NightsBridge acquires Semper, strengthening Southern Africa’s Independent Hospitality Sector

On 4 March 2026 NightsBridge and Semper formally announce the acquisition of Semper by the NightsBridge group, marking a new chapter for two of Southern Africa’s most trusted hospitality technology providers. The acquisition coincides with the retirement of Semper’s founders, Bernard and Colleen Potgieter, whose nearly two decades of leadership have made Semper a cornerstone Property Management System (PMS) for independent accommodation providers across the region. Eben Marais has been appointed CEO of Semper, ensuring continuity of leadership and an unwavering focus on product, service, and long-term growth.

A Partnership Built on 18 Years of Collaboration

For nearly two decades, Semper and NightsBridge have collaborated to support shared clients. NightsBridge recommended Semper as a strong PMS for hotels requiring enhanced reporting or property management features, while continuing to use NightsBridge for distribution and online bookings. This acquisition deepens that long-standing collaboration while preserving what clients value most from each brand: practical hospitality technology, local expertise, and dedicated support.

This complementary positioning continues, now under a single group structure.

Leadership Perspectives

“We respect what Bernard and Colleen have built.” said Theresa Emerick, Managing Director at NightsBridge. “Both companies will maintain distinct brands and dedicated support and development teams, preserving the specialised service our customers value. The businesses will run independently, and together we can invest more effectively in local innovation, integrations, and training that benefit the wider tourism ecosystem.”

“This partnership is about building on the strong foundation Bernard and Colleen created,” said Eben Marais, CEO of Semper. “Semper remains Semper — same team, same product focus, same commitment to our clients. Being part of the NightsBridge group gives us greater capacity to invest in development, integrations, and customer success. Semper has always been built around the realities of independent hospitality, and this next chapter ensures those businesses continue to have reliable, locally supported technology that grows with them.”

 
Stability and Continuity for Clients and Partners

For existing clients, tourism partners, DMOs, OTAs, and industry stakeholders, this transaction provides certainty and continuity:

• Both brands remain: NightsBridge and Semper will operate as separate companies, each with their own product roadmap, support, development teams, and offices.
• No disruption: Existing PMS, channel management, and booking engine configurations for all clients remain unchanged.
• Joint initiatives continue: Current collaborations building on connectivity and payment solutions from NightsBridge combined with Semper’s hospitality tools will proceed as before.

Supporting Southern Africa’s Tourism Ecosystem

As the region focuses on long-term tourism growth, both companies view this step as a vote of confidence in Southern Africa’s hospitality sector. Independent accommodation providers are central to the tourism offering, and local technology providers like NightsBridge and Semper play an essential role in keeping these businesses visible, bookable, and efficient. Closer collaboration between the two teams is expected to accelerate product innovation and integration, simplify workflows and reporting for shared clients, and enhance data and connectivity options for tourism partners.
Both companies will continue to engage directly with clients and partners to ensure ongoing support, connectivity, and product development throughout this transition and beyond.

https://site.nightsbridge.com