Airwallex raises US$100 million in Series D extension, putting valuation at US$2.6 billion

By Leandra Monteiro

Keeping with their growth trajectory, Airwallex has recently announced that the company’s valuation has increased to US$2.6 billion with a capital raising of US$100 million in a further Series D extension. Lifting Airwallex’s Series D funding to US$300 million, this latest tranche followed its initial Series D round in April 2020 during the pandemic, and the extension round in September 2020. To date, Airwallex has achieved nearly US$500 million in equity funds raised.

The round was led by Greenoaks, a US-based global investment firm that has backed numerous technology and FinTech companies including Deliveroo, Discord, Stripe, Brex and Checkout.com. Australia-based Grok Ventures, Skip Capital and ANZi Ventures also participated in the round.

In the last two years, Airwallex has nearly tripled its valuation, following the company’s unicorn status during its successful Series C fundraising in March 2019. This latest infusion of capital will be used to further accelerate Airwallex’s global expansion, explore new partnerships and continue with product and engineering innovation.

“The world will only become more digital, and with more businesses than ever now operating online, Airwallex has proudly been at the centre of this evolution,” said Jack Zhang, Co-founder and CEO at Airwallex. “The additional investment is a vote of confidence in the global financial infrastructure we have built, as we look to empower businesses to grow without borders.”

“This year, we are focused on our global expansion. We continue to extend our international footprint and are bolstering our capabilities through partnerships and new product launches. Strengthening our investor base with the addition of Greenoaks will also help us accelerate that progress. We look forward to their support as we forge ahead on our journey to become a global financial cloud,” Zhang continued.

In the last year, Airwallex continued to expand its suite of products and applications, including multi-currency debit cards with, a bank feed integration with Xero, an SMB rewards program, and online payment acceptance capabilities. The FinTech company also maintained its robust business momentum, driven by triple digit revenue growth in the e-commerce, digital, technology and logistics customer segments.

To boost its hypergrowth, Airwallex has focused on building a high-performance culture. The company recently refreshed its values, accelerated its hiring and talent retention strategies to deliver Airwallex’s vision. Presently, Airwallex has over 600 employees across 12 global offices and is still looking to fill over 500 open roles.

Patrick Backhouse at Greenoaks said, “We believe Airwallex is building a powerful global payments business, with a rich product suite that helps companies simplify their financial infrastructure as they scale globally. From its origins in Australia, Airwallex chose to build global products from day one, and has developed a deep understanding of emerging payment technologies. We look forward to supporting the company as it extends their global reach.”

Jeremy Kwong-Law, CEO & CIO at Grok Ventures said, “It is so impressive to see Airwallex’s relentless pursuit of rewiring clunky financial infrastructure and turning that into a simple and delightful product experience for their customers. We are excited about the huge potential this team can deliver in the years ahead.”