IN FOCUS
Hello Betamax, Kashmir, Goa, and Ooty – these Indian destinations have been coming up more often in conversations with my friends lately. One of them just returned from a weeklong trip through the Kashmir Valley, while another came back from a long weekend on the beaches of Goa. Friends who once preferred holidays to foreign destinations such as Europe and Japan are increasingly choosing to explore closer to home. It’s not that people have suddenly lost their appetite for overseas travel. They still want a break, but with rising airfares, hotel prices, and living costs, a holiday closer to home can feel like a much easier sell. Add geopolitical tensions to the equation, and the appeal of a domestic getaway becomes even stronger. This applies not only to India. Across Asia, travelers keep spending on travel but are increasingly choosing to explore their own countries. That shift is good news for hospitality companies like Singapore-based RedDoorz. Indonesia, where the firm gets 85% of its business, is at the heart of that trend. The country logged more than 1.2 billion domestic trips in 2025, the highest in seven years. RedDoorz’s Indonesia revenue grew 24% in local currency terms last year, and the company is now doubling down on hotels it operates itself. In today’s premium, we spotlight RedDoorz’s 2025 financials and how the firm is betting on domestic travel and its growing portfolio of company-operated properties to turn profitable in 2026, ahead of a planned 2027 IPO. Samreen Ahmad, journalist
TOP STORY RedDoorz eyes net profit in 2026 ahead of IPO
Photo credit: RedDoorz
The firm makes money mainly through commissions on bookings made at franchised partner hotels and income from company-operated properties. RedDoorz is shifting from a largely asset-light franchise model toward running more hotels of its own as it chases profitability ahead of its planned IPO next year. Currently, the firm operates 130 hotels and targets over 200 company-operated properties in Indonesia by 2027, across its RedDoorz, Sans, and Urbanview brands.
FROM OUR ARCHIVES SEA VCs diverge on paths to AI gold
Image credit: Ulla
MDI Ventures, the corporate VC arm of Indonesia-based telecoms firm TelkomGroup, has updated its Southeast Asia investment thesis to focus on AI, blockchain, and digital assets. The move comes as VCs across the region rethink their investment strategies around AI. As my colleagues Elyssa and Jofie highlighted in this archived piece, firms including Analog Ventures, Kickstart Ventures, and 1MX AI have reshaped their mandates around the tech, while others have looked to AI-adjacent sectors such as energy, robotics, semiconductors, and deeptech. If anything, the flurry of strategy changes suggests Southeast Asia’s VCs are still playing catch-up with an AI boom already well underway.
TRENDING NEWS 1️⃣ Singapore data center operator DayOne files for IPO The company said it has applied to list American depositary shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker DODC. 2️⃣ Malaysian VC firm Cypress Asia launches $12.2m first fund The fund will back Malaysian tech-driven companies at the pre-series A and series A stages that are already profitable or have a clear path to profitability. 3️⃣ Indonesia’s House passes data law covering AI, blockchain The bill places National Basic Data under state control as the main reference for development planning, fiscal policy, budgeting, social aid distribution, and other strategic national needs. 4️⃣ Japanese startup Donut Robotics to get $1.9m investment The deal comes as robots are being used to address staffing shortages in Japan’s eldercare sector – an issue Donut Robotics aims to tackle by supporting care staff in eldercare facilities. 5️⃣ Revolut plans Philippines unit for digital banking To offer digital banking and electronic money issuer services in the country, the firm is reviewing corporate structures and licensing options under Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas regulations.
COMPLIANCE CONFIDENCE Benchmarking your firm for the future 
The regulatory and tech landscape facing corporate service providers is transforming rapidly, demanding modernized approaches to compliance and operations. EMERGE: Shaping the Next Generation of Corporate Services – organized by Tech in Asia, the CSPN, and Payoneer Summit – will open with two critical sessions designed to benchmark industry sentiment and strategy. The day begins with an exclusive presentation of new pulse survey findings on compliance confidence and regulatory impact, followed by a fireside chat with senior leaders on responding operationally to the new regime. This panel tackles what “good” compliance means today while addressing emerging risks. It then dives into tech, featuring a second presentation of survey findings about the current state of AI adoption, realized benefits, and implementation barriers. This data sets the stage for a crucial discussion on embedding AI, data, and automation responsibly. The panel also moves beyond experimentation to explore practical use cases, measurable productivity impacts, and vital governance strategies regarding trust and confidentiality. Join us to gather the evidence and peer perspectives necessary to navigate the future of corporate services. Secure your seat here.
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