Senior Partnerships Manager, Startup and VC Ecosystem, France

ABOUT AIRWALLEX Airwallex is the only unified payments and financial platform for global businesses. Powered by our unique combination of proprietary infrastructure and software, we empower over 250,000 businesses worldwide – including Brex, Navan, Qantas, SHEIN and many more – with fully integrated solutions to manage everything from business accounts, payments, spend management and treasury, to embedded finance at a global scale. Proudly founded in Melbourne, we have a team of over 2,300 of the brightest and most innovative people in tech across 27 offices around the globe. Valued at US$11 billion and backed by world-leading investors including T. Rowe Price, Visa, Mastercard, Robinhood Ventures, Sequoia, Salesforce Ventures, DST Global, and Lone Pine Capital, Airwallex is leading the charge in building the global payments and financial platform of the future. If you’re ready to do the most ambitious work of your career, join us.   ATTRIBUTES WE VALUE We hire successful builders with founder-like energy who want real impact, accelerated learning, and true ownership. You bring strong role-related expertise and sharp thinking, and you’re motivated by our mission and operating principles https://www.airwallex.com/us/operating-principles. You move fast with good judgment, dig deep with curiosity, and make decisions from first principles, balancing speed and rigor. You're humble and collaborative; turn zero‑to‑one ideas into real products, and you “get stuff done” end-to-end. You use AI to work smarter and solve problems faster. Here, you’ll tackle complex, high‑visibility problems with exceptional teammates and grow your career as we build the future of global banking. If that sounds like you, let’s build what’s next.   ABOUT THE TEAM Airwallex’s SME & Growth team partners with ambitious SMB and mid‑market businesses operating across borders, helping them get paid, manage FX, pay suppliers and issue cards from a single platform. In France, we’re in build mode: a lean, high‑calibre commercial team in a large greenfield market. You’ll work at the intersection of Sales, Partnerships and Marketing, building an ecosystem with VCs, accelerators and the startup community to fuel our SME & Growth franchise in France (and selectively across EMEA). ABOUT THE ROLE Reporting to the Head of Sales, SME & Growth France and working closely with EMEA Partnerships, you will be Partnerships Manager – VC & Startup Ecosystem, building and scaling a new growth vector for Airwallex in France. You will design and execute our strategy with VCs, accelerators, incubators and startup platforms in France, fully aligned with our EMEA vision – om end‑to‑end – from sourcing and signing partners, to enabling their teams, to turning relationships into qualified pipeline and revenue. You’ll own partner‑sourced targets, be the primary contact for priority partners, and coordinate with Sales, Marketing, SDRs and Product. The role is based in Paris in a hybrid model (min. 3 days/week in office). WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING - Build and own the VC & startup ecosystem strategy in France: define objectives, target partner archetypes and prioritisation, and segment partners by fit and revenue potential. - Originate, negotiate and sign high‑value partnerships with leading VCs, accelerators and startup programmes in core Airwallex verticals; structure win‑win commercial and marketing agreements and coordinate internal approvals. - Activate partners and generate pipeline via webinars, office hours, clinics, demo days and joint events; work with Marketing, SDRs and Sales to run repeatable motions and optimise partner‑sourced funnel from reach to revenue. - Act as an ecosystem ambassador, representing Airwallex at key events, building deep relationships with GPs, platform teams and founders, and translating ecosystem trends into opportunities. - Partner internally with Sales, Marketing and Product on target segments, rules of engagement and feedback loops (product gaps, pricing, packaging, use cases). - Own performance and reporting on partner‑sourced pipeline, revenue and portfolio penetration, maintaining strong CRM hygiene and providing regular, data‑driven updates to the Head of Sales. YOU ARE... - An ecosystem builder who enjoys creating networks and scalable programmes in the VC / startup world. - Commercial and outcome‑driven, comfortable negotiating and closing, and focused on pipeline, conversion and revenue. - Strategic and structured, able to turn broad goals into clear strategy, priorities and operating rhythm. - Hands‑on, low‑ego and creative, happy to do the work yourself and design compelling partner value propositions with limited playbooks. - Data‑driven and resilient, using metrics to prioritise and iterate, and thriving in 0→1, ambiguous environments. - Relationship‑oriented, building trust quickly with senior stakeholders and maintaining long‑term, win‑win relationships. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS - 6+ years in partnerships, business development, strategy or ecosystem roles in high‑growth environments (SaaS, fintech, payments or B2B tech), including 3+ years directly in partnerships / ecosystem. - Proven exposure to the VC / startup ecosystem (working with or within VCs, accelerators, incubators or programmes), with examples of programmes targeting early‑ and growth‑stage companies. - Existing network with VCs, accelerators and startup communities in France (ideally across SaaS, e‑commerce and/or travel) and a track record of leveraging it. - Experience running partner programmes end‑to‑end (strategy, sourcing, contracting, activation, co‑marketing, optimisation) and delivering measurable commercial outcomes. - High comfort with data and tools (G‑Suite / Excel, Salesforce CRM and ideally BI tools like Looker). - Strong interest in fintech, international payments, FX and multi‑currency products, and ability to understand startup use cases. - Excellent written and verbal communication in French (native) and English (professional); Spanish or Italian is a plus. - Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Engineering or related field, or equivalent experience. WHY JOIN AIRWALLEX At Airwallex, you’ll have the chance to make a disproportionate impact in a rapidly growing global fintech, with competitive salary, attractive commission and meaningful equity. In France, we’re in hard scaling mode, backed by a committed €71m investment to build a category‑defining franchise. You’ll join at a pivotal moment, with high ambition and plenty still to build – ideal for an ecosystem builder who wants to shape how Airwallex partners with VCs, accelerators and the next generation of European scale‑ups. APPLICANT SAFETY POLICY: FRAUD AND THIRD-PARTY RECRUITERS To protect you from recruitment scams, please be aware that Airwallex will not ask for bank details, sensitive ID numbers (i.e. passport), or any form of payment during the application or interview process. All official communication will come from an @airwallex.com http://airwallex.com email address. Please apply only through careers.airwallex.com http://careers.airwallex.com or our official LinkedIn page. Airwallex does not accept unsolicited resumes from search firms/recruiters. Airwallex will not pay any fees to search firms/recruiters if a candidate is submitted by a search firm/recruiter unless an agreement has been entered into with respect to specific open position(s). Search firms/recruiters submitting resumes to Airwallex on an unsolicited basis shall be deemed to accept this condition, regardless of any other provision to the contrary. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY Airwallex is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity and anyone seeking employment at Airwallex is considered based on merit, qualifications, competence and talent. We don’t regard color, religion, race, national origin, sexual orientation, ancestry, citizenship, sex, marital or family status, disability, gender, or any other legally protected status when making our hiring decisions. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.