Airbnb Appoints Brent Thomas as Regional Policy Director for Asia Pacific

Airbnb has appointed Brent Thomas as Regional Policy Director for Asia Pacific.

Thomas takes over from Mike Orgill who is now Airbnb’s General Manager for Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Thomas has been with Airbnb since 2016 and most recently was Head of Public Policy for Australia, New Zealand, India and Southeast Asia. In this role, Thomas worked with policymakers to develop regulations that now cover more than 70% of the Airbnb community in Australia.

He was also responsible for developing partnerships with a range of government and non-government organisations, including Emergency Management Victoria, Maharashtra Tourism, the New Zealand Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management and United Voice - the union that supports cleaning workers in Australia.

“We know that Airbnb’s community-based model and authentic, sustainable travel delivers enormous benefits to local families, businesses and communities. With his proven track record, Brent will spearhead our work with governments to support and promote the opportunities our community generates,” Siew Kum Hong, Airbnb’s Regional Director for Asia Pacific, said.

Prior to working at Airbnb, Thomas held senior policy and corporate affairs roles in the banking and technology sectors, including Vice President, Public Policy and Corporate Affairs at MasterCard, Head of Corporate Affairs at eBay and Chief of Staff to the Managing Director of PayPal Australia.

Thomas holds a Master of Business Administration from the Australian Graduate School of Management and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Technology Sydney.

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