Airwallex: Supporting McLaren F1 Team’s Financial Operations

Airwallex has fast become a leading global payments and financial platform for modern businesses, offering trusted solutions to manage everything from payments, treasury and spend management to embedded finance.

Now, having signed a multi-year deal, the firm has become an official partner of the McLaren Racing Formula 1 team, one of the sport’s biggest brands.

Airwallex is set to support McLaren’s global financial operations through its treasury management and cross-border payouts and settlement product suite, further igniting the fintech giant’s growth trajectory. 

“There are very few brands that match McLaren’s heritage and global appeal,” comments Jack Zhang, Co-Founder and CEO at Airwallex. 

“Like McLaren, Airwallex is constantly innovating to move faster and with greater precision – with a product that unites people around the world. Our partnership will play a key role in supporting our global expansion, and we look forward to working with the McLaren team in 2024 and beyond to support our mutual growth.”

Optimising supply chain payments

Founded in Melbourne in 2015, Airwallex already supports more than 100,000 businesses around the world and is trusted by brands including Brex, Rippling, Navan, Qantas and SHEIN. 

The company’s proprietary infrastructure takes the friction out of global payments and financial operations, empowering businesses of all sizes to unlock new opportunities and grow beyond borders. 

Forming a strategic partnership with Airwallex brings with it a host of benefits for McLaren, which will be ideally positioned to optimise supply chain payments for each Grand Prix in the F1 calendar. 

McLaren’s existing payments infrastructure limits payment to suppliers—such as hotel and event space providers—to a singular currency account based in the UK, resulting in high FX charges, slow transfer time and additional SWIFT fees. 

On the flip side, Airwallex’s financial technology will unlock multi-currency payment options for McLaren, allowing the racing icon to hold core currencies and exchange them with speed and ease at any point. This reduces the amount of SWIFT fees that may be payable by leveraging Airwallex's extensive global proprietary payment rail network.

Airwallex is also providing technology to support the launch and ongoing operation of McLaren’s digital partner merchandise platform, further enhancing its multi-currency collection capabilities and enhancing the payment options it can offer. 

Airwallex and McLaren’s global reach

Alongside the product integration, Airwallex becomes a partner of the McLaren Formula 1 team. Its logo will be prominently displayed on the halo of the McLaren MCL38 car, on overalls worn by drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri and their pit crew, as well as across other McLaren official branded material. 

As a truly global sporting event with races held in 24 cities and an annual viewership of 1.5 billion, Formula 1’s multi-market reach and impact are virtually unrivalled.

Airwallex’s partnership with the McLaren Formula 1 team, a prominent and much-loved brand, aligns with its global ambitions to be the financial platform of choice for innovative businesses across the world. 

“In the competitive world of Formula 1, efficiency and performance are crucial both on and off the track,” adds Zak Brown, CEO at McLaren Racing.

“We are delighted to have Airwallex on board and to use their innovative and trusted payment solutions to support our team’s financial operations.”

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