General Catalyst has just led a $63M bet on the Indian travel payments market

Scapiaan Indian startup that integrates travel bookings with credit cards and mobile payments, has raised $63 million in a round of funding led by General Catalyst, with existing investors Peak XV Partners and Z47 also participating. The deal comes despite a significant slowdown in fintech dealmaking.

All of the associated funding gives the startup more than $500 million, according to a source familiar with the matter, double its valuation. about $200 million in April 2025. The four-year-old outfit has raised $126 million so far from investors.

General Catalyst, one of the most prominent US-based startups, is leading the pack showing that the Indian market focused on the fintech journey is attracting a lot of attention beyond their region.

The investment comes as investors around the world are growing less selective about fintech bets after years of aggressive investment. In India, fintech investments remained cheap in Q1 2026, with the volume of transactions halved from a year earlier as investors put their money into smaller, larger businesses. recent report and Tracxn. In contrast, the US has seen fintech investment grow exponentially, surrounded by large circles for a few companies in areas including AI and crypto infrastructure.

Investors betting Scapia can benefit from the growing trend among young Indians for apps that integrate payments and travel bookings. Launched in 2022 by former Flipkart CEO Anil Goteti, the startup integrates branded credit cards, UPI-based payments, travel bookings, and shopping in one place. UPI – India’s government-backed real-time payment system and one of the most widely used digital payment systems in the world – is central to how young Indians move money today.

Last year, Scapia said flight bookings on its platform grew nearly six-fold, while hotel bookings grew nearly eight-fold, with smaller Indian cities driving the bulk of demand. Customer growth also increased sevenfold during the same period, the founders said, without disclosing full figures.

Scapia has seen strong adoption among younger travelers who are more interested in flexible travel rewards and integrated payment methods than credit card transactions, Goteti said in an interview. He added that a third of users now prefer airport dining and rewards over lounge access.

“The social media space is getting crowded,” Goteti told TechCrunch. “People are looking for an experience outside of the living room.”

Scapia also offers dual-brand credit cards that use Visa and RuPay – India’s government-backed payment system – which allows users to access UPI-linked credit and debit card payments through a single statement, credit, and withdrawal. In addition, the startup partnered with Federal Bank and BOBCARD to issue popular cards and plans to add another partner to the bank in the coming months, Goteti said.

The Bengaluru start-up operates in the growing market of financial products focused on travel in India, competing with companies such as Niyo – another Indian start-up that combines banking and travel – and the travel platform Ixigo, where international fintech companies are included. Rebellion too looking at the world.

Scapia, which has about 250 employees, said the new investment will help it expand its product portfolio and hire more AI and marketing professionals as competition heats up in India’s consumer fintech market.