News Briefs

PAR Technology Corp. announced its acquisition of Delaget, LLC, a provider of restaurant analytics and business intelligence solutions. 

Founded in 2001, Delaget serves over 30,000 locations, with 125+ brands among its customers (including 40 of the top 50 North America-based restaurant concepts). Delaget’s comprehensive platform delivers data analytics, loss prevention, and operational insights that help restaurant operators streamline operations and improve profitability.

Savneet Singh, PAR Technology’s Chief Executive Officer and President commented, “The acquisition of Delaget marks another strategic milestone in PAR’s mission to build the industry’s most comprehensive food service platform. Delaget’s analytics capabilities perfectly complement our Operator Cloud solution, while offering immediate value to our customers through enhanced back-office capabilities, delivery operations, and data-driven insights. Our combination will help restaurant operators make better decisions, reduce costs, and drive operational excellence all in real-time. Access to the Delaget product suite will accelerate development timeframes of the PAR Data Platform, a major initiative that unites data across a restaurant’s tech stack to provide unparalleled guest and operational insights.”

“Joining forces with PAR Technology represents an exciting new chapter for Delaget’s customers and employees,” said Jason Tober, Chief Executive Officer of Delaget. He added. “Our shared vision for transforming restaurant operations through data insights, combined with PAR Technology’s scale and industry leadership, will allow us to deliver even greater outcomes to our customers. As part of PAR Technology, we will bring our platform and solutions to even more businesses across the globe and provide an open integration platform that best serves top restaurant operators and brands.”

Transaction Details

The transaction closed on December 31, 2024.  Under the terms of the definitive agreement, PAR acquired 100% of the outstanding equity interests of Delaget in consideration for PAR’s payment of $132 million (subject to adjustment for any cash, indebtedness, and net working capital), which was principally paid in shares of PAR common stock. 

According to preliminary insights from Mastercard SpendingPulse™, U.S. restaurant spending was up 6.3% compared to last year from November 1 through December 24. 

Retail sales excluding automotive increased 3.8% year-over-year from November 1 through December 24. Mastercard SpendingPulse measures in-store and online retail sales, representing all payment types and is not adjusted for inflation.

“The holiday shopping season revealed a consumer who is willing and able to spend but driven by a search for value as can be seen by concentrated e-commerce spending during the biggest promotional periods,” said Michelle Meyer, chief economist, Mastercard Economics Institute. “Solid spending during this holiday season underscores the strength we observed from the consumer all year, supported by the healthy labor market and household wealth gains.”

Key retail trends for the full holiday season included:

• The most ‘valuable’ time of the year – Empowered consumers sought value at every turn this year, responding to promotions during the November and Black Friday shopping period, and filling their baskets in the run-up to December 24. Overall retail sales saw a 3.8% increase compared to 2023, with the last five days of the holiday season accounting for 10% of all holiday spending.
• A balanced basket – Consumer demand for experiences like dining out strengthened in the holiday season, with Restaurant spending growth up 6.3% compared to last year. Additionally, this season saw an increase in spending growth on goods compared to last year, with Apparel (3.6%), Jewelry (4.0%) and Electronics (3.7%) as notable sectors for gift-giving.
• Clicking all the way – Consumers increasingly preferred digital-first shopping this year, with e-commerce, curbside pick-up and delivery being top-of-mind for the festive season. Online retail sales grew 6.7% year-over-year, whereas in-store sales increased 2.9%. Notably, the Apparel sector showed a strong lead in e-commerce sales, with 6.7% growth for online purchases compared to last year.
• Digital-savvy shopping cities – While many Americans shop online for the holidays, there are some cities in particular that have embraced e-commerce. Cities like Tampa (10.6%) and Phoenix (10.0%) lead with double digital growth followed by Minneapolis (8.9%), Dallas (8.4%), Charlotte (7.9%), Orlando (7.8%), and Houston (7.6%) coming in well above the national total for e-commerce sales compared to 2023.

“This holiday season, we saw consumers motivated by deals and retailers respond with promotions to meet the demand,” said Steve Sadove, senior advisor for Mastercard and former CEO and chairman of Saks Incorporated. “The value-minded consumer showed up to shop at brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce platforms, with retailers managing across both to capture attention throughout the season.”

About Mastercard SpendingPulse

Mastercard SpendingPulse measures national retail sales based on aggregated and anonymized Mastercard insights, representing all payment types in select markets around the world.

Mastercard SpendingPulse defines “U.S. retail sales” as sales at retailers and food services merchants of all sizes. Sales activity within the services sector (for example, travel services such as airlines and lodging) are not included in the total retail sales figure. SpendingPulse insights are not indicative of Mastercard company performance; insights and forecast are subject to change.

Engine, the modern travel platform for booking and managing business trips, has launched a fleet of new features to help lodging providers fill vacancies on demand. It’s the latest expansion to Engine’s Partner Hub, the easiest, most powerful way for hotels to raise visibility and increase customer loyalty with business travelers.

