Blackbird climbs aboard the Airwallex train with $60 million ticket

Blackbird has added another unicorn to its portfolio, but unlike Canva, has come late to the party with plans to tip $60 million into fintech Airwallex.

The AFR reports that the VC is signing on for an unannounced capital raising for Airwallex, ahead of plans to go public in the next 12 months.

Airwallex last raised $160 million (US$100m) Series E extension in October 2022 at a US$5.5 billion (A$8.7bn) valuation

Its existing investors include Square Peg, super fund HostPlus, Salesforce Ventures, Sequoia Capital China, Atlassian’s billionaire cofounders Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes, Lone Pine Capital, Hermitage Capital, ANZ’s 1835i and Tencent.

The Singpore-based, Melbourne founded fintech has previously raised a total of US$902 million (A$1.46 billion) since it was founded in 2015.

The size of the new round has not been revealed. Both Blackbird and Airwallex declined to comment to Startup Daily.

Blackbird is reportedly using its $668 million follow-on fund, raised in 2022, for the investment.

The VC built its reputation from nearly a dozen investments in Canva, from its very earliest days, and in the last 18 months, as Blackbird’s early funds reached the end of their decade-long life, the firm has been selling its stakes over the last 18 months, while also continuing to buy in again.

Airwallex, which also invests in startups, is currently reaping the benefits of signing multi-year partnership deal with McLaren Formula 1 team last year.

Australian driver Oscar Piastri won the Miami Grand Prix on the weekend. It was the third consecutive for the 24-year-old, repeating the 1998 feat of former McLaren driver Mika Hakkinen. He is also became the first Australian to win three consecutive F1 races since Alan Jones in 1981 and now has four wins for the year under his belt and leads the driver’s championship on 25 points – seven ahead of his teammate Lando Norris.

Their dual success also puts McLaren at the top of the F1 Constructors’ Championships for 2025, a quarter of the way through the 24-race season.