KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 20): After launching its own version of mobile wallet called BigPay, AirAsia Bhd is reported to have turned its attention to taking duty-free shopping online.

"If you take Amazon, they started with a website and great distribution, now they are buying planes. We've got the planes and we are working backwards," AirAsia group chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said in an interview with the Business Insider news site.

Fernandes said the airline's fleet could be used to transport goods purchased to destinations throughout Asia, in line with its e-commerce revolution around the sale of duty-free goods.

"When you book your ticket (online), we will offer you the chance to buy duty-free and you can pick it up on the plane or at the airport," he shared in the interview.

With this in mind, Fernandes hinted that AirAsia may create a marketplace for shops to put content on their online site.

He said an online marketplace would provide more incentive for passengers to browse duty-free products, with personalised recommendations and flexibility, as oppose to time constraints at the airport.

Currently, AirAsia is retrofitting its fleet with high-speed WiFi to support its e-commerce revolution. It is also hoping to ultimately expand beyond its airline ecosystem into mainstream retail.

Last week, AirAsia unveiled its plans to roll out BigPay, an e-wallet service for Southeast Asian travellers, which Fernandes said is the low-cost carrier's "own version of Alipay" — a way to boost its revenue and drive savings.

The mobile payment will remove the need for physical cash for in-flight purchases on AirAsia fights, as it offers customers the ease to purchase products through their smartphones, with bill-sharing and money transfer functions to cater to group travellers.

Fernandes said AirAsia's digitalisation strategy will also see a currency exchange feature in its new payment platform.

Calling out banks for "ripping off" customers, he said AirAsia will facilitate foreign exchange at a "much lower rate" for up to 14 Asean currencies.

Additionally, by moving into the financial technology (fintech) business model, AirAsia is hoping to remove the inconvenience of using cash and any cases of fraud.

AirAsia's share price was up one sen or 0.32% at RM3.17 as at 3.45pm, for a market capitalisation of RM10.59 billion.