Airwallex has introduced a new point-of-sale product designed to handle in-person payments across multiple countries from a single platform, extending its payments infrastructure into physical retail and increasing competition with firms including Stripe and Adyen.
New POS Product Targets Cross Border Payment Complexity
The company’s new offering allows businesses to accept in-person payments globally without onboarding separate local providers in each market. The system integrates with Airwallex’s existing infrastructure, which connects online and offline payments while providing unified reporting and back-office integrations.
Jack Zhang stated that companies expanding internationally often face fragmented compliance requirements and must manage multiple vendor relationships. The new product aims to centralize those processes within a single platform.
Expansion Builds On Long Term Infrastructure Strategy
Founded in 2015, Airwallex focused on building its own payment rails to address inefficiencies in cross-border transactions. Zhang said the company’s approach differs from competitors by emphasizing local infrastructure, including regulatory licenses and banking capabilities.
In 2019, Stripe offered to acquire Airwallex for $1.2 billion, when the company reported approximately $2 million in revenue. Zhang initially agreed before deciding to continue building the business independently.
Scale And Licensing Differentiate Platform Capabilities
Airwallex reports annualized revenue of about $1.3 billion, growing at roughly 85% annually. The company says it serves more than 46,000 U.S. businesses and processes around $100 billion in annual payment volume.
The platform holds close to 90 regulatory licenses across about 50 markets and connects to local payment networks in more than 120 countries. It supports transactions in over 90 currencies.
Zhang stated that these licenses enable capabilities such as holding and managing funds within local markets. He cited Japan as an example, where Airwallex spent seven years obtaining a license that allows funds to be retained and managed domestically rather than immediately transferred to external accounts.
Competitive Landscape Includes Modern And Legacy Providers
Airwallex’s expansion into in-person payments places it in direct competition with Adyen, which also emphasizes global infrastructure. It also competes with companies such as Square in the point-of-sale segment.
Legacy providers, including Fiserv, Global Payments, and Worldpay, continue to hold significant market share in physical retail, though their systems rely on older architectures.
Adoption Hinges On Multinational Demand
The company is positioning its product for businesses operating across multiple countries, where managing separate payment systems can create operational complexity. Whether companies currently using Stripe or Square will adopt the platform remains uncertain.
Zhang stated that competition in the payments sector has remained limited despite the market’s size, as Airwallex continues to position its infrastructure as an alternative for global operations.
Featured image credits: World Economic Forum / Sikarin Fon Thanachaiary via Flickr
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