Airwallex Is Moving Beyond Payments — Into Autonomous Finance
Hey FinTech Fanatic!
Airwallex started by helping businesses move money across borders. Now it’s trying to help them run their entire finance operation.
The company is pushing into autonomous finance with T:0, an AI-powered bookkeeping system that can handle much of a company’s financial work, alongside Airi, its agentic consumer wallet. And after raising another $320M at an $11B valuation, Airwallex clearly has the firepower to keep pushing.
What I find interesting is that the company is still thinking globally — expanding across the US, Brazil, Mexico and South Korea — while also staying cautious about going public. Lucy Liu says Airwallex will be IPO-ready by year-end, but “it’s not the best time” to make the move.
And that says something about where fintech is right now: the biggest players can still raise huge rounds privately while building much more than payments.
Also today, Mesta is looking at the other side of the equation — how payment providers can offer cross-border payments under their own brand without having to build all the infrastructure themselves.
Now, let’s get into today’s FinTech stories. 👇 See you tomorrow!
Cheers,
INSIGHTS
💡 Mesta: Bringing White-Labeled Cross-Border Payments to Market. Mesta has launched a white-labeled Customer Portal that lets payment providers, FinTechs, and B2B software platforms offer international payments under their own brand without building the underlying infrastructure. Customers can handle onboarding, KYB, beneficiaries, and payments through a branded interface, while transactions run on Mesta’s rails. With both APIs and the new portal, Mesta is making it easier for providers to own the customer relationship while relying on infrastructure they don’t need to build themselves. Read the full article here
PAYMENTS NEWS
🇦🇺 Airwallex pushes into autonomous finance, rolling out AI-powered tools for automated bookkeeping and agentic commerce after raising $320 million at an $11 billion valuation. The fintech is still targeting IPO readiness by year-end, though president Lucy Liu says it’s “not the best time” to go public.
🇺🇸 MassPay launches MassPay Validate, a standalone pre-send account verification product. The tool confirms account status and ownership via a single API call, helping companies reduce failed payouts before funds move.
🇺🇸 Walmart to finally start accepting Apple Pay and Google Pay, ending a decade-long holdout at its U.S. stores and Sam's Club locations. The rollout begins August 24, bringing Walmart in line with the 85% of U.S. retailers already accepting tap-to-pay options.
🇺🇸 OnePay expands support for Apple Pay, broadening contactless payment options for its customers. The move lets OnePay users pay with Apple Pay wherever the digital wallet is accepted.
🇺🇸 PublicSquare expands embedded payments distribution with a new LendSuite Software integration. The partnership extends PublicSquare's embedded payments reach through LendSuite's software network.
🇮🇳 Cashfree Payments posts 52% jump in revenue in FY26, losses narrow to Rs 118.7 crore. The Indian payment gateway firm grew operating revenue to Rs 967.2 crore after two years of stagnation following an RBI onboarding ban lifted in late 2023.
🇵🇭 PalawanPay targets physical card rollout in Q4, expanding beyond its digital wallet. The Visa card will support POS, in-store, and ATM withdrawals with minimal foreign exchange fees for users worldwide.
🇺🇸 Ramp adds x402 payments for AI agents, pairing USDC agent wallets with corporate spend controls on Solana. The alpha launch extends Ramp's push to give AI agents controlled financial authority alongside its existing Agent Cards product.
🇳🇬 PalmPay expands financial services to help Nigerians save and earn more. The platform is broadening its offering beyond payments to include savings and investment features for its Nigerian user base. Read more
DIGITAL BANKING NEWS
🌏 Kraken parent Payward weighs a full bank license outside the US, CEO Dave Ripley told the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium. The company already operates a Wyoming SPDI charter and aims to expand into broader financial services.
🇰🇷 Kakao to spin off its chat app-based platform business into KakaoAI, with a planned relisting in 2027. The remaining entity will be renamed KakaoX and retain investment operations.
🇲🇨 Legal dispute emerges at Monzo cofounder's Monaco banking venture, as a new report surfaces tensions inside the startup. A legal clash has broken out at the neobank founded by a Monzo cofounder, raising questions about its future direction. Keep reading
BLOCKCHAIN/CRYPTO NEWS
🇯🇵 Nomura-backed Laser Digital wins key approval to offer crypto services in Japan. The firm received regulatory clearance from Japan's Financial Services Agency, allowing it to provide crypto asset exchange services to clients in the country.
