Filipino appointed regional Super App chief

Malaysia-based AirAsia Super app, the e-commerce platform of the operator of low-cost airline AirAsia, has appointed its first-ever Filipino regional executive to manage its finances.

Multi-awarded Filipino executive Raymund Cauilan Berja has been appointed as the new Regional Chief Financial Officer and Head for Tax, Compliance, and Procurement at airasia Super App.

"We are not strangers to facing giants… I see this opportunity to bring in work ethic, values, expertise, and collaborative mindset in influencing our five-year business plan and strategy in terms of growth and expansion," Berja said on Wednesday.

"My goal is to provide a strong foundation for airasia Super App to sustain growth momentum and positive EBITDA (earnings (net income) before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization), as well as to implement stronger finance governance and compliance, a disciplined fiscal management through the efficient and effective allocation of resources across businesses while balancing new product launches and expansion to new markets," he added.

Good momentum

The 42-year-old Berja will oversee the management of airasia Super App's finances in all of the territories it operates in, namely, the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia; tech support operations in India; and expansions in Vietnam, Singapore, and South Korea.

He will also remain the Managing Director and Country Head of airasia Super App Philippines, which has reached nearly a million monthly active users to date.

Based on latest data, airasia Super App Philippines is on a business growth momentum quarter-on-quarter, netting a gross book value of 86 percent, with net revenues growing by 98 percent and transaction count rising by 174 percent.