Fintech giant Airwallex launches operations in Israel, looking at cyber acquisitions
Australian fintech giant Airwallex, a global payments and finance platform, announced on Tuesday its official launch in Israel to drive future expansion across the region, including the appointment of Or Liban as Airwallex head of Israel and the Middle East.
Airwallex, which has recruited a founding team of around 10 people, will also investigate potential acquisitions of local cyber security companies.
Prior to Airwallex, Liban served as Google’s Head of Global Partnerships and previously held leadership roles at Orange and the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office.
“Technology plays a central role in realizing the potential of global payments – and digital commerce plays a central role in the economic development of Israel and the Middle East,” he told Calcalist. “Airwallex sees Israel as a strategically important market, both commercially and technologically. On the commercial level, we intend to develop partnerships with Israeli startups and Israeli global companies.”
Airwallex said it chose Tel Aviv as the location for its first office in the region due to strong customer demand and the thriving Israeli technology ecosystem. The company already serves many of Israel’s leading technology companies, including Papaya Global and OurCrowd, as well as global companies such as Shein, Qantas, Plum and Navan (formerly TripActions).
Founded in 2015 in Melbourne, Australia, Airwallex is one of the fastest growing payments and financial infrastructure companies in the world. It is valued at $5.5 billion and has raised over $900 million from some of the world’s top investors, including Salesforce Ventures, Sequoia, Tencent, Square Peg, Lone Pine Capital and 1835i. Globally, Airwallex’s revenue has doubled year-over-year and it has processed more than $50 billion in annual transaction volume for a global portfolio of companies. With 20 locations globally and a team of 1,300 employees worldwide, Airwallex plans to continue its growth by hiring an additional 500 global employees by the end of 2023.
“Establishing local operations in Israel is only the first step in our ambitious plan for expansion across EMEA in 2023,” said Pranav Sood, GM, EMEA at Airwallex. “Israel is at the forefront of technological innovation and a global hub for high-growth startups. Israeli tech companies are ‘global by default’ and we have already seen the impact our payments and financial infrastructure can have on them as they grow across borders. I am delighted to welcome Or to the team – he will be instrumental as we manage our operations in Israel and the Middle East.”
