American Express Global Business Travel is set to be taken private after agreeing to a US$6.3 billion all-cash acquisition by Long Lake Management, in a transaction that places artificial intelligence at the centre of the next phase of corporate travel management.
American Express Global Business Travel, operated by Global Business Travel Group, has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Long Lake for US$9.50 per share in cash. The offer represents a 60.2% premium to Amex GBT’s closing stock price on 1 May 2026, and a 65.1% premium to its 30-day volume weighted average price
The deal has the backing of major shareholders representing approximately 69% of Amex GBT’s shares, including American Express, Expedia, Qatar Investment Authority and BlackRock. The American Express brand licensing agreement will remain in place, a move designed to provide continuity for clients, partners and travellers worldwide. The transaction is significant given Amex GBT’s scale across managed travel, expense, meetings and events. The company describes itself as a leading software and services business for travel, expense, and meetings and events, with travel professionals and business partners in more than 140 countries.
The acquisition is being positioned around the use of applied AI to improve the corporate travel experience, with Long Lake expected to bring its proprietary Nexus AI transformation platform into the business. Long Lake was founded in 2023 and is backed by investors including General Catalyst, Alpha Wave, Elad Gil, D1 and Thrive.
Paul Abbott, Chief Executive Officer of Amex GBT, said the partnership with Long Lake was “about serving them even better”, referring to the company’s customers. Long Lake Co-Founder and CEO Alex Taubman said the future of business travel would be shaped by “AI and human agents working seamlessly together”
If completed, the transaction will see Amex GBT become a privately held company, with its common stock no longer publicly listed. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to shareholder approval, regulatory clearances and customary closing conditions.