AIRASIA Philippines Chief Finance Officer Ray Berja, a decorated leader in financial technology and aviation, is named the pioneering managing director of AirAsia Super App in the Philippines.

As managing director of AirAsia Super App Philippines, Berja will be leading the overall operations of the company’s local footprint – expanding its lines of business (LOBs) and driving in users.

The seasoned strategic business and commercial leader started his career with AirAsia three years ago as a CFO in its airline business in the Philippines. He helped deliver a positive EBITDA in 2019, driving business collaboration among internal stakeholders and external strategic partners.

With the onslaught of the pandemic, Berja’s financial strategy zeroed in on the identification of new revenue streams, gradual restoration of flight frequency and thorough management of cash spending.

He also brings over 18 years of experience working with external audit firms, multinational companies, Philippines’ media empire ABS-CBN, fast food giant Jollibee, telecoms pioneer PLDT Global and Philippines’ largest e-wallet provider and payment app Mynt GCash (JV between Ayala, Globe and Ant Financial Alipay).

He is also appointed as concurrent Executive Vice President of the Association of CPAs in Commerce and Industry (ACPACI). Under his belt is a menagerie of accolades recognizing his work, among which is being hailed as one of the Most Outstanding Accounting students in the Philippines in 2003 by ACPACI and the Global CFO Excellence Award: FinTech CFO of the Year award in 2019 and Aviation CFO of the year in 2020.

Berja is taking on the role starting March 01 ahead of the official launch of the airasia Super App in the Philippines, which is set to happen in the third week of this month. Additional LOBs are expected to be announced during the event along with the roadmap of the Super App.

AirAsia Super App Managing Director Ray Berja shares: “AirAsia, as a global leader in attainable travel and lifestyle experience, has always been an early adopter of innovations that benefit its customers. Now that we are fully geared to join the robust Super App market here in the Philippines, I am excited to lead and work with my team in establishing an integrated travel and lifestyle ecosystem for Filipinos. Frictionless connection with needs is the lifestyle of the future – and we are glad to be ushering it in here.”

As managing director, Berja will be reporting directly to airasia Super App Chief Executive Officer Amando Woo.

Woo shares, “As we work towards our vision of becoming the top ASEAN Super App, we are finally making our footprint in the Philippines, and Ray will be taking the lead in managing all operations for the Super App in the country. He will be helping drive the growth of the subscriber base and growth across all lines of businesses in collaboration with our regional business group heads.”

The airasia Super App was launched in 2020 as a culmination to the group’s digital transformation into a comprehensive lifestyle platform. It currently hosts a wide array of LOBs that include flights, hotels, and rides. The airasia group was hailed as one of three ASEAN Unicorns based in Malaysia by a recent Credit Suisse report in the following year, receiving a valuation of USD 1 billion.

Tony Fernandes, chief executive officer of the AirAsia holding company Capital A, is determined to make the company a major player in the ASEAN digital economy as it ramps up its transformation to a digital services group. The digital business is targeted to contribute 50% to the group’s revenue alongside its airline segment by 2026.

AUTHOR PROFILE

Jun I. Legaspi