Jack Pierse. Image: Wayflyer
Pierse founded Wayflyer with Aidan Corbett in 2019. The company achieved unicorn status in 2022.
Jack Pierse, Wayflyer’s co-founder and chief financial officer, is leaving the tech unicorn to pursue a new venture.
Pierse founded the e-commerce financing start-up in 2019 with Aidan Corbett. Since then it has soared to huge heights.
In 2022, following a funding raise of $150m, the company became one of Ireland’s tech unicorns.
It has been expanding since then, growing its team and making a series of senior hires. It also signed a major sponsorship deal this year with Irish golfer Shane Lowry and snapped up creator funding provider Peblo in its first big acquisition.
Last month, the company renewed its $300m debt line led by JP Morgan, to continue supporting e-commerce companies globally.
In a statement, Pierse said the people at Wayflyer are some of the best he has ever worked with. “I’ve every faith in this team being the right group to pursue the ambition Aidan and I have set down for this company.”
In August 2022, Pierse was one of several investors to back US fintech start-up Arc.
Wayflyer’s other co-founder, Corbett, said Pierse had in discussions with him for quite some time about moving onto a new venture when the time was right.
“Given our recent renewal of funding with JP Morgan and Wayflyer’s improved trading performance this year to date, we’ve agreed that time is now,” he said.
“As a founder, Jack has made an enormous contribution to the business, including coming up with the original idea for Wayflyer back in 2019. We’ll miss him very much and wish him the best for his next venture.”
Dan Ahrens is a partner at Left Lane Capital, one of the long-term backers of Wayflyer. He said Pierse has played “an integral role” in the company’s journey over the last few years.
“He and Aidan have taken the business from a small start-up right through to the mature, global business it is now. We really appreciate all Jack has done for the company and he leaves with our best wishes,” he said.
“We look forward to working with Aidan and the rest of the Wayflyer team as the business moves into an exciting new phase.”
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