Airwallex partners with Square Peg Capital for Series A+ funding

Airwallex, an international payments company, continues to secure high profile investors, today announcing that it has partnered with fellow Melbourne-headquartered VC Square Peg Capital for a USD $6 million total investment.

After raising USD $13 million in a Series A funding round, Square Peg's investment will further fuel Airwallex's international expansion and enable more businesses to make faster, easier and cheaper payments worldwide.

Square Peg, known for investing in the most outstanding entrepreneurs across Australia, Israel and Asia to finance and grow tech start ups into multi-billion dollar enterprises, is a natural fit for Airwallex's ongoing expansion. Square Peg joins Round A investors Tencent Holdings, Sequoia Capital China, and Mastercard.

Square Peg Co-Founder and Partner, Paul Bassat, said of the investment, "We are incredibly excited to back Jack and the leadership team at Airwallex - this is a very strong group with deep domain expertise in a complex area. They are solving a large-scale, global problem with the capacity to become a very important business over time." The at-home investment also aligns to Airwallex's commitment to disrupting the Australian market, as well as book-ending the South East Asian corridor, which is spearheaded by their rapidly growing presence in China.

Airwallex Co-Founder and CEO, Jack Zhang, said of the Square Peg partnership, "It's incredibly exciting for Airwallex to join forces with Square Peg and to add an Australian VC to the mix. I have personally been inspired by Paul (Bassat, of Square Peg) since seeing a speech he gave while I was still at uni - so to now be working with him on my own startup is almost indescribable. Square Peg's support will allow us to continue Airwallex's mission to eradicate the burden of international payments so that businesses can transact across borders with ease."

Airwallex's combined Series A and A+ funding rounds makes the total investment one of the largest Series A rounds by an Australian technology startup, fuelling the release of Airwallex's suite of APIs which allow businesses to process international payments at scale.

The latest investment, and the long-term potential of Airwallex, has garnered praise and support from The Minister for Trade & Investment, Innovation & the Digital Economy, Small Business, The Hon. Philip Dalidakis MP. He said of the partnership, "This investment by Square Peg is yet another vote of confidence in a Victorian tech company that is doing great things. I'd like to congratulate Jack and the Airwallex team on their partnership and look forward to seeing the company continue to thrive with Square Peg's support."

Built to bolster foreign exchange payments around the world, the Airwallex platform is powered by a sophisticated FX and payment engine and a transparent pricing model to avoid inflated margins and minimise market risk. The platform is able to support thousands of transactions per second and provides a cost-effective alternative to existing payment networks for businesses looking to automate and scale international payment workflows.

For further information, images or interview requests, please contact Jane Stabler at Evil Twin PR: [email protected] or (02) 8033 2345

About Airwallex

Airwallex is a financial technology company that offers integrated solutions for cross-border payments. Airwallex facilitates international money transfers through a combination of payment collection, foreign exchange and local payment distribution. Supported by high profile investors including Tencent, Sequoia, MasterCard and Square Peg Capital, Airwallex brings extensive experience in the Asia Pacific to the global multi-currency market. Airwallex was the first Australian startup to join the Mastercard Start Path accelerator program in September 2016.

About Square Peg Capital

Square Peg Capital is a venture capital firm focused on high-growth technology startups. Square Peg's approach is to partner with outstanding entrepreneurs solving important problems in a differentiated way. The team invests globally, with offices in Australia, Israel and the United States.