Partner Hub gives hotels a direct channel to hundreds of thousands of business travelers who use Engine. It offers comprehensive property analytics to help hotels make real-time decisions. The latest features include:

• Deals: Maximize occupancy by launching pinpoint-targeted discount offers to attract last-minute business travelers.
• Property Spotlight: Bid on premium placements in Engine’s platform when travelers and travel admins search. Drive traffic on an ongoing basis or whenever occupancy dips.
• 2X Rewards feature: Designed to incentivize travelers to choose a preferred property over its competitors, Partner Hub users can offer travelers double Engine Rewards.
• Group RFP Management Tools for Chains and PMGs: Use a single dashboard to view, manage, and recommend properties for Group RFPs across their portfolio, helping sales teams stay organized, streamline lead management, and increase chances of winning group business.

“We bring innovative tools to hotels that help them attract more business travelers, boost midweek bookings, and deliver a better guest experience,” said Engine’s EVP of Supply and Strategy, Florent Silve. “For many hotels, driving consistent business is complex and overwhelming. That’s why Engine’s Partner Hub is designed to be a strategic partner that increases bookings and simplifies operations. It enables chains, PMGs, and individual hotels to optimize their visibility and performance in the small business travel segment — a huge untapped market other travel platforms neglect. It gives them detailed analytics, robust insights, and sophisticated management tools to reach thousands of small businesses traveling into their market.”

More than 900,000 business travelers use Engine to plan and manage trips — mostly for weekday travel when vacancies are at their highest. Partner Hub’s new features enable hotels to capture demand among this highly motivated audience with tailored offers that deliver fast, measurable results. Travelers booking on Engine are 2.2X more likely to book when same-day cancellation is offered, boosting click-to-book conversion by 68%. Further, hotels leveraging premium placement in Engine search results drive 24% more bookings than the next-ranked property.

Sign up for Engine’s Partner Hub to maximize potential with property management tools to increase bookings and simplify operations.

Designed with accessibility and financial freedom in mind, the new Instant mobile app is released with a list of innovative new features and functionality including:

• Faster Access to Earned Wages: Employees have access to their hard-earned wages in fewer steps, with an improved user interface (UI) and key elements surfaced more prominently within the app.
• Modern Security Features: State-of-the-art security protocols, such as facial and fingerprint biometrics, multi-factor authentication, and encryption technologies protect user information and provide peace of mind.
• Flexible Payment Options: Users have the freedom to choose how and when they access their wages. Whether it’s through direct deposit, the Instant card, or a mobile wallet, the new app offers a greater degree of flexibility for all employees, ensuring convenience for all.
• Clear and Informative Design: With improvements to the user interface (UI), the app offers a user-friendly experience, empowering users to make informed choices and navigate the app confidently.
• New Technology Framework: Underpinned by a new technology infrastructure, the new Instant mobile app is faster, more responsive, and built to allow for additional features and functionality to meet the needs of employees and how they are paid.

“Employee demands regarding how they access their wages are constantly shifting, and our new app is meeting that head-on,” said Tal Clark, CEO of Instant Financial. “Whether it’s to cover unexpected expenses, avoid predatory loans, or simply to enjoy more control over their finances, Instant is continually revolutionizing the way people get paid.”

By releasing this enhanced version of its mobile app experience, Instant is furthering its mission of delivering pay to employees, when they want, where they want, and how they want, all free of fees.

Flexa has teamed up with Nighthawk Wallet, a self-custody digital wallet, to expand how digital assets are used in everyday life. Through this integration, Nighthawk Wallet users can now make instant, fraud-proof payments at over 41,000 retail locations across the United States and Canada, marking a major step forward for the usability of digital currencies. 

Flexa Components, now embedded within the Nighthawk Wallet app, ensures that transactions are processed instantly, privately, and securely. By combining Nighthawk’s user-friendly wallet design with Flexa’s powerful payment platform, users can seamlessly spend digital asset ZEC for everyday purchases—whether at restaurants, coffee shops, or other merchants. With guaranteed settlement and zero chargebacks for merchants, this integration also simplifies payment acceptance for businesses, further driving the adoption of digital currencies.

“Digital payments are now simpler, faster, and more secure with Flexa,” said Daniel McCabe, cofounder and CEO of Flexa. “With Flexa Components integrated into Nighthawk Wallet, we are enabling users to transform their digital assets from static holdings to tools for seamless commerce—while ensuring critical benefits like privacy and guaranteed fraud protection for our merchant partners.”

Nighthawk founder Aditya Bharadwaj notes, “Spending with Flexa opens up more in-person retail trade and use cases for digital currencies, a pioneering use case since the early days of crypto. The Flexa team has built a scalable platform that redefines the way we think about digital payments, offering merchants and consumers a seamless and secure experience that rivals traditional credit card payments, with no predatory fees or concerns about customer data privacy. We are committed to maintaining our high standards of transparency as we bring this innovative solution to our user base.”

This collaboration bridges the gap between digital assets and everyday commerce, making payments more efficient, private, and accessible.