StrictlyVC Download Is Airwallex Undervalued or is Stripe Overvalued?
Apr 21, 2026
Jack Zhang, co-founder and CEO of Airwallex, built global payments and banking infrastructure across dozens of markets. He discusses taking the long, unglamorous path of licenses and local rails. He explains turning down a $1.2B Stripe offer, building end-to-end money movement, and why a decade of payments data positions the company for an AI-driven future.
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Origin Story Born From Lost Transfers And Hardship
- Jack Zhang started Airwallex after personal pain moving money for his coffee business and family hardship when he arrived in Australia at 16.
- He built the company to fix slow, expensive correspondent banking after money disappeared and bounced for weeks on transfers to Brazil and Indonesia.
Turned Down $1.2B Stripe Offer After Reconsidering Mission
- Stripe offered to acquire Airwallex for $1.2 billion when Airwallex had about $2M in revenue and Jack initially leaned toward saying yes.
- He reversed after reflecting on his mission, the upcoming five-year lockup, and wanting to finish the journey himself.
Decade Of Infrastructure Becomes AI Advantage
- Ten years of license and rails work created a data and infrastructure moat that becomes a technology advantage in the AI era.
- Combining payments, banking, treasury and transaction context enables autonomous AI agents to actuate financial outcomes end-to-end.