The New Year began with a massive shake-up in the business travel industry with major companies changing hands and famous names set to disappear.
At the root of the changes was the announcement that Hogg Robinson and BCD Holdings, joint owners of Business Travel International (BTI), were going their separate ways.
David Radcliffe, ceo of both Hogg and BTI, said it had become "obvious" from talks (which had been going on for a year or more) "that the two groups had different ideas, so we have decided to call it a day.
"Naturally we are sad that we can not take the merger forward but this is still a big opportunity for Hogg Robinson."
The joint statement was followed by an announcement by the Dutch-owned BCD that it had acquired TUI's business travel subsidiary TQ3 Travel Solutions Management Holding and the major independent UK agency The Travel Company.
The shake-up was completed - for the moment at least - by the announcement that TQ3 Travel Solutions Management Holding and its US partner Navigant International had ended their global joint venture.
Under the terms of this agreement, TQ3 Travel Solutions Management Holding will transfer its 50% stake in TQ3 Travel Solutions to Navigant which owns the other 50%.
The name TQ3 Travel Solutions goes to Navigant but TQ3 Travel Solutions Management Holding can use it up to June this year.
The purchase still has to clear the EC's anti-competition rules but no problems are expected and the deal is likely to be finalised by March.
Then the grouping of BCD, TQ3 and The Travel Company is likely to be re-branded and launched as a new global travel management company.
The amount BCD, which owns WorldTravel BTI, paid for TQ3 Travel Solutions Management Holding has not been revealed.
Under the deal, it has acquired all TQ3's owned operations in 11 countries among which are Belgium, The Netherlands, France, Germany, the UK, the Nordic region and Spain. Agencies operating under the TQ3 brand as licencees will stay with Navigant.
Mr Richard Furness, managing director of Navigant in the UK, said it was likely that the name Navigant will disappear in Europe and be replaced by TQ3.
The Travel Company name is also likely to disappear and so too eventually is BTI.
Mr Radcliffe said that Hogg Robinson was without BCD a global company in its own right operating in all the world's key markets.
But he said it would continue to trade under the BTI brand "for the foreseeable future."
* see BTE Analysis