As Bitcoin bubbles to new highs and momentum returns to cryptocurrencies, it wouldn't be surprising to see fintech startups once again slap “Web3” into pitch decks to sell a potential growth narrative.
Just don’t expect Airwallex to be one of them.
"After 15 years, I still haven't seen a single use case where crypto has meaningfully helped solve a real problem," co-founder and CEO Jack Zhang wrote Monday in a welcome moment of LinkedIn candour.
Airwallex first made its name by facilitating cross-boarder payments for commerce and remittance. Stablecoins, which are crypto tokens backed by and pegged to fiat currency like the US dollar, are often identified as the most obviously useful and least volatile variety of cryptocurrency. It’s often said that they're a perfect fit for platforms like Airwallex because they can be sent overseas cheaply and instantly. But Zhang calls foul.
"I don’t see how stablecoins reduce costs — off-ramping from stablecoins to fiat is often far more expensive than using the FX interbank market," he wrote. "Even though stablecoins are less volatile, I don’t see how they benefit B2B transactions at scale."
