Airwallex has named Alin Dobrea as its new marketing director for Southeast Asia, signalling a strategic move to deepen its regional presence. The company, on a rapid growth trajectory across EMEA and beyond, aims to leverage Dobrea’s expertise to accelerate expansion in Asia’s vibrant fintech landscape amid rising digital commerce and innovative financial solutions.
Airwallex, a rapidly growing fintech company, has appointed Alin Dobrea as its new marketing director for Southeast Asia, signalling the company’s commitment to accelerating its regional expansion and marketing efforts. Based in Singapore, Dobrea will spearhead Airwallex’s marketing strategy and oversee initiatives designed to assist businesses across Asia in modernising their fintech infrastructure—ranging from cross-border payments and embedded finance to global treasury and business expansion.
Dobrea expressed his enthusiasm on LinkedIn, highlighting Airwallex’s mission to “empower businesses of all sizes to operate without borders” by building infrastructure that facilitates the instant, secure, and global movement of money. He also pointed to the exciting opportunity of working with high-profile partners like McLaren Racing and Arsenal Football Club, describing it as “a marketer’s dream come true.” His appointment reflects Airwallex’s ongoing efforts to scale its presence and diversify its product offerings in Southeast Asia, a region where digital commerce and fintech adoption continue to accelerate.
Bringing extensive marketing expertise to the role, Dobrea has held leadership positions at major firms including ZALORA Group and Marks & Spencer, where he drove transformative marketing programmes in digital and growth marketing. His experience is expected to bolster Airwallex’s regional profile as it competes in a fast-evolving fintech landscape.
Airwallex itself is on a strong growth trajectory globally. The company currently powers over 100,000 businesses worldwide, processing upwards of US$200 billion in annualised transaction volume across 26 offices in major financial hubs such as Singapore, Hong Kong, London, and San Francisco. Recent strategic moves underline its global ambitions: in September, Airwallex expanded into the Middle East market, securing in-principle approval for key payments licences in the UAE and establishing a new entity in Saudi Arabia. This expansion supports the fintech’s strategy to tap into thriving digital economies and aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 agenda. The company also formed a partnership with Tabby, the leading ‘buy now, pay later’ provider in the Middle East, enabling merchants to offer more flexible payment options and boost consumer engagement.
Meanwhile, Airwallex’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) operations have seen remarkable growth, with revenue in Q3 2024 up by 271 percent year-on-year and transaction volumes increasing by 145 percent. The company has expanded its regional footprint with a new office in Paris, and hires in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, reflecting a broader push to serve the growing demand for fintech services in the region. Overall, Airwallex surpassed US$100 billion in annual processing volume, up 60 percent since the previous year, along with strong growth across its payments, foreign exchange, payout, and card-issuing products. The company’s annual run rate revenue has exceeded US$500 million.
This growth has been underpinned by a successful funding round in May 2025, which raised US$300 million and boosted Airwallex’s valuation to US$6.2 billion—an 11 percent increase from its 2022 valuation. Despite a challenging fundraising environment for fintechs, the round attracted major investors including Square Peg, DST Global, Lone Pine Capital, and Blackbird. The new capital is earmarked for expanding into new geographies such as Japan, Korea, the UAE, and Latin America, alongside technological enhancements intended to solidify Airwallex’s position as a global financial infrastructure platform.
As fintech competition intensifies globally, Airwallex’s hiring of a seasoned marketing leader like Dobrea, coupled with its rapid market entries and strong funding support, illustrate the company’s determination to reshape how businesses manage international financial operations. Industry watchers will be keen to see how Dobrea’s marketing leadership translates into deeper market penetration and increased brand visibility in Southeast Asia’s vibrant fintech ecosystem.
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Source: Noah Wire Services
Noah Fact Check Pro
The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first
emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed
below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may
warrant further investigation.
Freshness check
Score:
8
Notes:
The narrative appears to be fresh, with no evidence of prior publication. The earliest known publication date is 6 October 2025. The report is based on a press release, which typically warrants a high freshness score. No discrepancies in figures, dates, or quotes were found. No earlier versions show different information. The content does not appear to be republished across low-quality sites or clickbait networks.
Quotes check
Score:
9
Notes:
The direct quotes attributed to Alin Dobrea and Arnold Chan are unique to this report, with no identical matches found in earlier material. This suggests potentially original or exclusive content.
Source reliability
Score:
7
Notes:
The narrative originates from Marketing-Interactive, a reputable organisation known for its coverage of marketing and advertising news in Asia. This adds credibility to the report.
Plausability check
Score:
8
Notes:
The claims about Alin Dobrea’s appointment and his previous roles at ZALORA and Marks & Spencer are plausible and consistent with available information. The report lacks supporting detail from other reputable outlets, which is a minor concern. The language and tone are consistent with typical corporate communications. No excessive or off-topic detail unrelated to the claim is present. The tone is appropriately formal and professional.
Overall assessment
Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): PASS
Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): HIGH
Summary:
The narrative is fresh, with no evidence of prior publication or recycled content. The quotes appear original, and the source is reputable. The claims are plausible and consistent with available information, with appropriate language and tone. No significant credibility risks were identified.
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