Airwallex, an Australia-based provider of cross-border payment technology, closed a $100m series C round yesterday that was led by investment firm DST Global and backed by internet group Tencent.
Hedge fund manager Hillhouse Capital and venture capital firms Sequoia Capital China, Gobi Partners, Horizons Ventures and Square Peg Capital also took part in the round, which valued the company at more than $1bn.
Founded in 2015, Airwallex operates an online platform that enables enterprise clients to transfer money internationally while also automating the process. It also allows users to set up a global bank account that means that can accept and manage payments from more than 130 countries in a single place.
Users benefit from real-time foreign exchange rates, while an algorithm automatically determines the quickest local and international clearing routes for transfers. The company’s clients include Tencent, e-commerce firm JD.com, payment services provider MasterCard and online travel agency Ctrip.
Airwallex has now raised $202m in total. Tencent previously backed its $80m series B round in July 2018 alongside Central Capital Ventura, the corporate VC arm of financial services firm Bank Central Asia, as well as Sequoia Capital China, Hillhouse Capital, Horizons Ventures and Square Peg Capital.
Tencent, MasterCard and Sequoia had participated in a $13m series A round for the company in May 2017, before Airwallex added $6m in series A-plus funding from Square Peg seven months later.
