Built the Capital Architecture That Funded Four Simultaneous Markets and Drove 20x Revenue Growth
Hello Clever operates at the intersection of real-time payment rails, instant cashback rewards, and AI-powered merchant intelligence, building a multi-market payments platform across APAC. In two years, Agrawal drove revenue growth of 20x, a trajectory built on a capital strategy that combined equity raises with the structuring and restructuring of multi-million-dollar debt facilities.
That work extended the company's runway and expanded its capacity to fund simultaneous expansion initiatives from one to four, while increased investment in the payments float generated a compounding flywheel on revenue and profit.
Across a mandate spanning corporate development, pricing, board leadership, and org design, his most consequential contribution has been embedding financial discipline into commercial decisions, evaluating opportunities by margin, capital requirements, and long-term shareholder value rather than revenue alone. To scale that thinking company-wide, he runs financial education courses for staff and has built Hello Clever's finance function on the principle that AI should expand team capability rather than replace headcount.
Finance is one of the most under-leveraged growth levers a startup has.
The best finance leaders don't just keep the books. They extend runway,
structure capital that changes what a company can do next, and build the
systems that let it scale across borders.
Startup Finance 30 is the first list built to recognise that work.
Beginning in 2026 and continuing annually, we name 30 finance leaders at
venture-backed, globally ambitious startups. The operators shaping how the
next generation of companies grow.
What Startup Finance 30 is
“
Who's doing the most consequential finance work in the startup world right now?
This list is the answer.
FAQ
More information on how SF30 works.
Who's behind Startup Finance 30?
Startup Finance 30 is published by Airwallex. We built it because we work with globally ambitious companies every day, and the finance leaders driving that growth deserve more recognition than they get. Selection sits with the committee.
Who selects the final 30?
A committee of operating CFOs and finance leaders. They score every candidate against a five-part merit rubric and ratify the final list. See the full
selection methodology.
Is there a fee? Can I pay to be included?
No. It's free to enter, and recognition is earned on merit.
