The OzForex Group, an online foreign exchange payments platform operating under the OzForex, UKForex, CanadianForex and NZForex country brands, has received a minority growth investment from Accel Partners and The Carlyle Group.
The funds will help accelerate OzForex’s expansion into North America, Europe and Asia, as well as the development of complementary product and service offerings.
Under the arrangement, representatives from both Accel Partners and The Carlyle Group will serve on the OzForex board of directors.
The transaction closed on 19 November. Financial details were not disclosed.
The company’s founders and Macquarie Private Wealth, which is part of Macquarie Group, are together retaining significant ownership of OzForex, and Neil Helm will continue as chief executive.
OzForex recently launched a new money transfer site, ClearFX, which will play a t role in the foreign exchange provider’s international expansion strategy.
Helm says: “OzForex was built to offer customers a simple value proposition: a cheaper, faster, better foreign exchange experience. The fact that nearly all of our customers use us on a repeat basis, and refer us to family and friends is a testament to our focus on delivering the best service in the industry.”
Ryan Sweeney, a partner at Accel Partners, says: “As more consumers and businesses transact internationally, hedging and purchasing foreign currency is an increasingly necessary exercise. Also, customers are progressively gaining comfort with online financial services providers. OzForex has effectively capitalised on both of these trends by providing the best online service that we have seen in the market.”
P. Olivier Sarkozy, managing director and head of Carlyle’s global financial services group, adds: “As the global marketplace becomes more interconnected we see FX flows continuing to increase at rapid rates. OzForex presents customers with a compelling, secure value proposition for moving funds from country to country – a huge, underserved market. OzForex has built an innovative, secure and cost-effective FX platform that is poised for significant growth.”
