Airwallex sees jump in Singapore revenue as more SMEs eye overseas expansion

SINGAPORE – Australia-founded fintech firm Airwallex saw its Singapore revenue jump in 2024, bolstered by rising transaction volumes as more businesses offered digital financial services for customers at home and abroad.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) here are eyeing global growth despite rising geopolitical uncertainty and operational challenges, with more than half planning to adopt digital platforms to support their financial needs as they expand, a study by Airwallex showed.

The study was done between January and March, and involved 250 Singapore SMEs with 50 to 500 employees.

There has been a notable increase in cross-border activity in 2024, particularly among digital-first businesses expanding into new markets, which has contributed to a surge in transaction volume here, Mr Ershad Ahamed, head of South-east Asia at Airwallex, told The Straits Times after a media briefing on April 9.

Now headquartered in Singapore, Airwallex provides SMEs with a single platform to manage their global financial operations, covering everything from multi-currency accounts and international transfers to corporate cards, expense management and online payments.

In Singapore, its clients include Endowus; Love, Bonito; Mighty Jaxx; EU Holidays; Far East Flora; and Huber’s Butchery.

Although the firm competes with the likes of Wise and Revolut, which have a stronger consumer focus, Airwallex focuses on providing services to SMEs, particularly those expanding globally or managing money across multiple currencies.

Mr Ershad said a common challenge for local SMEs looking to expand overseas is the complexity and cost of receiving payments from international customers.

This would typically require setting up local bank accounts in each new market, a time-consuming process, or relying on traditional cross-border wire transfers, which would be costly and come with long settlement times.

While 48 per cent of the SMEs surveyed by Airwallex identified managing cash flow both globally and locally as one of the key barriers to growth, these businesses still aim to expand to the rest of Asia.

Additionally, 58 per cent plan to use digital or fintech platforms to support their financial needs, citing convenience, faster transactions and cost savings as the main drivers.

Mr Ershad said Airwallex can help businesses reduce cross-border transaction costs by offering access to interbank foreign exchange rates with low, transparent margins, among other things. The platform charges exchange rates that are close to, or 0.4 per cent to 0.6 per cent above, the interbank rate, which is the rate at which banks trade currencies with one another. 

For example, Singapore-based wealth tech platform Endowus has cut the cost of overseas transactions by up to 90 per cent since switching to Airwallex.

By using local payment networks instead of traditional cross-border wire transfers, Endowus can save up to $200 per transfer and complete most payments on the same day.

Airwallex reported a 153 per cent year-on-year jump in revenue in Singapore for 2024, fuelled by robust transaction volumes, which rose 159 per cent from a year ago.

“Many of our customers are now operating across multiple regions and using Airwallex to streamline everything from (payment) collections to supplier payments, resulting in more volume per customer,” Mr Ershad said.

There has also been strong momentum in key industries such as e-commerce, software-as-a-service and travel. As these segments scale, transaction volumes naturally grow alongside them, he said.

Besides transfers, customers are also tapping the firm’s broader suite of products, which include spend management, treasury, and card issuance.

In 2024, the firm’s headcount in Singapore grew 58 per cent to more than 250 employees. Headcount grew across its corporate, commercial as well as product, engineering and design functions, which saw a 98 per cent jump as the company invested heavily in building its artificial intelligence (AI) and data capabilities.

Ms Lucy Liu, president and co-founder of Airwallex, said the firm incorporated AI into its fraud prevention measures. Its onboarding process includes advanced liveness checks – such as detecting real-time facial movements – for verification purposes.

The firm also uses AI models to automate workflows, forecast spend patterns, and surface insights that would otherwise take hours of manual effort, she said.

“Our AI models continuously analyse routes across our global infrastructure to determine the most cost-effective and reliable way to move money. This not only reduces transaction costs for customers, but also improves speed and reliability – critical for businesses operating across borders,” said Ms Liu.

When asked how the firm is mitigating the impact from US tariffs, Ms Liu said that its operations and revenue are not dependent on a single market, and the diversification helps cushion the impact of disruptions in any one region.

The Trump administration’s tariffs could lead to slowing demand for goods and reduced consumer and business spending due to higher prices, thereby weighing on cross-border transactions.

“That said, we’re not immune to broader economic shocks. But we remain confident in the resilience of global commerce. Businesses will continue to find ways to reach international customers, even as trade routes and supply chains shift,” Ms Liu added.