🇦🇪 Capital.com plans UAE spot crypto services after its affiliate Capital Vault secured a virtual-asset license from the Capital Market Authority. UAE clients will be able to buy and hold actual crypto through the Capital.com app.
🇪🇺 Axiology joins the ECB's Pontes launch and Appia group, participating in the European Central Bank's initiative for cross-border DLT settlement. Keep reading
🇺🇸 Eric Trump signs limits on influence in World Liberty Bank Plan. The agreement places formal restrictions on Eric Trump's role in the crypto-linked banking venture. Read more
🇰🇷 South Korean lawmakers seek expanded FIU powers over unregistered crypto firms. A bill filed by ten lawmakers would let the Financial Intelligence Unit investigate and file complaints against suspected illegal operators directly.
STABLECOINS
🇺🇸 Ripple backs an RLUSD credit fund amid XRP's best week in months. Clearpool and Cicada Partners are building an institutional lending product using RLUSD, though the XRP Ledger features underpinning it are still awaiting activation.
🇺🇸 ReconArt integrates with Solana to support stablecoin remittance and agentic payments reconciliation. The integration enables businesses to reconcile stablecoin and agentic payment flows on the Solana blockchain.
PARTNERSHIPS
🇺🇸 Miracle Pay partners with ZeroHash to enable stablecoin payments for U.S. merchants. The partnership allows merchants to accept stablecoin payments via Zero Hash across the United States.
🌍 _able and Onafriq collaborate with Visa to expand access to credit through Visa Flex Credential across CEMEA. The partnership lets financial institutions activate credit experiences alongside existing prepaid and debit credentials.
🇧🇷 Liquid Group and PagBrasil launch RoamQR-Pix cross-border QR payments in Brazil, marking the network's first corridor into Latin America. Users of participating Asian wallets can now scan standard Pix QR codes at merchants across Brazil.
🇧🇷 Inter Pag selects ACI Worldwide to advance intelligent payments orchestration in Brazil, supporting the merchant acquirer's modernization strategy. The ACI Acquiring Platform will power cloud-enabled acquiring, AI-driven fraud prevention, and analytics for Inter Pag's 100,000-plus SMB clients.
🇺🇸 REPAY joins Visa Platform Connect, establishing a reseller agreement for the next-generation open payments platform. ISO and ISV clients gain direct access to enterprise-grade clearing and settlement infrastructure.
🇰🇷 KakaoBank and Shinhan Card launch the Chak-Boot Card, a co-branded PLCC offering 10% off mobile payments and AI subscriptions. The card gives discounts on ChatGPT and Claude recurring fees plus 50% off Naver Plus and Coupang Wow memberships.
🇺🇸 American Express and St Andrews Links Trust announce a partnership to grow the global reach of the Home of Golf. The collaboration connects the Amex brand with one of golf's most iconic venues. Read more
🇺🇸 Siebert partners with tZERO to give its 170,000 account holders access to digital securities. The broker-dealer will use tZERO's blockchain infrastructure to offer eligible tokenized securities through a familiar brokerage experience.
🇬🇧 SumUp puts its brand on Newcastle United training kit, marking the FinTech's first major sports sponsorship in English football. The deal puts SumUp's logo on the club's training wear for the upcoming season.
🇿🇦 South Africa's Absa eyes FinTech partnerships, signaling a push to deepen ties with the sector. The bank is exploring collaborations with FinTech firms to expand its digital offerings. Keep reading
🇬🇧 Paraglide becomes CICM corporate partner as credit prepares for agentic AI. The collaboration positions Paraglide's technology alongside the credit management institute as the sector explores autonomous AI agents. Continue reading
DONEDEAL FUNDING NEWS
🇺🇸 Natural lands $100M credit facility from Upper90 to scale its AI-driven payment processing operations. The facility gives Natural dedicated capital to expand its AI payments infrastructure as demand for automated payment solutions grows.
🇨🇦 Calgary FinTech Helcim raises $53M in Series C funding, marking a significant milestone for the Canadian payments company. The raise positions Helcim to accelerate growth and expand its small business payments platform.
🇻🇪 Venezuelan FinTech Pago ASAP raises $1.15M to expand operations to Colombia and connect companies with Venezuela. The raise will fund its cross-border push, linking Venezuelan businesses to Colombian markets.
🇦🇪 UAE FinTech XSquare raises a pre-seed round led by Raed Ventures, marking an early vote of confidence in the startup. The investment positions XSquare to advance its early-stage growth in the UAE market.
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