Tencent-backed Airwallex seeks funding at US$6 billion value

FINTECH company Airwallex is in talks with investors to raise about US$200 million in a new funding round to finance its growth, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Tencent Holdings-backed company is seeking to close the funding around year-end, the people said, asking not to be named discussing private information. The Singapore-based firm is targeting a valuation of about US$6 billion, though talks are preliminary and could be subject to change, the people added.

“As a rapidly scaling company, we are always in dialogue with investors about our performance and growth plans,” the company said in an emailed statement on Wednesday (Oct 30).

Airwallex, which was founded in Australia, reached half a billion US dollars in annual recurring revenue in August and serves more than 100,000 businesses. It has expanded into Hong Kong, Japan, North America and Europe, with more than 1,600 staff in 23 offices globally. The company’s valuation reached US$5.6 billion as of November 2022, it said.

It has been deploying “a large amount of investment” into artificial intelligence in the past two years, co-founder Jack Zhang said during a panel on Monday at Hong Kong’s FinTech Week. The company is using AI for onboarding customers, due diligence and customer support, Zhang added.

Founded in Melbourne in 2015, Airwallex offers services including handling bill payments for companies that employ staff globally, treasury, expense management, multi-currency debit cards and helping small businesses create local currency accounts around the world.

Zhang told CNBC in August that the company was looking to get ready for an initial public offering by 2026. It acquired an online payment business licence in China last year, allowing it to become a third-party payment provider in the country.

Airwallex raised US$100 million in 2022 in an extension of its series E funding round, people familiar said at the time. It lured backing from Australian industry superannuation fund HostPlus and a North American pension fund. It also counts HongShan Capital Group, Hermitage Capital, Lone Pine Capital and Salesforce Ventures as backers. BLOOMBERG