Airwallex raises $300m at a $6.3b valuation - here’s the story!

Airwallex, founded by Jack Zhang is on track to reach a $1b revenue in 2025, and has just completed a $300 million Series F funding round at a $6.2 billion valuation.

Investors

Series F investors include: Square Peg, DST Global, Lone Pine Capital, Blackbird, Airtree, Salesforce Ventures, and Visa Ventures with participation from several leading pension funds in Australia.

Airwallex has a great Vision 

To create the largest money movement network

 in the world to completely displace Swift! 

(See full podcast with Jack Zhang below)

What Airwallex does 

Airwallex is a global payments and financial platform for modern businesses with a mission to redefine global banking, and to empower businesses everywhere to grow without limits.

“The global financial system wasn’t built for today’s borderless economy,” said Jack Zhang, co-founder and CEO of Airwallex. “Too many businesses are held back by legacy infrastructure that’s slow, costly, and fragmented. At Airwallex, we’re building a new foundation for the global economy – one that’s fast, seamless, and built for scale.”

Airwallex has built a tech-led global financial infrastructure from the ground up, with direct integrations into local clearing systems and card networks, and one of the most comprehensive licensing portfolios in fintech. 

This proprietary network gives Airwallex’s customers the unique ability to instantly generate local account numbers in 60+ countries and to send and receive funds across more than 150 countries, faster and more efficiently than traditional banks. Today, 95% of Airwallex transactions arrive within a few hours or the same day – 68% are processed instantly.

• Global Business Accounts: An all-in-one multi-currency account to manage ‌global banking, FX conversion, and international transfers and to earn competitive rates on stored funds. 
• Payments: Helping businesses accept online and in-store payments from their customers around the world with cards and 160+ local payment methods, all with a localized, multi-currency shopping experience.
• Spend: Giving customers a single platform to efficiently manage all types of company spend across their global business, including multicurrency corporate and employee cards, expense management, and bill payments – all powered by AI. 
• Platform APIs & Embedded Finance: Delivering Airwallex’s financial capabilities via API to tech-forward companies and marketplaces that want to embed and monetize financial services on their own platforms.

Rapid Growth and Global Expansion 

The company grew its customer base by 50% in 2024 – now serving 150,000 businesses worldwide. In 2025, Airwallex expects to hit $1 billion in annual run rate revenue.

In 2024, Airwallex moved into a permanent U.S. headquarters in San Francisco and recently opened new offices in New York and Toronto. 

Following the receipt of a payment institution license in Brazil and approval to close its acquisition of MexPago, a Mexico-based payment service provider, Airwallex is poised to launch services in Latin America’s two largest economies. 

In Europe, Airwallex recently opened a new office in Paris and made a series of senior hires in London and Amsterdam. In the Middle East, Airwallex made its first hires in the United Arab Emirates – in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai – and continued to grow strongly in Israel. 

Airwallex will use the funding to continue expanding its financial infrastructure into new markets including Japan, Korea, the UAE, and Latin America, and to accelerate go-to-market efforts in Europe, North America, and South East Asia.

Airwallex is well on the way to provide a global financial infrastructure to power the future of banking 

Interview with Jack Zhang and Brex by and Marcel van Oost of HD in HD

Sharing Jack and Airwallex story 

Tech Central Sydney - boosting Sydney’s Innovation capability

Exciting things are happening in #Sydney’s tech scene.

Mike Cannon-Brookes shared his vision for Tech Central Sydney in a powerful conversation with Ticky Fullerton at the Australian British Chamber of Commerce event — supported by a stellar panel including:

• The Hon Paul Scully, Minister for Planning & Public Spaces (NSW Government)
• Chancellor David Thodey, University of Sydney
• Amy Glancey, Chief of Staff, Atlassian
• Stuart FitzRoy, MD APAC at Rokt
• James Tynan, Partner at Square Peg

As Ed Schmidt from Greenhouse noted:

Mike reminded us that physical spaces like Tech Central are not just symbolic—they are essential infrastructure for innovation. When people, ideas, capital, and talent collide, magic happens.

Mike’s key reflections:

🔹 “All technology is built by people” – Innovation thrives when we create spaces where ideas and talent connect

🔹 “We’re not competing with other states—we’re competing globally” – Sydney must think big and act fast

🔹 “We’re already exporting ideas at scale” – Australia’s tech talent is a world-class asset

🔹 “We need ecosystems, not silos” – Collaboration is the engine of growth

We’re on the cusp of something amazing. Let’s keep the momentum going.

The momentum is real — with world-class companies like Canva, Afterpay, SafetyCulture, Atlassian already rooted in or moving into the Tech Central district.

We’ve got the bones:

• Global players
• Brilliant talent
• Leading universities

Now we need certainty — in vision and planning — to keep building a precinct that unlocks investment, attracts talent, and secures future jobs.

Here’s to backing what’s working and turning Tech Central into something the whole country can be proud of.

#TechCentral #Innovation #NSW #FutureOfWork #TechEcosystem #AustraliaTech

If Colonel Saunders can do it at the age of 65…. So can I !!

