Fintech Leaders Jack Zhang, Airwallex CEO - A $6 Billion Powerhouse Solving Global Payments for Companies
Jun 10, 2025
Jack Zhang, CEO and co-founder of Airwallex, shares insights on building a $6 billion global payments powerhouse. He reveals how his coffee business experience highlighted inefficiencies in cross-border payments. Jack discusses Airwallex's unique engineering approach to banking, aiming for real-time money movement and their partnerships with over 80 banks. He highlights the role of AI in enhancing customer experiences while cautioning against new fraud risks. Additionally, Jack explains the importance of a strong company culture and the complexities of scaling in the fintech world.
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Coffee Shop Sparked A Global Payments Startup
- Jack started Airwallex after frustration with high fees and poor UX while buying coffee beans for his café business.
- His background in FX and engineering made the payments problem obvious and solvable to him and his co-founder.
Real-Time RTPs Replace Correspondent Banks
- Airwallex rethought correspondent banking by connecting local real-time payment systems into a global network.
- This approach removes intermediaries, lowers fees, and enables real-time cross-border transfers at scale.
Plan Global Expansion From Day One
- Go global early if your home market is small and your product requires local clearing licenses to scale.
- Use partners and acquire licences region-by-region while building direct clearing capabilities over time.