Global payments group Airwallex has become the first technology startup since Canva to secure the backing of the nation’s three largest venture capital firms.
In one of the biggest capital raisings ever in Australia, Airwallex secured $US300 million ($467 million). Last year, Canva raised $US1.6 billion.
Another thing these start-up successes have in common? They both have a female co-founder.
While Melanie Perkins co-founded Canva, Airwallex was co-founded by Lucy Liu, who built the technology company with her university friends in Victoria in 2015. Liu is now president of Airwallex, which is now valued at $US6.2 billion ($9.6 billion AUD).
Backed by venture capital firm Square Peg Capital, Airtree Ventures and Blackbird Ventures, Airwallex aims to revolutionise the way businesses operate globally. Their financial infrastructure provides a modern technology stack for businesses of all sizes to operate internationally, without the challenges of the current global financial system.
Speaking with the Financial Review, who first revealed the record-breaking raising, Liu said Airwallex would prepare for an initial public offering within the next year, but whether this goes ahead is dependent on share market conditions, which have been volatile since the Trump administration’s global trade war in the US.
“Right now we’ve raised money without going public. We’re well capitalised so we’re focused on just growing the business. We want the IPO to be the starting point of a new journey, as opposed to the highlight of the business,” said Liu.
Airwallex’s latest funding will go towards product development and international expansion, with half of it flowing to early investors cashing out some of their shareholdings in secondary sales.
Grown out of a Melbourne coffee shop and now based in Singapore, the business started out as a fast way to make cross-border payments, but it’s since expanded to become a financial platform. Over the course of a decade, Airwallex has grown to $US720 million in annualised revenue, more than $US130 billion in annualised global payments volume, 150,000 business customers and 1700 staff over 26 offices.
Among the significant growth, Liu has said that Airwallex has gone through changes and growth, particularly in the area of staff culture.
Previously, the company has made headlines for its “high pressure” start-up life and staff turnover, with Liu describing the culture as “not for everyone”.
“It is hard-working and a lot of hustle… and you need to be able to embrace changes,” Liu said.
“I wouldn’t say we made mistakes along the way… but we’re more aware of who we are, bring the team together, and make people feel happy to be working at Airwallex.”
