Singapore-based Airwallex has announced the global launch of its refreshed ‘Airwallex for Startups’ program, a comprehensive initiative designed to help founders turn finance into a growth engine for their businesses.

The program positions financial operations as a strategic driver of scalability, resilience, and innovation rather than a back-office function, the firm said in a statement on Wednesday.

It is noted that globally, 90 percent of startups fail, and nearly two in five (38 percent) stall because they run out of cash.

Airwallex noted that when companies cannot effectively manage their financial operations, even strong business models and growing revenue are no guarantee of survival.

It’s precisely this gap that the ‘Airwallex for Startups’ program will address.

The program will begin in Singapore before expanding to other markets in the coming months.

It combines Airwallex’s financial infrastructure with hands-on Chief Financial Officer (CFO) mentorship and an artificial intelligence (AI) innovation sandbox, going far beyond traditional startup programs by helping founders build resilient financial foundations and scalable growth models.

Previously, the program supported startups across multiple regions with access to Airwallex’s financial infrastructure, startup perks, and community-building events – including a pitch competition in Singapore judged by a panel that included the Singapore Fintech Association – as well as learning and networking sessions with the likes of Square Peg, Jungle Ventures, and NextGen Ventures, Australia’s first student-focused venture capital fund.

Startups in select regions also had the opportunity to win business acceleration grants worth $10,000 in their respective local currencies.

Building on that foundation, this next phase takes the mission further by equipping founders with the tools, guidance, and networks they need to grow beyond borders with confidence.

“The best ideas don’t just need funding; they need the right financial foundations to scale,” said Lucy Liu, Co-founder and President, Airwallex.

“Feedback from our community has sharpened our focus,

“We’re now aligning our expertise and experience to deliver what founders value most from Airwallex: access to the tools, knowledge, and networks that turn financial operations into a growth advantage,” she added.

The ‘Airwallex for Startups’ program is built on three core pillars designed to maximize founder success.

Firstly, stage-appropriate financial infrastructure. Startups gain access to Airwallex products and financial perks designed to make every dollar count.

Benefits scale with funding stage – from pre-seed through Series A and beyond – ensuring support grows alongside each company’s trajectory.

Secondly, strategic financial mentorship. Founders receive ongoing access to veteran finance leaders through the Startup CFO Expert Panel.

These CFOs have guided some of the region’s most successful tech companies through hypergrowth and downturns alike.

Participants join small-group sessions and operator-led masterclasses covering cash-flow and burn optimization, valuation and cap-table strategy, fundraising preparation, and investor relations.

Thirdly, the AI Sandbox which provides a differentiated innovation track for AI-native startups.

Selected teams receive real challenge statements from Airwallex – such as customer-acquisition or workflow-automation problems – and collaborate directly with internal champions to design and test solutions in live conditions.

The most promising teams may go on to develop design-partner relationships with Airwallex, gaining early customer validation and proof points to accelerate future fundraising.

The inaugural cohort focuses on growth and productivity use cases.

Beyond these pillars, Airwallex has also partnered with OpenAI, Google Cloud, HubSpot, and other leading platforms to provide founders with an integrated stack of exclusive perks across AI, cloud infrastructure, and growth tools.

This ecosystem approach creates a multiplier effect that extends beyond financial services alone, giving startups the complete toolkit they need to build, ship, and scale faster.

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