American Express Ventures and Citi Ventures have exited flight insurance software developer Freebird in an acquisition by Capital One.
Freebird, a US-based travel insurance technology provider backed by payment services firm American Express and financial services group Citi, has been acquired by payment services firm Capital One for an undisclosed amount.
Founded in 2015, Freebird has developed predictive intelligence technology that helps travel agents rebook journeys for customers that have been affected by severe delays or cancellations and switch them to new flights without additional costs.
The service is no longer available to customers. Freebird CEO Ethan Bernstein confirmed the acquisition in a LinkedIn post revealing Capital One has appointed him senior business director for travel.
American Express led an $8m series A round for the company in late 2018 through its American Express Ventures unit, investing with Citi subsidiary Citi Ventures, Par Capital Ventures, General Catalyst, Accomplice and unnamed individuals.
General Catalyst and Accomplice co-led a $3.5m seed for Freebird in 2015 that also featured Slow Ventures according to Skift, before supplying $5m in additional funding two year later.
