Co-founder's name match on OFAC list blocked early Airwallex payments
Jack Zhang · Airwallex CEO & Co-Founder, Jack Zhang: The Angel That Turned $1M into $1BN · 20VC with Harry Stebbings · May 26, 2025 · at 20:25
Jack Zhang is the co-founder and CEO of Airwallex. Before starting Airwallex, Zhang and co-founder Max Lee ran a coffee business and struggled with international supply chain payments.
“My co-founder's name is, is Max Lee. The same name is on the OFAC blacklist. So whoever that he's sending a payment using his personal name, because at that time, you know, we're still using personal name to sending money around the world. And his name, his payment just got blocked somewhere in the middle because it's going through the swift network and bounced back after two months.”
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