Malaysia is weighing how to support AirAsia without putting public money at risk, the country’s former transport minister has said, as Southeast Asia’s largest low-cost airline grapples with high jet fuel prices and currency swings.
Anthony Loke, who resigned as transport minister this week, told Reuters the finance ministry was still reviewing options to help the carrier. Any support would have to take a formal, regulated form, he said. “Government is not going to pump in money just like that.”
AirAsia is a private company, unlike state-owned Malaysia Airlines, and Loke said that distinction shaped what the government could do. He declined to give details of the options under consideration, saying Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is also finance minister, would decide on any conditions.
The government is aiming to strike a balance, Loke said, “without jeopardising public funds, but at the same time maintaining air connectivity, which is important.” AirAsia controls about 60 per cent of Malaysia’s domestic aviation market, and had current liabilities of 18.4 billion ringgit ($4.52 billion) as of 30 June.
AirAsia has said it is looking to raise up to $1 billion from international debt markets, plus 700 million ringgit in local credit facilities. Co-founder Tony Fernandes told Reuters last month he expected the $1 billion fundraising to be completed between December and February. At the time, Fernandes denied asking the government for financial assistance, though he said AirAsia would not turn away help if offered.
The finance ministry said last month it had made no agreement or commitment to provide financial assistance to AirAsia, whether in the form of guarantees, loans or public fund injections. Neither the finance ministry nor AirAsia responded to Reuters’ requests for comment on the latest account, so the details of any support under discussion remain unconfirmed.
Tengku Zafrul Aziz, a senior political adviser to Anwar who chairs the Malaysian Investment Development Authority, said in a separate interview that any government rescue of a private company must protect the business and its workers, not its shareholders. The right policy for any government “is not to interfere in the commercial sector,” he said, adding that any support for a company considered strategic to the country must be justifiable. He described his comments as his personal view.
Loke made his remarks in an interview on Wednesday, a day after he resigned in protest at a High Court decision allowing former Prime Minister Najib Razak to be released from prison and serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest over his role in the 1MDB scandal.
He said the transport ministry had coordinated modest relief for airlines this year, including longer credit terms on aviation charges. The Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia extended the credit period for aviation fees and charges from 30 days to 60 days from 1 May. The measures were “not major”, Loke said, but gave airlines “some breathing space” as they dealt with high fuel prices.
The ministry was inclined to help, he said, because fuel costs are passed on to passengers through pricier tickets, which dampens demand and hurts tourism and the wider economy.
Sources: Reuters — “Malaysia weighing how to aid AirAsia without risking public funds, ex-minister says” (https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/malaysia-weighing-how-aid-airasia-without-risking-public-funds-ex-minister-says-2026-11-13/)
