TBO Tek Q4: Profit Zooms 27% YoY To INR 59 Cr

B2B travel tech company TBO Tek’s net profit surged 27% to INR 58.9 Cr in Q4 FY25 from INR 46.4 Cr in the year-ago period. On a sequential basis, the company’s bottom line grew 18% from INR 50 Cr. 

Operating revenue rose 21% to INR 446.1 Cr during the quarter under review from INR 369.1 Cr in Q4 FY24. On a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis, this marked a 6% uptick from INR 422.2 Cr. 

The company registered an adjusted EBITDA of INR 329 Cr in Q4 FY25, up 22% from INR 270 Cr in the year-ago quarter. Meanwhile, its gross transaction value jumped 16% YoY to INR 30,832 Cr in Q4 FY25.

Including other income of INR 16.4 Cr, the company’s total revenue rose 22% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 462.5 Cr in the quarter. Total expenses rose 23% YoY and 4% QoQ to INR 400.7 Cr. 

For the full fiscal year, the company’s net profit rose 15% to INR 229.9 Cr from INR 200.6 Cr in FY24. Top line zoomed 25% YoY to INR 1,737.5 Cr. 

“In FY25, we laid the foundation for accelerating our business across geographies. Europe & APAC led the growth with 50%+ YoY growth. The company’s tech and AI initiatives complement the rapid footprint expansion by helping drive better user experience and by improving platform performance. This gives us the confidence to maintain our expansion plans and aim for market leadership in the next 5-10 years,” TBO Tek cofounder and joint MD Gaurav Bhatnagar said.

Founded in 2006 by Bhatnagar and Ankush Nijhawan, TBO Tek provides a global travel distribution platform that connects travel businesses like hotels, airlines, car rentals, among others, with travel agencies, tour operators, and online travel companies. The company’s platform enables suppliers to showcase their inventory and set prices, while buyers can access an integrated, multi-currency, and multilingual solution to discover and book travel.

Delving In TBO Tek’s Q4 Business

The hotel business continued to drive the company’s growth. Hotel and ancillary services contributed 79% to TBO Tek’s overall revenue in FY25, while the airline business brought in 19%. In FY24, the hotel business accounted for 73% of revenue, while the latter brought in 25% revenue. 

The hotel business’ revenue surged 31% YoY to INR 356.4 Cr in Q4 FY25, while air ticketing revenue dipped 9% YoY to INR 79.4 Cr.

 

For its hotel business, the company rolled out a new booking platform H-Next during the quarter. Besides the AI-enabled smart search platform, the company also launched its premium travel-focussed platform TBO Platinum, featuring exclusive partnerships with luxury hotels for outbound travellers.

While the company didn’t disclose the performance numbers for these platforms, it said that it is seeing a very encouraging response from customers. 

“We are strategically focused on driving a higher share of wallet through cross-sell initiatives, supported by robust demand for outbound travel and a clear shift in consumer preference toward experiential, high-value itineraries. These structural tailwinds position us well for sustained, profitable growth in the Indian market,” Nijhawan said. 

Notably, TBO Tek has been taking steps to expand its global presence. In FY25, it expanded its global footprint to over 15 new markets, including Australia, France, Germany. 

The company connects around 1.89 Lakh buyers across more than 150 countries with over 1 Mn Suppliers. 

One of the factors for the rise in its profit during the quarter under review was the increasing usage of AI in its business operations. In its investor presentation, TBO Tek said that its AI-led technology initiatives were being rolled out in full steam during the quarter. 

“Continued progress on automation of back-end processes using AI-driven automatic handling of supplier notifications being scaled up,” the company noted. 

Speaking during Inc42’s ‘The GenAI Summit’ in April, TBO Tek’s customer experience VP Garima Pant said that 70% of special requests from travel agents are now being handled by AI voice bots. 

She added that AI has significantly reduced response time for special requests from travel agents. Earlier, such requests required a person to make amendments to the system but are now completely handled using GenAI. The range and complexity of the requests that the system can handle has multiplied. 

Where Did TBO Tek Spend?

Service Fees: The spending under this head, which was the biggest expense for the company, rose nearly 15% YoY to INR 135.2 Cr in Q4 FY25. 

Employee Costs: TBO Tek spent INR 99.2 Cr on employees’ remuneration and other benefits in the reported quarter, up 26% from INR 78.6 Cr in Q4 FY24. Sequentially, these expenses went down slightly from INR 100.2 Cr.

Other Expenses: TBO Tek saw its spending under this head surge 32% to INR 140.2 Cr in Q4 FY25.

Shares of TBO Tek ended today’s trading session 2.7% lower at INR 1,199.35 apiece on the BSE.