SINGAPORE - Australia-founded fintech firm Airwallex saw its Singapore revenue jump in 2024, bolstered by rising transaction volumes as more businesses offered digital financial services for customers at home and abroad.

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) here are eyeing global growth despite rising geopolitical uncertainty and operational challenges, with more than half planning to adopt digital platforms to support their financial needs as they expand, a study by Airwallex showed.

The study was done between January and March, and involved 250 Singapore SMEs with 50 to 500 employees.

There has been a notable increase in cross-border activity in 2024, particularly among digital-first businesses expanding into new markets, which has contributed to a surge in transaction volume here, Mr Ershad Ahamed, head of South-east Asia at Airwallex, told The Straits Times after a media briefing on April 9.

Now headquartered in Singapore, Airwallex provides SMEs with a single platform to manage their global financial operations, covering everything from multi-currency accounts and international transfers to corporate cards, expense management, and online payments.

In Singapore, its clients include Endowus, Love, Bonito, Mighty Jaxx, EU Holidays, Far East Flora, and Huber’s Butchery.

Although the firm competes with the likes of Wise and Revolut, which have a stronger consumer focus, Airwallex focuses on providing services to SMEs, particularly those expanding globally or managing money across multiple currencies.

Mr Ershad said a common challenge for local SMEs looking to expand overseas is the complexity and cost of receiving payments from international customers.

This would typically require setting up local bank accounts in each new market, a time-consuming process, or relying on traditional cross-border wire transfers, which would be costly and comes with long settlement times.

While 48 per cent of the SMEs surveyed by Airwallex identified managing cash flow both globally and locally as one of the key barriers to growth, these businesses still aim to expand to the rest of Asia.

Additionally, 58 per cent plan to use digital or fintech platforms to support their financial needs, citing convenience, faster transactions, and cost savings as the main drivers.

Mr Ershad said Airwallex can help businesses reduce these costs by offering access to interbank foreign exchange (FX) rates with low, transparent margins, among others. The platform charges FX rates that are close to, or ...