Airwallex, a leading global payments and banking platform for modern businesses, has crossed $1bn in annualised run rate revenue (ARR), marking a significant milestone in its mission to build the future of global banking. The achievement comes as the UK cements its position as one of Airwallex's fastest-growing markets globally, with significant expansion occurring in revenues, clients and presence.

The global $1bn milestone is a result of rapidly accelerating growth. It took Airwallex nine years to reach its first $500m in ARR – the next $500m came in just over one year. At its current growth rate of roughly 90% year-on-year, Airwallex is on track to double ARR again, surpassing $2bn within the next 12 months.

The milestone reflects Airwallex's increasing growth in EMEA (Europe, Middle East & Africa), with the UK a key driver of expansion - outpacing growth in the company’s founding market of Australia, and wider APAC region. Airwallex’s UK revenue in the first half of 2025 grew by 109% versus the same period last year, with its overall headcount in EMEA growing by 35% over the same period.  

To accommodate this rapid expansion, Airwallex has outgrown its Holborn office and has acquired a new EMEA regional headquarters in Fitzrovia. The new office occupies the entire first floor of the Wells & More building on Mortimer Street and, at over 16,000 sq ft, is more than double the size of its previous space.

Jack Zhang, Co-Founder and CEO of Airwallex, said: "We’ve hit a major milestone: crossing $1bn in annualised run rate revenue. It's tangible proof that global businesses are moving past the constraints of an outdated financial system. It represents the trust that our customers place in us and our ability to address the needs of modern businesses as they scale across markets, currencies and borders.

"The growth curve steepened for a few reasons: the number of customers using multiple Airwallex products has doubled since last year, as we’ve deepened our go-to-market presence in EMEA and North America. We’ve also utilised our proprietary financial infrastructure to make a real difference with AI, becoming indispensable to finance teams. And finally, we’ve built the foundations of a brand that businesses can trust.”

The surge in UK growth has come alongside Airwallex agreeing significant brand partnerships, including with the McLaren F1 racing team and Arsenal FC. This month, the fintech also launched its ‘Broken Banking’ campaign across London transport hubs. 

The digital campaign features four films, each dramatising the end of outdated financial processes and tools by destroying them with heavy machinery. From a wrecking ball demolishing a traditional bank façade to a steamroller flattening office equipment, the visuals aim to cut through category noise and symbolise the end of 'clunky' business banking.

‘Broken Banking’ is Airwallex’s largest above-the-line advertising investment in the region. Combined with the McLaren and Arsenal partnerships, these investments underscore the company's ambition to become the leading fintech partner for ambitious, globally minded businesses in the UK and across EMEA.

James Elias, VP Marketing EMEA at Airwallex, said: "Businesses today need financial infrastructure that matches their ambition, not systems that slow them down. ‘Broken Banking’ speaks directly to the frustrations we hear from companies every day – the delays, the complexity, the barriers to growth. We're not just highlighting these pain points – we're showing businesses there's a better way forward. 

“The campaign takes a light-hearted approach to highlighting how firms can expand into new markets, move money seamlessly across borders and focus on growth. Ultimately, what we think matters most to businesses is helping them to break free of the poorer aspects of traditional banking that are holding them back."

Since launching in the UK in 2019, Airwallex has built relationships with thousands of small businesses and large enterprise customers, offering Global business accounts, merchant acquiring, corporate cards & spend management, and embedded finance. The business is in advanced planning to launch several new products in the UK market in the coming months.

The $1bn ARR milestone follows Airwallex's Series F funding round earlier this year, which valued the company at $6.2B and brought total funding to more than $1.2bn from investors including Visa Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, Square Peg, DST Global, and Lone Pine Capital.