Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Capital A has announced plans to extend its presence into the hospitality industry, confirming that it is in talks with a major hospitality brand where its airline brand AirAsia can extend into.
The company stated this during its recent reporting of operating results for the first quarter of 2026.
“AirAsia Next continues to serve as a strategic cornerstone for brand licensing, technology and ecosystem management. It owns the AirAsia, AirAsia MOVE and Santan brands, and is currently finalising agreements to manage two other Capital A entity brands. It is also finalising a licensing agreement with a major hotel chain to extend the AirAsia brand into hospitality,” Capital A stated.
No other details apart from the abovementioned quote have been made.
Moreover, details have emerged about Tony Fernandes, Co-Founder at AirAsia X, announcing plans to launch a new airline, betting big on the ongoing high oil prices that have affected the aviation industry.
Multiple media reports note that Fernandes is reportedly moving some of its planes to kickstart this new airline business. This follows after the founder’s recent trip to Canada and securing a multi-billion dollar deal involving 150 Airbus A220s made in Canada, with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney describing the deal as the largest purchase of Canadian-made commercial aircraft.
Capital A reported a steady performance for its first quarter, mentioning that while positive demand from the Chinese New Year and Hari Raya festive seasons was evident, performance was balanced by conflict in the Middle East and the traditionally quiet Ramadan period.
Moreover, Monthly Active Users (“MAU”s) for AirAsia MOVE’s platform grew 20% Quarter-on-Quarter (“QoQ”) and 23% YoY to 17.1 million. Total app installs and engagement rates across chats and community platforms both rose 14%.
