Corporate / CVC · 3 deals
Global payments company
Every published round Mastercard took part in, and every parcel of existing shares it bought off another holder. Deals we hold but haven't published yet are not counted.
| Company | Stage | Announced | Amount | Role | Alongside | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mx51 | Series B | 19 Jul 2022 | $32.5m | Participant | Cut Through Venture, Startup Daily (25 Jul 2022), SmartCompany, Australian FinTech, Startup Daily (19 Jul 2022) | |
| WeMoney | Series A | 22 Apr 2025 | $12m | Participant | Fintech News Australia (30 Mar 2026), Radium Capital, SmartCompany, Fintech News Australia (23 Apr 2025), Startup Daily, Australian FinTech | |
| Paypa Plane | Series A | 3 Apr 2023 | $10m | Participant | Startup Daily (26 Jul 2023), SmartCompany, Women's Agenda, Australian FinTech, Startup Daily (31 Mar 2023), Business News Australia, paypaplane.com, Sprint Ventures portfolio |
Companies Mastercard has backed in a published round, and companies whose existing shares it bought off another holder.
| Company | What it does | First invested | Rounds | Led |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mx51 | Payments fintech | 19 Jul 2022, Series B | 1 | 0 |
| Paypa Plane | 3 Apr 2023, Series A | 1 | 0 | |
| WeMoney | Financial health coach app | 22 Apr 2025, Series A | 1 | 0 |
Fund closes reported for Mastercard, as distinct from the investments it has made.
Companies Mastercard has backed that another company then bought. An exit for the holding, not a deal Mastercard did.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Brenton Charnley | Vice President and Head of Open Banking, Australasia | Fintech News Australia, Australian FinTech (22 Apr 2025), Australian FinTech (23 May 2024) |
| Matt Barr | Startup Daily (29 Aug 2025), SmartCompany, Startup Daily (25 Aug 2025), Business News Australia, Australian FinTech | |
| Surin Fernando | Senior Vice President and Head of Customer Solutions Center, Australasia | Australian FinTech |
Stories naming Mastercard. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
WeMoney has launched WeMoney Connect, an AI lending assessment tool using consented Consumer Data Right bank data, in limited early access for Australian lenders, with Mastercard as strategic investor.
Australian FinTech introduces Canvas as a new member. Canvas builds infrastructure for tokenised securities, stablecoins and CBDCs, and took part in the Reserve Bank of Australia's eAUD pilot.
ANNA's Australian operation obtained its financial services licence and rolled out Apple Pay, Google Pay and Mastercard checkout alongside ASIC and ATO integrations, letting small firms manage payments and tax in one place.
Ten13's post sets out its reasons for backing Appetise's A$7 million Series A with OIF, Icehouse, NZVC and K1W1, highlighting the grocery platform's shopper dataset and growth.
Melbourne fintech pay.com.au has banked $25 million for a US push, Morgans Corporate leading, with Wilson Asset Management, Thorney Group and Ophir participating, at a pre-money valuation of $633 million.
Australian card payments firm Vault Payment Solutions has been granted Mastercard Principal Issuer status, giving it direct network access to build and launch payment products faster with stronger security for clients.
Forbes Australia profiles EatClub co-founder Pan Koutlakis, whose restaurant discount app raised $18.2 million in a Series A led by Co:Act Capital to fund UK expansion after a near-collapse during COVID.
Weekly roundup detailing five Australian raises: Vaxxas' Series D plus debt facility amid executive changes, Skutopia's growth round, Send Payments' backing and CEO change, Apate.ai's seed, and Coursebox's seed.
Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Australian FinTech·Dealroom·Startup Daily
Cross-border payments firm Send has landed a five-million-dollar round backed by iPartners and existing backers, and named payments veteran Matt Barr chief executive while co-founder Paul Billing steps back.
Also Startup Daily·Australian FinTech·Business News Australia
Payments firm Airwallex closed a large Series F at a $9.6 billion valuation, led by Square Peg with several local and global backers, while the piece recalls its earlier raises back to 2016.
Funding roundup covering six Australian-linked startups: Superpower's US$30m Series A, WeMoney's $12m Series A plus debt facility, InsightWise's $1m pre-seed, and Bupa's first venture investments in three health startups.
WeMoney banked $12 million in a Series A led via Laurence Escalante's family office, with Mastercard among backers, plus $1 million debt, at a reported $100 million valuation.
Also SmartCompany
Weekly roundup covering seven ANZ startup raises — Bare Funerals, Humii, WeMoney, CLT Toolbox, Clean Slate Clinic, SpatialGPT and Great Wrap — plus LaunchVic's $900,000 into Paul Little's Skalata fund.
WeMoney closed a $3 million round from largely existing backers, following its 2020 seed and 2022 raises, and signed a Mastercard Open Banking deal while preparing a larger raise.
Also SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·Startup News (WA)
A profile of Brisbane fintech Paypa Plane's new 12-week gender-neutral parental leave policy, noting its recent $10 million Series A raise, Mastercard backing, and plans to grow its team.
Also paypaplane.com·Business News Australia·Startup Daily·Australian FinTech·Startup Daily·Women's Agenda
US fintech investor Michael H. Giles has invested A$6.9 million in Brisbane-listed payments provider Change Financial, taking a 19.99% stake via his vehicle FinTech HQ to support its US expansion.
Zeller launches transaction accounts, debit cards and an app, expanding beyond payments into broader business banking services, and announces an exclusive distribution partnership with Officeworks for its debit card.
Cut Through Venture's August update rounds up July 2022 Australian startup funding, listing raises from Mx51 to WeMoney, Startmate's newest cohort of twelve, and the beta launch of its investor search tool.
Also Techboard
A roundup of Australian startups that raised funds in recent weeks: mx51, Refundid, Storipress, HIVERY, InternMatch, upcover, Pearler and Loopit together secured over $100 million despite a cooling venture market.
Also Cut Through Venture
Payments company mx51 has closed a Series B round of $32.5 million with existing backers participating, after an undisclosed lead investor, and plans to expand in Australia and internationally.
Also Australian FinTech·SmartCompany·Cut Through Venture·Startup Daily
Podcast interview with Slyp co-founder Paul Weingarth on digitising receipts and loyalty, with all four major Australian banks having invested in the company.
UK payments company Kikapay hires Glenn Quadros for its legal and commercial leadership, launches a soft-POS product, and notes a funding round set to wrap in May.
Square Peg looks back on putting US$6 million into Airwallex's Series A+ alongside Tencent, Sequoia China, Gobi Partners and MasterCard, explaining why cross-border payment infrastructure needs fixing.
Payment firm Paypa Plane says Mastercard, Cuscal, Sprint Ventures and Queensland's Business Investment Fund joined its $10 million Series A, with QIC managing the investment and Commonwealth Bank and Tyro already backing it.
Also Business News Australia·Startup Daily·Australian FinTech·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Women's Agenda