The global financial platform powering TalentHero's multi-market payroll operations

Introducing TalentHero

The shift towards remote work and more cost-effective growth has rewritten the rules of hiring for businesses. While hiring across borders has become easier, managing payroll and international payments remains slow, complex, and costly. 

That’s the problem TalentHero set out to solve. Founded by HR veterans Oliver Lewis and James Miles, TalentHero is now Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing Employer of Record (EOR) platform. The founders saw early on that global businesses needed a simpler way to build and manage offshore teams – particularly in high-growth, cost-efficient regions like Southeast Asia.

With product–market fit and a growing client base, TalentHero was ready to scale fast. But like many early-stage startups, managing cross-border cash flow was a constant challenge. Payroll had to run on time across multiple markets, even when overseas client payments took days to clear. Every delay added pressure on operations and risked the one thing the team couldn't afford to lose: trust from customers.

The challenge

Legacy banking systems and high fees that strained cash flow

To run payroll, funds from clients in the US, UK, and Australia were first routed through TalentHero's Singapore bank account via SWIFT, and then sent to offshore teams in Southeast Asia. The process was slow and costly. Client transfers often took 2–5 working days to clear, delaying access to funds and putting pressure on cash flow when payroll deadlines approached. On top of that, FX and transfer fees stacked up, with transfer charges climbing as high as 14%.

Creating local bank accounts might have helped, but setup was complex and time-consuming, often requiring weeks of paperwork, in-person branch visits, and layers of regulatory approvals.

James Miles

Co-founder and COO of TalentHero

"Our main goal was to hit payroll on time. But with different rules in every country and slow, expensive bank transfers, we needed a better way to move money – we needed a partner, not just a bank."

Reconciliation was also a major pain point. As payout volumes grew, so did manual work – from reconciling payments across spreadsheets and banking portals to chasing errors that delayed month-end closings by up to four days.

Without the right systems, scaling became a challenge. And for a business built on removing the cost and complexity of building international operations, these bottlenecks were proving to be unworkable.

The solution

A global payment platform built to simplify payroll across borders

TalentHero had a vision for a better payment flow – one that could support high-volume payroll cycles, reduce manual work, and improve cash flow. That's when it turned to Airwallex.

Guided by a local account manager, the team quickly set up Airwallex Global Accounts in the US, UK, and Australia online. Each account came with local bank details, and clients could pay in USD, GBP, or AUD directly without going through SWIFT – avoiding delays and hidden currency conversions.

“Airwallex gave us a straightforward map for our money flow,” said James. “Now, clients pay us like a local, we hold balances where it makes sense, and we pay out without losing money to hidden charges.”

Once funds arrive, TalentHero converts only when payroll is due, always at competitive exchange rates. USD, GBP, and AUD balances are converted into currencies like THB, PHP, or VND as needed.

For payouts, the company now uses Airwallex’s local payment rails to transfer salaries and reimbursements across Southeast Asia. 95% of transfers land within hours, not days. And with Batch Transfers, up to 1,000 employees can be paid at once through a single Excel upload – taking the manual work out of payroll cycles.

What used to be a slow, expensive, two-step process through Singapore has become a direct, efficient flow that keeps costs low, payroll on track, and clients confident in TalentHero’s ability to deliver.

On top of automating payments, Airwallex takes the manual work out of month-end reconciliation. Before, the finance team spent days trying to close the books on time. With its Xero integration, TalentHero’s payments are automatically synced and matched. Reconciliation happens in the background, freeing up hours of manual work and making the month-end far less stressful.

James Miles

Co-founder and COO of TalentHero

“With Airwallex, our finance team can manage multi-currency accounts, track transactions, and reconcile payments all from one dashboard – we no longer needed to hire someone just to handle FX operations.”

The result

Airwallex brought TalentHero’s entire payment journey – receiving, holding, paying out, and reconciling – onto a single platform. No more jumping between spreadsheets, banking portals, or third-party tools. 

For a growing EOR business like TalentHero, this consolidation is game-changing. With client payments arriving faster and with less manual work, TalentHero can take on more clients and scale payroll without adding overhead. The improved cash flow also gave it room to breathe and freed up capital to reinvest in growth.

With Airwallex, TalentHero turned payments from a backend burden into a growth engine, achieving these results:

• 2–3x faster go-to-market timelines: Airwallex Global Accounts saved the team months of paperwork. They were able to set up local business accounts in minutes – making it possible to invoice clients and accept local currency payments faster.

• Up to 2% savings on every cross-border payment: TalentHero now saves over US$25,000 in FX costs annually compared to its previous provider.

• <24-hour settlement times: International transfers that once took 2–5 days now arrive within a day – keeping payroll and client reimbursements on track.

• 1–2 days for reconciliation: Airwallex's Xero integration streamlined payment workflows, cutting reconciliation time down from 3–4 days.

These improvements freed up TalentHero to focus on product, clients, and growth – not chasing payments. With these processes running smoothly, the team is now turning its attention to simplifying travel spend and removing manual expense claims. To support that, TalentHero is exploring Airwallex Corporate Cards to better control budgets and expenses.

When asked what advice he’d give to bootstrapped startups with regional ambitions, James kept it practical. 

“Don’t wing it or jump in blind. Do your research first. And look into all-in-one platforms that help you move faster,” he says. “Whether you’re looking to set up a remote team or send payments globally, having a partner that moves as fast as you do can make all the difference.”

This publication does not constitute legal, tax, or professional advice from Airwallex, nor does it substitute seeking such advice, and makes no express or implied representations / warranties / guarantees regarding content accuracy, completeness, or currency. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [[email protected]]. Airwallex (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (201626561Z) is licensed as a Major Payment Institution and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.