Colonel Saunders story of #kfc

“I was 65 years old. I had $105 and a chicken recipe… and no one believed in me. But that was more than enough.”

My life was a rollercoaster of rejection and failure.

I lost jobs, failed in business, got turned away by the military, and never even finished school.

By the time I was 65, I was living off a small government pension.

But I had something:

A fried chicken recipe I had perfected in an old gas station.

So I packed up my skillet, jumped in my car… and started knocking on doors.

I got rejected over 1,000 times.

I slept in my car.

Some days, I didn’t even have enough to eat.

But every time someone said “no,” I told myself:

“The next one will say yes.”

And one day — someone did.

A small restaurant agreed to give my recipe a try… and the madness began.

Today, KFC is in over 150 countries, and my face is printed on millions of boxes around the world.

All because I refused to quit when no one else believed in me.

I was never the youngest. Never the smartest.

But I was the one who never gave up.

So if you’re down right now… maybe that’s exactly where your real story begins.

Age doesn’t matter. Failure doesn’t matter.

The only thing that matters… is not stopping when your heart tells you: keep going.

Wishing you strength, purpose, and peace wherever you are on your journey.

— Rest easy, friends. Stay inspired. 🍗🔥

SAASRISE - a community of SAAS CEOs and Founders

SAASRISE is a community of founders and CEOs

With $1m -100m in ARR looking to scale or exit 

Founded by Ryan Allis - founder of iContact -

Ryan exited for +$169m

Rippling Raises $460m at a $16.8b valuation

Rippling, founded in 2016 by Parker Conrad and Prasanna Sankar becoming a unicorn in 2020, has just raised $460m at a $16.8 billion valuation

Investors 

Rippling has raised a $450 million Series G round. with Y Combinator, Elad Gil, Sands Capital, GIC, and Goldman Sachs Growth, along with other existing investors.

What it does 

Rippling is a workforce management platform that unifies HR, IT, and finance operations into one system. It enables companies to manage the entire employee lifecycle — from onboarding and payroll to benefits administration and compliance — all in one place. 

The platform also offers IT tools for device management, software access, and security oversight. With its integrated approach, Rippling helps organizations streamline operations, reduce complexity, and improve overall efficiency.

Rippling supports businesses in over 100 countries, offering global payroll and compliance tools designed for modern, distributed teams.

Martian Logic is well placed to ride this wave 

In Australia - a story is unfolding with an innovative HRIS  ((Human Resources Information System) Company,  founded in 2001 by Physicist and Tech Engineer, Anwar Khalil. 

 Anwar  literally started his business from his 2 bedrooms unit in the Inner West - and the blood, sweat and tears from a small group of 5 techsters, and Jeannine Winiata - with desks in his living room and bedrooms. 

In 2003 he came to BSI offices, a one stop shop for the entrepreneur  - needing funding and support . Anwar reminded me that we invested $50k on a handshake and then - with the help of BSI’s Investor Forum, the Comet Grant and  R&D Government Incentives , raised a further $1.5m from strategic Investors .

Fast forward to 2025 - starting as a simple multi- job posting system for recruiters, Martian Logic has slowly building growing its business to a solid comprehensive HRIS Platform (Human Resources Information System) servicing over 200 schools, healthcare , NDIS, Councils and medium sized businesses .

Built cohesively module-by-module and from scratch in Australia | Perfect for the desk-lessworkforce likeschools, healthcare, NDIS... etc.Talent acquisition, onboarding, full employee lifecycle, performance, surveys, compliance & learning, plus more.

Martian Logic is perfectly poised for exponential growth and on its way  to becoming a Unicorn in the making me thinks :) 

The new round by Rippling underscores the  need for companies to manage people, systems, and finances at scale.

Some articles 

Wednesday, May 31, 2023

AI in the HR industry and Aussie Tech

Saturday, July 02, 2022

“Product led growth” is the holy grail

The power of Laser Focus

I was reading through my blog , venture Capital in Australia (google BSiVC) and I came across this gem of an article by Mick Liubinskas - talking about focus .

This article reminds me of David Shein’s comment that for a Startup to be successful - they need to be as focussed as a one eyed dog in a meat factory :) 

Anyway , here is the article 

Be laser Focussed 

 In 100,000 companies will hit that home run - to do that - one of the key things is to be laser focussed 

kazaa millions of downloads... but failed because of no focus. too many distractions, 300m downloads, millions of users - but underachieved

facebook - 3 features, 20,000 people - very focussed 

there is ++ competition - to be succesful - you need to have laser focus - or get crunched by the competition

customers like the fact that you are laser focussed

there are 3 things that get you focussed - 

sacrifice, sequence and focus on the core vs the crap

sacrifices - there are many choices - rather be narrow and deep vs wide and shallow

example - Atlassian - being laser focussed - created a big business in a target area.

Booking angel - pay per booking initially focussing on one market - restaurants

Martian Logic - initially focussing on recruitment companies

social business

1. individual value (wifm)

2. group value

3. community value

If too many balls in the air - too busy juggling - rather  focus on your core strength and making that happen

Get your core utility right - the absolute must have - get this cranking and you will win - then the support.

