Circles, Airwallex bring embedded finance to global telcos

Circles has agreed a global partnership with Airwallex to integrate Airwallex's embedded finance products into CirclesX, the software platform Circles sells to telecom operators.

The integration gives telcos a route into digital banking-style services across more than 70 countries. The offering centres on FinX, an embedded financial services stack within CirclesX.

Circles sells CirclesX as a software-as-a-service platform for telecom operators, used by groups including KDDI, e&, AT&T and Telkomsel. Operators have used it to launch digital mobile virtual network operators in parts of Asia and South America, and in Telkomsel's digital systems in Indonesia.

Embedded finance

FinX is designed to let telecom operators introduce financial products within their own digital channels, without building payments and financial infrastructure themselves. Circles said this can reduce upfront costs and ease the operational burden of compliance and regulation.

Airwallex provides the payments and financial infrastructure behind FinX. It operates a global fintech platform that supports money movement to more than 200 countries and territories, according to the company. Airwallex also holds more than 80 licences and permits and has a partnership with Visa.

Within CirclesX, FinX includes services for both consumer and business use cases. Circles said telcos can offer global payouts, travel cards, supplier payments and expense management, as well as foreign exchange rates, which it described as best in class.

The partnership comes as telecom groups look for new services beyond connectivity. Mobile and fixed connectivity markets have faced price pressure in many regions, while customer acquisition costs have risen in some markets, and churn remains a focus for consumer operators.

Circles positioned embedded finance as a way to drive more frequent customer interactions. It also said operators can reuse existing know-your-customer processes when rolling out financial services, including for payments and remittances.

"At Circles, we're continuously pushing the boundaries of innovation for the industry beyond just core telco products and we are confident that embedded financial products will power the next phase of revenue growth for telcos. With Airwallex's fintech expertise, we've built a globally scalable financial services stack embedded in our platform, making it seamless for any telco organization to launch and scale financial products or services with zero licensing and infrastructure hassles," said Awais Malik, Chief Growth Officer at Circles.

Telco distribution

Airwallex framed telecom operators as a distribution channel for financial services, citing the role of mobile operators in day-to-day digital activity and the opportunity to expand product sets inside existing customer apps.

"Telecom operators sit at the centre of their customers' daily lives, but connectivity alone is no longer enough to drive long-term growth. By partnering with Circles and integrating with the CirclesX platform, we're enabling operators to embed trusted, global financial services directly into their digital experiences - unlocking new revenue streams, deeper engagement and stronger customer lifetime value at scale," said Arnold Chan, General Manager, Asia-Pacific at Airwallex.

Circles also runs a consumer mobile brand in Singapore, Circles.Life, which it uses as a test bed for product development. Circles said Circles.Life already offers two FinX-backed products: a semi-open wallet and a cashback card.

The wallet is available in select channels. Circles said it has delivered 40% incremental subscriber growth, which it linked to wallet top-ups through PayNow and peer-to-peer transfers.

Circles also highlighted the Zerofy cashback programme, which includes a cashback card. It said the programme has driven five-fold growth in monthly transactions per user and a ten-fold increase in monthly spend, and contributed to a 30-point year-on-year increase in customer net promoter score.

For Circles, the partnership extends CirclesX beyond telco functions and customer journeys and adds a new product family for operators already using the platform. For Airwallex, it opens a path into telecom operator channels, including telcos running digital sub-brands and app-based engagement models.

Circles said it will start rolling out FinX to existing CirclesX customers and other telecom operators in the coming weeks.