Airwallex raises additional US$100m in Series E1

By Leandra Monteiro

Airwallex, one of the fastest-growing global FinTech platforms, announced it has raised an additional US$100 million in a Series E1 financing round. This new funding raises Airwallex’s valuation to US$5.5 billion and comes just a month after Airwallex announced an oversubscribed Series E round as the company looks to accelerate its global expansion plans. This latest round takes Airwallex’s total Series E fundraising to US$300 million, with US$802 million raised in total.

Airwallex’s Series E1 funding round was again oversubscribed, on the back of strong underlying business performance and momentum. Lone Pine Capital remained the lead for this financing, alongside other existing investors including 1835i Ventures, the venture capital partner to ANZ, and Sequoia Capital China.

This latest raise follows a strong third-quarter performance, where the company recorded a 165% YoY revenue increase, with annualised revenue exceeding US$100 million. The company also made more than 200 additional hires as Airwallex continues to strengthen its presence in its core markets globally.

“Our record performance last quarter demonstrates the tremendous demand from customers who are seeking better solutions to operate their businesses,” said Jack Zhang, Co-founder and CEO of Airwallex. “As we approach our sixth anniversary, we want to continue to connect entrepreneurs, business builders, and makers with opportunities in every corner of the world. This new capital injection will allow us to do just that, fuelling M&A opportunities that will accelerate our global expansion plans, pursuing our mission to empower businesses to grow without borders.”

In the last quarter, Airwallex continued to scale its business across APAC and EMEA, while also gaining early momentum in the U.S. The company launched its virtual employee cards in Hong Kong and the UK, marked its entry into Southeast Asia with licences in Singapore and Malaysia, and continued to onboard new global customers.

“Airwallex’s achievements in the last quarter alone showcase the strength of the company’s business model and its unique ability to meet their customers’ evolving needs in a competitive digital payments market,” said David Craver, Co-Chief Investment Officer at Lone Pine Capital. “The future is bright for Airwallex, and we look forward to helping its team unlock greater growth opportunities as it continues to expand globally.”