The outer circle mostly crap - but where ++ money is spent 

How to Focus:-

1. Know your purpose 

guy kawasaki - know your meaning - what you are about

2. test test test test

3. patience and persistance - keep turning the crank and don't give up.

https://bsivc.blogspot.com/2008/05/focus-or-fail-mick-liubinskas-cebit-08.html?m=1

A side story about Pollenizer and BSI 

Pollenizer’s claim to fame was investing in Dean McEvoy’s  business Spreets - that pivoted with Justus Hammer from Booking Angel (founded in BSI’s offices after a BSI USA trip in 2007 ) - Selling a few years later to Yahoo for $40m .

Pollenizer started in 2007 and  closed its doors after 10 years in 2017 when Mick joined Muru D and is now founder of Climate Salad . 

Phil Morle is now a Partner at Main Sequence Ventures, an Australian-based venture capital firm attached to the CSIRO

Both Pollenizer and  BSI helped 100’s of startups grow - with some of them raising hundreds of millions  and becoming unicorns.

Pollenizer and the BSI Investor Forum can be proud that it played an integral part of the birth of the Burgeoning VC industry that it is today - with Square Peg , Blackbird , OiF, EVP and others that has been capitalised and funded by Smart HNI and Superfunds - with Exponential returns .

 https://www.afr.com/technology/end-of-an-era-as-aussie-startup-pioneers-pollenizer-call-it-a-day-20170228-gun90e

A record if BSIs journey in Venture Capital can be found here https://bsivc.blogspot.com/?m=1

Dean McEvoys trip to the USA - 

https://bsivc.blogspot.com/2007/10/silicon-savvy.html?m=0

2006 - BSI Hosts Grants Panel

Venture Capital in Australia: BSI Hosts Grants Panel: BSI hosted a grants forum at Docklands on 13 September, and presented to 50 Innovative companies. For pictures and details of the event clic...

Vale a legend - Matt McDonald

VALE Mat McDonald: A man who was devoted to helping startups stay alive and reach their full potential

"The objective of every startup is not to be a startup anymore" - Mat McDonald

A great video of BSI’s 2007 Christmas Party

 From Matt’s Son (now in year 11)

Dear Mat’s clients, former colleagues, school and university friends, and wider connections,

 

It is with great sadness that I inform you that Mat McDonald passed away on the 2nd of December 2023, after a twenty-five-year battle with severe depression. Unbeknownst to most, Mat consistently showed up in his work, despite his mental illness. I sincerely apologise for the fact that many of you may have been unaware of this news, and I understand this may come as quite a shock. I have not been able to retrieve my father’s LinkedIn login until now. A funeral service was held before Christmas in 2023 where Mat’s family, friends, a former client and I spoke about and honoured his life.

 

On a positive note, I have been deeply moved by the many messages that my father has received since his death, from prospective clients and former colleagues alike.

 

After his time at Monash University, he started working as a Graduate Accountant for PWC and also spent time at Terrain Capital. Following this, he started his independent consultancy firm, which was originally called Echelon Ventures and is now known as CFO Cubed, in 2002, and saw him working in roles that mirrored that of a VCFO.

 

My father was what some would call a “workaholic”, and he loved what he did and the way he did it, perhaps sometimes a bit too much! Mat pioneered the position of Virtual Chief Financial Officer, way before anyone was seen working at cafes. I can confidently say that his financial wisdom and relentless pursuit of solutions to keep startups afloat were unmatched. His perseverance beyond the scope of his clients’ expectations made him an invaluable asset to any entrepreneur. What set Mat apart from other VCFOs was that a red balance sheet did not scare him, in fact quite the opposite, he was lit up by the opportunity to turn it into green.

 

The picture attached is probably my favourite one of my father in a working environment. It emanates the mind and spirit that he put into his work.

 

When I spent time with my dad while he was working during the COVID-19 lockdowns, it became clear to me how much he loved his job, through thick and thin. Although I don’t aspire for a career in finance and to follow in my father’s footsteps, I feel not much else but gratitude when I think of him, his work and the passion it ignited in him when he was alive.

 

To the many of you who had a profound impact on my father, whether it was as a client, colleague or friend, thank you. He is and will be sorely missed. There is no doubt that now, there is a big dent in the Melbourne VCFO market that my father left behind.

 

Yours sincerely,

Joaquin Carrasco-McDonald

Mat McDonald’s Son, Year 11

From Ivan Kaye :- 

Hi Joaquin ,

I worked with your dad from 2002 - 2008 - when he founded our BSI melbourne office - with a view to help entrepreneurs connect, collaborate and grow .

Your Dad was an absolute legend - and his legacy will live on in the many startups and innovations he helped over the years ….. 

I Wish you and your family a long life. It’s what we say to a family member whose loved one has passed. For as long as you are alive.... your Dad’s memory will live on ....

Best 

Ivan Kaye

BSI