VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Airswift, a fintech startup pioneering Web 3.0 native payment solutions, announced that it raised $2 million USD in a pre-seed funding led by CE Innovation Capital (CEiC).
The latest funding comes amid a bear market sentiment and uncertainty around crypto. It indicates that investors are confident about Airswift’s unique model, and optimistic about the future of payment solutions that power the use of digital assets.
With blockchain technology at its core, Airswift is building a comprehensive payment infrastructure native to Web 3.0. This includes an easy-to-use on-chain payment gateway that allows merchants to accept both crypto and fiat currency, enabling frictionless purchases with digital assets. Airswift plans to launch its initial product by September 2022, making it one of the first full-stack payment gateway solutions that facilitate digital asset acceptance around the globe.
“The raise from CEiC shows that investors are confident in our unique strengths in blockchain R&D, payment gateway operations, regulatory compliance, among other factors,” said Dr. Yan Zhang, Co-founder and CEO of Airswift. “The current challenge associated with enabling crypto payments lies with both technical areas and fund aggregation. Airswift is committed to solving these issues with a decentralized payment gateway that protects user privacy and supports a liquidity pool model powered by block-chain technology.”
As a Fintech-focused global investor, CEiC firmly believes blockchain enabled payment solutions are a fundamental technological innovation that could create a paradigm shift in the financial services industry worldwide. The Fintech investor stresses that the market is in its infancy, with huge potential for growth. In 2021, the global volume of blockchain enabled payments reached $15-16bn USD, presenting only a small fraction of that year’s entire global digital payment volume of $7.5 trillion USD. The investor values Airswift's unique advantages in its established and forward-looking CeFi and DeFi solutions and its team's rich experience, business acumen and prudent regulatory mindset towards the payments and blockchain industries. CEiC is excited to partner with Airswift to create new payment solutions that could disrupt the trillion dollar global digital payment market.
Airswift was co-founded by CEO Dr. Yan Zhang, a successful entrepreneur in crypto, eCommerce and Fintech. His team brings comprehensive expertise in blockchain R&D, having obtained more than fifty patents related to the technology. Airswift also has a significant background in payment gateway operations, achieving strong regulatory endorsements in North America, SEA, and EMEA.