White & Case LLP has advised American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), a global corporate travel provider with operations and network partners in nearly 120 countries worldwide, on the acquisition of SMT Oy, a travel management company based in Finland and a subsidiary of publicly listed Finnair Ltd.

SMT had been an important part of GBT's Travel Partner Network for 27 years and the acquisition will further enhance GBT's service and capabilities in the Nordics. SMT was formed in 2013 by the merger of Finland's two largest corporate travel agencies, Area Travel Agency and Finland Travel Bureau.

The White & Case team which advised on the transaction was led by partner Janko Lindros (Helsinki) and included partners James Killick (Brussels), Jonathan Pickworth (London) and Richard Burke (Washington, DC) with support from counsel Sara Nordin (Geneva) and associates Nika Larkimo, Maria Fagerström-Ryder (both Helsinki), Marika Harjula (Brussels), Jonah Anderson (London) and Cristina Brayton-Lewis (Washington, DC).