Agoda

Overview

Agoda Company Pte.

company type	Subsidiary
founded	2005
type	Travel and accommodation
location	Singapore and Thailand
area served	Global
founder	Robert Rosenstein (co-founder) Michael Kenny (co-founder)
key people	Omri Morgenshtern (CEO) John Wroughton Brown (chairman) Idan Zalzberg (CTO) Damien Pfirsch (CCO) Thi-Mai-Linh Bui (CFO)
products	Travel agency Metasearch engine
parent	Booking Holdings
homepage	https://www.agoda.com/

Agoda.com, headquartered in Singapore, is an online travel agency that facilitates reservations for lodging, flights, ground transportation, and activities. It is a subsidiary of Booking Holdings.[1][2][3]

History

Agoda was co-founded in 2005 by American school friends Michael Kenny and Robert Rosenstein. Kenny had previously launched Phuket-based PlanetHoliday.com and PrecisionReservations.com, which were incorporated into Agoda.[4]

In 2007, Agoda was acquired by Booking Holdings, formerly The Priceline Group.[5]

Legal and regulatory issues

Illegal and unregistered hotels

In April 2017, the Tourism Minister of Thailand called for travel agencies, most notably Agoda, to delete illegal and unregistered hotels from the platforms.[18][19][20]

In June 2018, Agoda cooperated with the Taipei City Government's request to remove illegal and unregistered Taipei hotels from its listings.[21]

Unfair competition allegations in Turkey

In September 2018, Agoda was one of 20 online travel agencies that faced legal action from the Turkish Travel Agencies Association due to alleged unfair competition.[22] In January 2026, regulators in Turkey filed a lawsuit seeking to ban Agoda as well as many other travel agencies including Airbnb and Expedia.[23]

Misleading discount claims in UK

In October 2017, Agoda was one of six major online travel agencies that was subject to a probe by the Competition and Markets Authority in the United Kingdom. The probe was related to "concerns about hidden charges, pressure selling tactics, misleading discount claims and the order in which results appear on the site pages." The companies agreed to stop engaging in such misleading tactics.[24][25][26]

Delayed refund to customer after booking a non-existent hotel

In December 2017, Agoda initially refused to give a refund to a customer that booked a non-existent hotel. The refund was paid after a fraud complaint was filed with the Thai government.[27]

Issues with booking systems

In 2019, in Asia, Agoda still listed several hotels that had already terminated their listings with Agoda.[28]

In Japan, in the summer of 2025, regulatory authorities, including the Japan Tourism Agency, criticized the company after customers cited booking hotels that were not available and reservations cancelled by the Agoda system, while hotel suppliers had problems with confirming reservations, discrepancies in reservation details, and rooms being sold at significantly higher prices than those set by the hotels.[29][30][31][32] The company took steps to mitigate the issues; however, hotels continued to have issues with incorrect reservations in August 2025.[33]

NDA clauses in severance packages

In September 2025, Agoda laid off approximately 50 Singapore employees with severance benefits and, in violation of local laws, included clauses in severance agreements prohibiting contact with government agencies or trade unions, with penalties of revoked severance benefits if breached. Following strong condemnation from the Ministry of Manpower and National Trades Union Congress, Agoda apologized, acknowledging the clauses were "inappropriate".[35][36][37] These actions were rebuked by the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and the Singapore Industrial and Services Employees' Union (SISEU).[38] After meetings with unions and regulators, the company apologized and provided further clarification to affected individuals.[39][40]