Airwallex raises additional $100m in series E1 round, achieves $5.5b valuation

The additional financing follows the fintech’s oversubscribed series E round and takes its total raised to US$802 million since 2015

Airwallex has raised an additional US$100 million in a series E1 financing round, taking the global payments fintech’s valuation to US$5.5 billion.

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.

The additional financing follows the fintech’s oversubscribed series E round and takes its total raised to US$802 million since 2015.

Airwallex’s series E1 round was again oversubscribed, on the back of strong underlying business performance and momentum, according to the Australia-headquartered provider, which is focused on helping businesses to manage online payments, treasury and payout globally.

The fintech recorded a 165% year-over-year revenue increase in Q3 2021, with annualised revenue exceeding US$100 million. It also made more than 200 additional hires. 

Jack Zhang, co-founder and chief executive officer of Airwallex, this “record performance” demonstrates tremendous demand from its customers.

Zhang continues: “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 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.  

David Craver, co-chief investment officer at Lone Pine Capital, says: “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.”

Image: Airwallex

Mark Dugdale