In 2014 American Express took the bold step of spinning off its Global Business Travel (GBT) division, selling a 50% stake to an investor group for $900 million and setting GBT up as a separate joint venture. Creating a separate travel management company would allow GBT to focus squarely on the corporate traveler, a market that the Global Business Travel Association estimates will reach $1.6 trillion in spending by 2020. It also meant GBT could move faster and accelerate its growth by "funding meaningful advances in technology, analytics and service excellence" according to a press release announcing the move.