Airwallex confirms unicorn status with $100M USD raise

Peter van Bruchem

Techboard is pleased to report that international payments fintech start-up Airwallex has raised $100m USD in Series C round led by DST Global.  This represents a significant funding event not just for the company but for the Australian Ecosystem, with Airwallex joining Canva in the very exclusive Australian unicorn's club. 

This funding round will be captured in Techboard's upcoming funding report for the March Quarter 2019 which will be published early April. Techboard funding reports include deals reported in the startup and more traditional press as well as transactions that are reported to Techboard.  Techboard also now provides commercial subscribers with access to its funding data.

Airwallex confirms unicorn status following a successful Series C fundraising round of $100m USD, valuing the company at over $1bn USD.

  • Airwallex’s Series C fundraising was led by DST Global, which has previously backed internet giants Facebook, Airbnb and Spotify, and fintech leaders Robinhood.
  • The new capital will be used to expand Airwallex’s suite of international collection and payment products, and to support global expansion into the US, UK / Europe and Southeast Asia.
  • Airwallex is committed to empowering marketplaces, online sellers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to grow their businesses.

Founded in Melbourne (Australia) in 2015, Airwallex has grown from an emerging start-up to a global challenger in the cross- border payment space, supporting a client base of internet titans including JD.com, Tencent and Ctrip, and large financial service companies including MasterCard.

Top-tier investor DST Global led the Series C fundraising round, which closed at $100m USD. DST Global has been a primary investor across a number of global technology success stories, including Facebook, Airbnb and Spotify, and other fintech leaders, such as Robinhood.

Alongside new investor DST Global, participants from Airwallex’s previous rounds returned for the Series C fundraising, including Sequoia Capital China, Tencent, Hillhouse Capital, Gobi Partners, Horizons Ventures and Square Peg Capital.

The round brings Airwallex’s total capital raised to over $200m USD. Just three years after it was founded, Airwallex is now valued at over $1bn USD, confirming its position as a newly minted fintech unicorn.

Accelerating product development and global reach to help marketplaces, online sellers and SMEs

“We started Airwallex because we knew there was a better way to make global payments,” said Airwallex CEO and Co- founder Jack Zhang. “Airwallex is proud to free businesses from many of the traditional barriers that have made international transactions so difficult. Our mission is to build a worldwide, technology-driven financial infrastructure that will help our customers - including marketplaces, online sellers and SMEs - grow their businesses globally.”

Airwallex offers an end-to-end solution for businesses to move money programmatically on a global scale. With Airwallex, customers can create international bank accounts instantly, access interbank exchange rates and send money through local and international clearing networks to more than 130 countries.

Alongside global expansion, the funds will also be used to continue product development, with an emphasis on delivering further value to marketplaces, online sellers and SMEs. Airwallex aspires to become the operating system of global banking, offering customers a truly global financial platform that serves their growing business needs.

Tom Stafford, Managing Partner of DST Global, said, “The growing eCommerce industry needs a technology-focused payments network that is reliable, cost-effective and provides data transparency. Airwallex has built such a network and we are excited to partner with Jack and the team as they continue to grow their business”.

 

Visit the Airwallex website.