corporate travel management platform

  Zeno

  Zeno is Serko's corporate travel technology platform for online booking and travel management. It is intended to support business travelers, travel managers, and travel-management companies with booking workflows, policy controls, approval processes, reporting, and access to travel content. Zeno can be deployed as a branded or partner-facing experience and forms part of Serko's broader platform strategy.

• Travel expense management

  Serko Expense

  Serko Expense provides tools for capturing, organizing, and managing business travel expenses. It complements online booking by helping companies connect travel-related spending with internal policies, reporting, and administrative processes. The product capability was strengthened by Serko's acquisition of Incharge in 2014.

• Partner-branded corporate booking tool

  SAVI

  SAVI is a corporate online booking tool supplied by Serko for Flight Centre Travel Group. It illustrates Serko's white-label and partner-platform model, in which Serko provides the underlying booking and travel-management technology while the customer-facing product is marketed through a major travel company.

• Corporate travel booking platform

  GetThere

  GetThere is a corporate travel booking platform acquired by Serko from Sabre. It gives Serko an established international booking product and is intended to become part of a broader technology foundation shared with other Serko-supported travel offerings.

• Embedded and white-label travel technology

  Booking.com for Business technology

  Serko provides underlying technology for Booking.com for Business through its partnership with Booking Holdings. The relationship extends Serko's reach beyond its own branded products and demonstrates its role as an infrastructure provider for business-travel booking, content, and account-management experiences.

• 2024

  Agree to acquire GetThereM&A

  Background

  Serko sought to strengthen its international corporate travel booking platform and increase the scale of its technology base.

  Action taken

  The company agreed to acquire GetThere from Sabre.

  Aftermath

  The transaction was completed in January 2025 and became part of Serko's plan to consolidate its platform capabilities.

  Source

• 2020

  Respond to the COVID-19 travel collapseStrategy

  Background

  Travel restrictions and the collapse in business travel created an immediate threat to Serko's transaction volumes and revenue.

  Action taken

  Serko issued an early market warning and raised capital to preserve financial flexibility during the disruption.

  Aftermath

  The company focused on resilience and recovery while domestic travel conditions gradually improved in New Zealand and Australia.

  Source

• 2019

  Strategic partnership with Booking HoldingsStrategy

  Background

  Serko aimed to extend its corporate travel technology through a major global online-travel partner.

  Action taken

  Booking Holdings acquired a minority interest in Serko through a capital raising and entered a partnership associated with Booking.com for Business.

  Aftermath

  Serko became a technology provider for Booking.com for Business while gaining a strategic shareholder and broader distribution reach.

  Source

• 2015

  Acquire Arnold Travel TechnologyM&A

  Background

  Serko continued consolidating travel technology capabilities after its public listing.

  Action taken

  Serko purchased Arnold Travel Technology from Expedia Group.

  Aftermath

  The acquisition added travel-technology assets and supported Serko's platform expansion.

  Source

• 2014

  Acquire InchargeM&A

  Background

  Serko sought to broaden its corporate travel software beyond booking into expense management.

  Action taken

  The company acquired Incharge, an expense-management provider.

  Aftermath

  The transaction expanded Serko's product scope and supported the development of an integrated travel-and-expense proposition.

  Source

1. 1Serkoen.wikipedia.org